9. You were financially independent: Sexist beliefs in the subservience of women meant that those who didn’t need a man’s support were often suspected as witches
Back in the 16th and 17th centuries, independent women – that is, women who lived alone, without a man to support them – were often viewed with suspicion. And if an independent woman was financially comfortable, then jealous neighbors might well accuse her of being a witch. Indeed, according to the records, around 9 in 10 of the women executed for witchcraft between the years 1620 and 1725 were financially independent. In almost every case they had no brothers so were the sole inheritors of family wealth. Despite this, many juries were advised that they had acquired their wealth through black magic and were urged to find the women guilty.
While neighbors might have been jealous of an independent woman’s wealth, religious inquisitors were more concerned by the way they lived outside of the gender norms of the time. A lack of male control was particularly worrying and seen as a near-certain sign that a woman was up to no good. What’s more, women who could read and write, or who showed obvious signs of intelligence or learning, might often come under suspicion, as might a woman who knew how to perform ‘manly’ tasks or even knew how to swim!