Capitular Archive of Barcelona, Pía Almoina, list of criminal trials 1, trial nº 36 (1578).

Blanca Bardiera, a French woman, is accused of witchcraft and is tried by the local courts. Sixteen witnesses are brought forward by the prosecution, who accuse her of killing babies and making people ill with her potions and her magic. The defending lawyer brings forward four defence witnesses, who praise Blanca’s good conduct. On the 5th December Blanca makes a statement and at the end of the trial it is decided to free Blanca on bail.

On having the opinion that Blanca Bardiera, Frenchwoman, inhabitant of Sant Feliu de Llobregat, is a witch.

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Bertrana de Caubos, Frenchwoman, now inhabitant of the town of Sant Feliu de Llobregat. Witness cited and swears on God Our Lord and the four Gospel Saints, etc.

And on being questioned by the tribunal on the matter, says:

Honourable mayor, what I know about the matter is that the teacher Germán Oriol, of this town, hired me and Blanca one day to remove the weeds from a wheat field. The morning that we had to go to remove the weeds of the said field, as the said Blanca and I were going along the road, me in front, I have the suspicion that the said Blanca, with her diabolical arts, put something on my body, because suddenly I found that all my body hurt me a great deal, especially my heart, which seemed to me to be poisoned, when before it was fine. And all of the day I was not able to work, nor in the following four and a half months, nor could I eat anything. Until the point that the said Blanca one day called me to her door and said to me: “Lady Bertrana, come here”. And I went and I went with her, and she asked me if I was cured, and I told her that I was not. And she asked me if I had eaten, and I told her I had not, that I could not eat. And then she went into her house and looked for a saucepan, and she brought me from the said saucepan two portions, which did not look like bread soups, and I did not know what it might be. And she told me to eat that, and I said to her that I did not want them, that I could not eat them. And she told me that I could eat them, that they were very good. And I, afraid that they might kill me, did not dare to eat them, and she replied to me that I should trust her, that if I ate them I would be cured then and there. And I was rather doubtful as to whether to eat them, and I thought, I can only die once, and if it kills me –I thought- it would not kill me too quickly, I would have time to confess, and I would also say that she had poisoned me. And afterwards, with my fingertip, I did not dare to touch except with my fingertip, I had some of what she had in the saucepan, it was not a thin soup but a thick one. And I placed my fingertip in it four or five times and ate, and having finished, it seemed to me that it had the taste of good herbs, especially thyme. And as soon as I had finished I found myself to be well and it seemed to me that my pain had been nothing. And then I thought and I believed that she only did it for diabolical reasons, since she had made the pain come to me suddenly and with those soups it went away. And the soups seemed to me to be a worse sign than the other, because I always thought that people didn’t like her, but the thing about the soups I did not take as a good sign, and since then I have never liked her, rather I have thought her to be a witch.

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Montserrat Macià, wife of Jaume Macià, farmworker of Sant Feliu de Llobregat. Cited witness, who swears on God Our Lord and the four Gospel Saints.

And on being questioned by the tribunal, says: Lord Attorney, what I know about what you speak to me of is that I had a baby girl of sixteen or seventeen months, more or less, who was already walking, and the lady Blanca used to call her and take her, and every day she came home three or four times and she stayed almost half the day. And one Saturday, when the girl was very well, she ate a plate of hot soups and after giving them to her, after an hour I changed her nappy and put her to bed; she was very well and healthy. And at midnight, I think it may have been between twelve and one, the girl woke up with an enormous shout and crying, and my husband calling out to me: “mistress of the house, wake up!”. According to what he says, I could not wake up. And when I woke up I found her all broken and bruised, it seemed to me that her back was broken, and I said to her: No! And so I got up as best I could and picked up the girl to breastfeed her, because she was still taking the breast, and the girl could not take the breast at all, but rather was shouting and shouting. And towards dawn the girl went to sleep, and I got up, I went downstairs and opened the door, and once it was open the girl woke up and I picked her up and put her in her cot to change her. Then Blanca came to look for a light for her fire and she said to me on entering: “What is your baby girl doing, how is she?” And I, very frightened, said to her, what was she doing, on saying those words, since no one had left the house at that time. And then she came in to look for a light and stayed for a good while before going. And with her [looking] through the window, I wanted to see what she was doing, and I saw her thus, bent over around the fire, stirring the coals with her stick, and afterwards she went saying: “Goodbye!”. And I said to her: “Good riddance”. And since then she has never come in my house again, nor dared to talk to my little girl, whose illness lasted for twelve or thirteen days, with attacks of breathlessness, all the neighbourhood was coming to my house to see the little girl, and she never dared to enter, but rather, one Sunday when she had an attack of breathlessness, all the neighbourhood came to my house, and the said Blanca, who was sitting in front of my house, at the house of the brick-maker, shut herself inside her house, which greatly surprised me since, after having made herself such a friend of mine, she did not speak or come to see the little girl. And before the little girl died we found her blue everywhere. And then that night she started to shout, with blood coming from her mouth and other places. And when my little girl had died, the both of us had arguments in the street, her saying to me: “you say that I killed your little girl”. And I said to her: “You already know so”. And she said some bad words to me. And I said to her “Why do you not come to my house now? Before you never left”. And she answered: “Because now I do not need to”.

