In September 1630, legal proceedings were initiated against Margaret Buchan, a resident of Boddome in the parish of Peterhead, Aberdeen. The charges brought against her in case C/EGD/1249 centered on her alleged participation in a witches' meeting, a serious transgression within the social and ecclesiastical framework of seventeenth-century Scotland. At this time, the judicial pursuit of those suspected of diabolical pacts was reaching a heightened level of intensity in the north-east, where communal fears regarding the disruption of local life were frequently translated into criminal indictments.
Beyond the charge of gathering with other practitioners, Margaret was specifically accused of causing property damage, with particular emphasis placed on the destruction of boats. In a coastal community like Boddome, where the livelihood of the population relied heavily upon the fishing industry, the loss of vessels was a matter of significant economic and social gravity. The trial (T/LA/793) followed the established legal procedures of the era, which sought to address these grievances through formal accusations of maleficium—the harmful application of supposed supernatural power—as it pertained to the vital infrastructure of the town’s maritime economy.