In July 1669, the legal records of Aberdeen documented the case of Robert Shevies, a man of middling socioeconomic status whose profession as a blacksmith placed him at the heart of the town’s daily industrial life. As a tradesman, Robert would have been a familiar figure in the burgh, his work essential to the maintenance of tools, ironwork, and the agricultural machinery of the surrounding region. However, on the 15th of July, his position within this community shifted significantly as he was brought before the authorities to face an accusation of witchcraft.
The documentation regarding Robert’s encounter with the Scottish judicial system, specifically recorded under case reference C/EGD/1728 and trial note T/JO/644, remains stark in its brevity. While the surviving archives confirm his identity and the date of the proceedings, the specific narratives of the accusations brought against him—or the eventual outcome of his trial—are absent from the historical record. Consequently, Robert remains a figure defined by his trade and the gravity of the legal processes that marked him, offering a brief, formal glimpse into the reach of the witch trials during the mid-seventeenth century.