Agnes Finnie (died 6 March 1645) was an Edinburgh shopkeeper and moneylender who was executed for

witchcraft Witchcraft is the use of Magic (supernatural), magic by a person called a witch. Traditionally, "witchcraft" means the use of magic to inflict supernatural harm or misfortune on others, and this remains the most common and widespread meanin ...

on 6 March 1645.

Biography

Finnie, widow of James Robertsone, sold consumer goods, such as fish and cakes in Potterrow,

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

. Finnie is documented as possessing a fiery temper and known for cursing people in the street. In June 1644, Finnie was arrested on 20 counts of witchcraft and

sorcery Sorcery commonly refers to: * Magic (supernatural), the application of beliefs, rituals or actions employed to manipulate natural or supernatural beings and forces ** Goetia, ''Goetia'', magic involving the evocation of spirits ** Witchcraft, the ...

. While most accused witches were tried within days of their initial arrest, Finnie was held for several months in

Old Tolbooth The Old Tolbooth was an important municipal building in the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, for more than 400 years. The medieval structure, which was located at the northwest corner of St Giles' Cathedral and was attached to the west end of the L ...

before the trial. She was tried on 20 December 1644 and executed on the Castle Hill of Edinburgh on Thursday, 6 March 1645. It is estimated that Finnie was age 48 at the time of her death. During the trial, Finnie's daughter Margaret Robertsone was accused of being a witch but was never arrested.

Posthumous petition for pardon

Finnie is among the thousands who were accused and convicted of witchcraft in Scotland, and whose names have been submitted to the Scottish Parliament for a posthumous pardon to the

Scottish Parliament The Scottish Parliament ( ; ) is the Devolution in the United Kingdom, devolved, unicameral legislature of Scotland. It is located in the Holyrood, Edinburgh, Holyrood area of Edinburgh, and is frequently referred to by the metonym 'Holyrood'. ...

. As of February 2025, no pardon has been issued. In 2022,

Nicola Sturgeon Nicola Ferguson Sturgeon (born 19 July 1970) is a Scottish politician who served as First Minister of Scotland and Leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP) from 2014 to 2023. She has served as a member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) sin ...

issued a formal apology for the 'historic injustice' on behalf of the Scottish Government to those accused of witchcraft between the 16th and 18th centuries.

Art work

Agnes Finnie was one of thirteen accused witches who featured in an exhibition called ''Witches in Word, Not Deed'' by Carolyn Sutton, held at the Edinburgh Central Library and toured Scotland in 2023.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Finnie, Agnes 1645 deaths Executed Scottish women Scottish people executed for witchcraft 17th-century Scottish businesswomen