SCHOOL pupils have shone a light on a darker aspect of Inverclyde's past by using their talents to help create a new graphic novel.

The Devil's Mark: The Inverkip Trials is based on the story of Marie Lamont, who was killed after being accused of witchcraft in the 17th century.

The book was written and compiled by local author Paul Bristow, in collaboration with pupils from Inverclyde Academy.

Inverclyde Academy pupils worked with Paul Bristow on the new book. (Image: George Munro) While the story of the Salem witch trials in Massachusetts in the late 17th century is fairly well known thanks to numerous Hollywood movies over the years, their Scottish equivalents are fairly less well known.

Marie was aged just 18 when she was tried and burned at the stake in 1662 - one of the last of an estimated 1,500 people, the vast majority of them women, executed after being found guilty of crimes of witchcraft.

Speaking to the Tele at the book's launch at the Watt Institution, Paul, who runs the local Magic Torch Comics community interest company, said: "Inverclyde Academy pupils and myself put the script together, archivist Lorraine Murray supported our research, and it was illustrated by Julie Campbell and input from the wishes Group in Larkfield.

"There are lots of stories about witches, but the research means we can get to the truth about the execution of women, not the myth.

"The reality is that ordinary women were persecuted and killed.

"Some of the pupils of Inverclyde Academy live in Inverkip, so it is really a bit of history on their doorstep."

The graphic novel looks at a time when a law was passed, the Witchcraft Act of 1563, that made witchcraft, or consulting with witches, a capital offence.

It resulted in 4,000 people being tried for witchcraft between the 16th and 18th century, with 84 per cent of the accused being women.

It also looked at the influence of the local kirk, which was very powerful at that time.

It was against this backdrop that Marie came to Inverkip from Cowal as a two-year-old girl, and the book tells of how she was persecuted because of her religion, or her accent, or the fact that she was an outsider, or simply because she was different.

Second year Inverclyde Academy pupils said they had learned a lot from the experience. (Image: George Munro) It is not known if Marie and other women were executed in Inverkip itself, but many of those who were tried for witchcraft were tortured into a confession of doing the devil's work, before being tied to a stake in a barrel full of tar, strangled and then the body burned.

The S2 pupils who took part in the project said it had been an eye-opening experience.

Zoe Williamson said: "I was quite surprised and horrified by it.

"I didn't know the bodies were burned after they died, and that men could be accused as well."

Lily Ford said: "I think it is quite horrible. I think they were trying to find ways to control women.

"I was just so shocked. It's insane. We are all human. We all have families who care for us and we've all got hearts."

Mollie Carson said: "I think it was really interesting and a good way to find out about local history. It's a good way to present it."

The three girls were joined by Sophie Bruce in writing a presentation for the launch.

Jay Brennan said: "I think it was really fascinating how people were accused of witchcraft back then.

"I learned a lot from the project."

The book is part of the Distant Noises project, developed and managed by Magic Torch Comics with the support of the National Lottery Heritage Fund.