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Beatriu Castellví, wife of Pere Castellví, peasant of Sant Feliu de Llobregat. Cited witness who swears on God our Lord.

And interrogated on the first article of the defence of the said Blanca, says that she, witness, considers her to be a good woman and a good Christian, from what she knows of her, and that she has taken her children, of which she has many, on many occasions, but has never known any of the harms that are attributed to her.

On the second, she says that she considers her to be as the said article narrates, although it is true that some complain about her, she still holds her to be a good woman.

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Sobre de tenir parer que na Blancha Bardiera, francesa, habitant de Sanct Feliu de Llobregat, és bruxa.

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Bertranda de Caubos, francigena, nunc vero habitatrix in villa Sancti Felicis de Lupricato. Testis citata et que juravit ad Dominum Deum et eius sancta quator Evangelia, etcetera.

Et, interrogata super curie prenentis, dixit:

Honorable balle, lo que jo sé sobre lo que.m interrogau és que, mestre Germà Oriol, de aquesta vila, me llogà a mi un dia y a na Blancha per a xercholar un camp de blat. Lo matí que havíem de anar a exercholar lo dit camp, anaremnos- ne la dita Blancha y jo y, anant pel camí, jo anant devant, tinch presumció que ella dita Blancha, ab sa art diabòlica, me posà alguna cosa en mon cos, perquè ab un prompte me trobí que tot lo cos me feia grandíssim mal, specialment lo cor, que.m paraxia que estava emmatzinada, com abans estigués molt bona. Y de tot aquell dia jo no poguí trebellar, ni de quatre mesos y mig aprés, ni podia ninguna cosa menyar. Fins a tant que la dita Blancha un dia me cridà de la sua porta, y.m digué: “Madó Bartrana veniu assí”. Y jo hi aní, y con fuy ab ella, ella me digué si estava gorida, y jo li diguí que no. Y ella me digué si j’avia dinat, y jo li diguí que no, que no podia menyar. Y les hores ella se’n entrà dins sa casa y sercà una scudellera, y.m va portar ab dita scudellera duas miquetas, que no tenian cara de soppas de pa, ni sabia jo mateixa què podia ésser. Y ella me digué que menyàs allò, y jo li diguí que no les volia, que no les podia menyar. Y ella me digué que bé les podia menyar, que eran molt bonas. Y jo, tenint por que no.m matassem no gosava menyar-les, y ella sempre replicava que fiàs d’ella, que si les menyava aquí mateix seria gorida. Y jo estiguí un poch dubtant si les menyaria, y pensí, no puch morí sinó una volta, y si.m mata –pensí- que no.m mataria molt promptament, que tindria temps de confessar, y que també diria que ella me havia emmatzinada. Y aprés, ab lo un cap del dit, que no.y gosava tollar sinó ab lo cap del dit, prenguí de allò que tenia en l’escudella, que no.y havia brou, sinó que estava spesset. Y jo, ab quatre o sinch dittades aguí acabat, y aquí mateix me haguí acabat, y.m paragué que tenia sabor de herbes bonas, specialment de ferigola. Y aquí mateix que haguí acabat me trobí bona, qu.m paregué que mon mal no era estat res. Y jo les hores pensí y creguí que ella no.u feia sinó diabòlicament, per lo que me havia fet venir lo mal encontinent y ab un emprompte, y ab aquelles miguetas ab un prompte me passà. Y més mal senyal me ha apparagut lo de las michas que l’altre, perquè jo de l’altre també moltes voltes pensava que venia mal promptament a la gent, però de les miquetas no.u tinguí a bon senyal, y de les hores ensà may m’a agradada, antes l’e tinguda per bruxa.

