The Witch of Edmonton

The Witch of Edmonton is an English Jacobean play. It was written in 1621 by William Rowley, Thomas Dekker, and John Ford, who were all established playwrights of this period. Other playwrights may have also contributed, including John Webster, who was working closely at the time with the play’s credited writers. The play was first performed by Prince Charles’s Men (a theatrical company patronized by Prince Charles’s estate) at the Cockpit Theater in 1621. It was first published and distributed by a London bookseller in 1658.

The primary plot focuses on two characters: Elizabeth Sawyer, who uses witchcraft for revenge on the community that ostracizes her, and Frank Thorney, who first commits bigamy and then murder in an attempt to protect his inheritance and cover his tracks. A comedic troupe of Morris dancers also features in the play. The play draws on different traditions of Jacobean theater—it is a tragicomedy that places the popular revenge tragedy into a more domestic setting, and it also incorporates elements of pastoral comedy.

The play directly draws on the real figure of Elizabeth Sawyer, who was executed for witchcraft in 1621. Its primary source material, a pamphlet by Henry Goodcole called “The wonderful discovery of Elizabeth Sawyer, Witch,” was published shortly after her execution. The playwrights also draw loosely on the 1602 play, The Merry Devil of Edmonton. They use some similar character names and plot elements from the older play, but they offer a much darker examination of its topic of complications surrounding arranging marriages.

This guide refers to the 1999 Manchester University Press edition, in the Revels Student Editions series. Early English Books Online provides a free online copy.

Content Warning: This play includes physical violence, death by suicide, and period-typical misogyny, including slurs addressed against women. Characters display discriminatory attitudes based on age, appearance, and socioeconomic status.

Plot Summary

Frank Thorney is a young man having an affair with a servant girl named Winnifride; he secretly married her because she is pregnant. Frank risks being disinherited if his father finds out about the marriage, so he is sending Winnifride out of the village to live with an uncle. Meanwhile, his father, Old Thorney, is arranging Frank’s marriage to Susan Carter, the daughter of a yeoman. Her father, Old Carter, promises to give Old Thorney a generous sum of money as a dowry as soon as the marriage takes place. Susan is being courted by another suitor, Warbeck, whom she rebuffs; her sister Katherine is cautiously encouraging toward her suitor, Somerton, who is Warbeck’s friend. When Frank arrives at the Carter residence, his father pulls him aside and privately tells him that his estate is in trouble and that he needs the dowry money to pay his debts. Frank promises his father that he will marry Susan.

In another part of Edmonton, Elizabeth Sawyer, a poor, old woman, is gathering firewood and lamenting that the villagers mistreat her and scapegoat her for their misfortunes. They call her a witch, and this makes her wish she actually was a witch so she would have the power to fight back. Old Banks, a landowner, appears and beats her for gathering firewood on his land; he, too, calls her a witch. Later, a group of Morris dancers that includes the landowner’s son, Young Banks, enters, bantering about what roles they will play in the dance. When they spot Elizabeth, they shout at her and flee, afraid that she will curse them. Elizabeth is agitated by this cruel treatment and longs for revenge. Then, Dog appears—a familiar in the form of a dog—and says he is the devil. He says he can help her take revenge on the villagers if she will give him her soul, and Elizabeth agrees. Young Banks re-enters. Though he is privately cautious of Elizabeth, he asks for her help in wooing Katherine since he believes her powers as a witch can help his case. Elizabeth agrees to help him, but she plans to have Dog lead him astray.

Back at the Carter residence, everyone congratulates Frank and Susan, who have just been married. Susan is deeply in love with Frank, and she wonders why he seems troubled. After she questions him insistently about this, he confesses that a fortune teller once told him that he’d have two wives. Susan is unconcerned about this prophecy, interpreting it to mean that she will die before him, and he will remarry. However, when Frank says he must leave her for a while, she becomes alarmed, assuming that he’ll duel Warbeck—she vows to go everywhere with Frank to prevent this.

Elsewhere, the Morris dancers tease Young Banks about being in love. Elizabeth gave him some instructions to make Katherine fall in love with him; he follows these and finds Dog, who leads him to a spirit shaped like Katherine. Dog tricks Young Banks, and the spirit leads him into a pond where he gets soaked. Instead of being bitter about this, Young Banks blames himself for allowing himself to be led astray. Dog agrees to attend the Morris dance and help him woo Katherine.

Meanwhile, Frank plans to flee the village with Winnifride, who is disguised as a page boy. She is distressed when she finds out that he has married again, considering it sinful. Winnifride goes on ahead since Susan insists on accompanying Frank, even though Frank tries to send her back. Dog, who is invisible, brushes against Frank, and Frank suddenly decides to murder Susan. He stabs her with a knife, and he then cuts himself to make it look like he was attacked, too. He ties himself to a tree with Dog’s help, though Frank is unaware that Dog is helping him. Old Carter and Old Thorney are shocked by the scene when they enter; Frank blames Somerton and Warbeck for the attack.

Sir Arthur (who is Frank and Winnifride’s employer), Somerton, and Warbeck gather to watch the Morris dance. Dog attends, playing tricks on the fiddler. The constable interrupts and arrests Somerton and Warbeck for Susan’s murder; they deny all wrongdoing. The Morris dancers disband, disturbed by the events.

Dog recounts all his mischief to Elizabeth. She tells him she has a grudge against a village woman named Anne Ratcliffe; Dog says he has driven her mad, and just then, Anne enters, singing and talking nonsense. Anne’s husband arrives, accompanied by other villagers who lament this and try to lead her away; however, they later report that Anne is dead—she escaped them and bashed her head in offstage. Blaming Elizabeth for this, Old Banks vows to have her arrested.

At the Carter residence, Katherine finds the bloody knife in Frank’s pocket. She leaves at once to find her father. Meanwhile, Frank confesses the murder to Winnifride, who is distraught when she hears of it. Then, Katherine and Old Carter arrive and confront Frank, accusing him of murder. Winnifride reveals herself and confirms that Frank killed Susan. Officers arrive to arrest him.

Later, Elizabeth and Frank are both being led to the gallows to be executed for their crimes. Elizabeth waits eagerly for Dog to visit her again and help her; however, he will no longer fulfill her wishes as he already has her soul. He merely watches as she struggles against her arrest. Old Carter blames her for bewitching Frank to commit murder. Elizabeth laments that the villagers will not even let her die in peace, and she exits. Then, Frank expresses his sorrow and repentance for his misdeeds. Everyone offers forgiveness, and Winnifride says that she believes she will see him again in heaven. Then, he is led away. Old Carter vows to pay off Old Thorney’s financial debts and charitably offers Winnifride a place in his household.