Maidstone’s Inside Movement Seeks Pardon for Women Executed for Witchcraft Centuries Ago
A campaign in Maidstone
Maidstone, a quiet town in southern England outside London, is the focus of a campaign for pardons. Records show more than 20 women convicted of witchcraft were hanged there.
Who was targeted
England’s witch hunts peaked in the 1600s. Kehily told CBS News that those accused were often single women, spinsters or widows, usually without a man to defend them, and were easier to target.
Harris said women were often blamed when natural disasters or illnesses occurred. The article does not provide further details about Harris’s identity.
The case for a pardon
Kehily described the cases as a miscarriage of justice, saying the women could not have committed the crimes attributed to them and often had no way to be found innocent. She said the issue remains relevant because people are still scapegoated and miscarriages of justice continue. Kehily noted that the events took place 400 years ago.
Key points
- Councilors are lobbying the U.K. government and plan to petition King Charles III.
- Claire Kehily calls the convictions a miscarriage of justice.
- Salem’s falsely accused witches have been pardoned, but no U.K. witch conviction has been overturned.