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Montserrata Maciana, uxor Jacobi Macia, agricola ville Sancti Felicis de Lubricato. Testis citata, et que juravit ad Dominum Deum et eius sancti quator Evangelia.

Et interrogata super curie prenentis, dixit. Senyor procurador, lo que jo sé sobre lo que.m diueu és que jo tenia una xicha de setse o deset mesos, poch més o manco, la qual caminava ja, y sempre madó Blancha la cridava y la prenia, y cada cada dia venia en casa tres, quatre vegades, que quasi mig dia s.i estave. Y un dissapte, estant la xicha molt bona, menyant-se un plat de sopas escaldadas, després li haguí dades les sopas, al cap de una hora la bolquí i la posí en lo llit, estant molt bona y sana. Y com vingué a la mija nit, o entre les dotse y una, que penso podia ésser, se despertà la dita xicha ab grandíssim crit y plor, y cridant-me mon marit: “Mestressa, despertau-vos!”. Segons ell me digué, may me podia despertar. Y com fuy despertada me trobí tota cruxida i magollada, que.m parexia estava trencada per la squena, Y li diguí: “No”. Y així me alsí com puguí, y prenguí la xicha per donar-li la mamella, perquè encara mamava, y la xicha may pogué prendre la mamella, sinó sempre gisclava y cridava. Y envés la matinada la xicha se adormí, y jo.m vaig llevar, y devallí baix y obrí la porta, y en havent ubert la porta se despertà la xicha y jo la prenguí y assegui’m de sobre lo brassol per mudar-la. Y aquí mateix vingué dita Blancha a cercar foch, y.m digué en entrant: ¿”Què fa la vostra minyona, com se troba?”. Y jo li diguí què faria, estant jo molt espantada, com deia aquellas paraulas, no havent axit en aquellas horas ningú de casa. Y les hores ella se’n entrà a sercar foch, y estigué una gran estona antes no.n isqué. Y estant ella [guaitant] per una finestra, volguí vèurer què feia, y així la viu, que estava arropida entorn del foch, remanant les brases ab un bastó d’ella, y després se’n anà dient: “Adéu siau!”. Y jo li diguí: “Anau en bona hora”. Y de les hores ensà may pus és entrada en ma casa, ni may pus gosà parlar ab la mia xicha, antes per dotse o tretse dies li durà la malaltia, venint-li baschas, tot lo veÿnat venia en ma casa per vèurer dita xicha, y ella may no gosà entrà; antes un diumenge que li vingué una bascha, que tota la gent del veÿnat vingué en ma casa, ella dita Blancha, estant asseguda devant ma casa, en casa del rajoler, se tancà dins sa casa, del que.m meravellí molt que, abans fahent-se ella tant amiga mia, no parlàs més ni vingués a veure la dita xicha. Y abans dita xicha no morís li trobarem totes les locades blaves. Y encontinent en aquell vespre li vingueren los giscles, se soltava en sanch per bocha y altres parts. Y com la mia xicha fou morta, haguerem raons al carrer les dues, dient-me ella: “Vós dieu que jo us he morta la minyona”. Y jo li diguí: “Vós vos ho sabeu”. Y ella me digué algunas malas paraulas. Y jo li diguí: “Per què ara no veniu a casa?, que abans no.y ne axieu”. Y ella respongué: “Perquè no.y he mester hara!”.

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Beatrix Castellvi, muller que est de Petri Castellvi, agricola Sancti Felicis de Lupricato. Testes citata et que juravit ad Dominum Deu.

Et interrogata super primo articulo ex articulus deffensionum, dicte Blanca dixit que ella, testimoni, la té per dona de bé y per bona chrestiana, del que ella la coneix, y que li ha moltes vegades presas ses criatures, que.n té moltes, però que may ha conegut ningun mal del que li aproposen en ella.

Super secundu, dixit que ella la té com narra dit article, encara que cert n’a vist quexar alguns d’ella, totavia ella la té per dona de bé.

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