In November 1661, Helen Belshes was caught within the machinery of the Scottish legal system, an era marked by heightened scrutiny regarding the perceived influence of witchcraft. While the records maintain a degree of geographic ambiguity, placing her residence in Berwick while noting the involvement of commissioners from Eyemouth, Helen’s case proceeded with characteristic administrative gravity. Her legal journey was documented under the reference C/EGD/1404, marking a formal entry into the judicial archives of the period.
The resolution of her initial examination was documented later that same month when Helen provided a formal confession. Although the specific trial notes associated with her case (T/JO/802) remain silent on the particulars of the testimony or the specific allegations brought against her, the existence of this confession serves as a final, stark marker of her engagement with the court. In the landscape of seventeenth-century justice, this document stands as the definitive record of her role in the proceedings.