On this day in history, 28th April 1558, eighty-two year old priest and Protestant Walter Mylne was burnt for heresy outside Deans Court at St Andrews in Scotland.
Mylne had served as a priest for over 40 years and fled into exile in the 1530s after being accused of heresy for refusing to say the mass. There, he embraced Protestantism fully, got married and had children.
He returned to Scotland in 1556 and was arrested on 20th April 1558. At his trial, he denounced the Catholic Church for its errors and was found guilty of heresy.
The people of St Andrews were so appalled at the planned burning of this elderly man that they refused to provide materials for the burning, and Mylne had to be escorted to the stake by armed guard.