In the late summer of 1661, Margaret Grieve, a 47-year-old resident of Liberton near Edinburgh, found herself entangled in the judicial machinery of the Scottish witch trials. The legal records indicate that her case was deeply interconnected with others, as she was identified as an accomplice in the testimonies of Margaret Grintoun, Jonet Robeson, and Helen Spears. During the course of her examination, Margaret provided a confession, recorded on August 7, in which she claimed to have been in league with the Devil for 22 years—a duration that aligned exactly with her current age. This statement was not without complication, however; she had previously provided a different confession on July 29, only to retract it shortly thereafter.
The outcome of her ordeal was decided on September 6, 1661. Rather than facing execution or indefinite imprisonment, the Edinburgh court ordered that Margaret be released from jail. This freedom, however, was conditional. She was bound by caution to renounce her alleged practices, explicitly forbidden from employing any further charms, sorcery, or acts of witchcraft. With this legal obligation imposed upon her, the record of her involvement in the trials concludes, leaving Margaret to return to life in Liberton under the watchful eye of the community and the law.