The Nine-Year-Old Girl Who Accused Her Family of Witchcraft

How the confession of Jennet Device led to the execution of ten Pendle witches

Statue of Alice Nutter, one of the accused Pendle witches, in Lancashire, England —image by Graham Demaline

Jennet Device was born in 1603 in Pendle Hill, Lancashire. She was the daughter of Elizabeth Device and the granddaughter of Elizabeth Southern, who was also known as Demdike. Device lived with her family at her grandmother’s house, the Malkin Tower. Device was the major witness in a witch trial that resulted in the hanging of her mother, brother, sister, and many neighbors.

This is a story that went on 400 years ago. It occurred in 1612, in one of the British witch trials. The trials, which took place during the rule of King James I, led to a beggar girl leaving a mark in history.

Device and her family survived mainly by begging, doing piece jobs, healing, and extortion. Her grandmother was described as a cunning woman, which translated to being a witch. Also, Device’s neighbors, the Chattox, survived through the same means. Hence, the families were usually in competition.

The area of Pendle Hill in which Device lived was well known for containing troublesome people who did not oblige with the law. In 1562, the An Act Against Conjurations, Enchantments, and Witchcrafts was passed. The law translated that death punishment was to be awarded…