In August 1597, Beigis Blakatt, a resident of Balwearie Milne in the parish of Kirkcaldy, Fife, found herself drawn into the judicial machinery of the Scottish witch trials. As documented in the records of the Kirkcaldy Burgh Court, the legal proceedings initiated against her required her formal presence before the magistrates. This initial stage of the process necessitated that Beigis be cautioned to appear, a standard procedural step that served to summon the accused to answer for allegations brought against her within the jurisdiction of the burgh.
The surviving records, specifically the notation by historian Julian Goodare following his examination of the Kirkcaldy Burgh Court Book, preserve the fundamental elements of Beigis's encounter with the law. While the secondary source material surrounding the specific circumstances of her case remains a subject of ongoing academic inquiry, the primary record confirms that she was actively processed through the court system on the 17th of August, 1597. Beyond this formal summons and the requirement for her appearance, the records remain focused on the administrative realities of her legal standing within the community of Balwearie Milne during this period of heightened judicial activity.