HISTORY - The Witchcraze: Background + Changing attitudes to witchcraft in Britain

When does the belief in witchcraft date back to?

• The Old Testament (or earlier)

• Mainly accused of causing damage to property, livestock and people at the time

What does Maleficum mean?

Performing evil magic

What was the diabolical pact?

• A deal made with the Devil where they gave their soul in exchange for wealth/ power

• Religion was v important so this may have caused more resentment towards witchcraft but also fear as the worst punishment would be spending eternity in Hell with the Devil

How many people were accused of witchcraft and how many were executed?

• 200,000 people accused

• approx. 100,000 executed in the European witch craze 1580-1750

• In England 1000 were executed

What did Malleus Maleficarum translate to and who wrote it?

• Hammer of Witches

• Written by German Catholic clergyman Heinrich Kramer published 1486

Why was Kramer’s text controversial?

• He suggests torture to get confessions and death as the only way to end the “evils of witchcraft”

• He was condemned for recommending unethical and illegal procedures and for being inconsistent with catholic doctrines of democracy

What does Kramer call “sorcery”?

• Heresy, which was a crime at the time

• Heretics would’ve been burned at the stake so he suggested witches receive the same

What did the book claim?

Women were more likely to be witches than men, gave recommendations on how to handle them then used parts of scripture to justify illegal procedures

Who was the new author and what did they do?

• Jacob Sprenger was added 1519

• In 1484 Kramer recieved a papal bull “Summis desiderantes affectibus” which gave him approval to prosecute those suspected of witchcraft

• However Kramer abused this and it was suspended due to his obsession with a woman and her sexual habits

Who revived the Malleus Maleficarum?

The Royal Courts during the renaissance and contributed to the brutal prosecution of witchcraft in 16th/17th cent.

What were “familiars”?

• Supernatural beings/spirits that a witch would look after, provided by the Devil

• Could be used to perform sorcery

• In England, it was believed a witch’s mark was used to feed the creature

• They could shape shift and would protect their witch

• Often took the form of dogs/cats/toads/men

• They destroyed property and were rewarded with witches blood

• They could be passed down

What characteristics would a witch typically have?

• Poor

• Upset

• old

• The Devil would promise to help them with these things

What was the Diablolical Pact?

• Where you renounce Christ and sacrifice something to the Devil

• Introduced by the Malleus Maleficarum

How did the idea of witchcraft change over time?

Before 16th cent. witches were just those who could do supernatural things but after it became a discussion of religion

Who led the Reformation and what did he dislike?

• Martin Luther led the Reformation in 16th cent. when Henry VIII broke from Roman church and daughter Elizabeth established Protestant Church Settlement 1559

• Criticised the Catholics 1517 because they focused on salvation through good works rather than faith alone

What did Protestants still believe in?

Witchcraft and the Devil

What emerged from the Reformation?

• Puritanism, large number of whom were witch-hunters

• Due to the religious split, each side regarded the other as being supernatural (e.g: transubstantiation) and therefore works of the devil

What other events caused the witch craze to emerge?

• Climate changes around the world caused people to see it as works of the devil

• Between 16th-17th cent it was called the “Little Ice Age” - this was the peak time of witch hunting

• Caused widespread agricultural uproar, poor harvests and famine

Which reason is the most important for why the witch craze occurred?

• The Reformation

• This is because religion was so important in people’s lives and this gave them justifiable basis to accuse people of sorcery and heresy

What was the first witchcraft act and when was it?

• 1542

• During Henry VIIII’s reign

• Using witchcraft to harm people/ goods was made a capital offence

• Focused on damage to community, not pact with Devil

What was the 2nd witchcraft act and when was it?

• 1563

• During Elizabeth I’s reign

• Was a crime to involve evil spirits but death pen only if someone was killed

• Still focus on harm caused not diabolical pact

When was the 3rd and most important witchcraft act? What did it entail?

• 1604

• During James I’s reign who took interest in witchcraft and wrote Daemonologie

• Being a witch or conjuring spirits was a Capital Offence - didn’t need to cause harm for it to be a crime anymore

When was the 1604 Witchcraft Act repealed?

1736, meant witchcraft was no longer a legal matter

How were people tested for witchcraft?

• Thrown in water with hands and feet tied - if they floated they were rejecting water thus a witch

• Asked to recite the Lord’s Prayer - a witch couldn’t do this

• Searched for devil’s marks

• Suspects would be “watched”

What was the name of the first case and when was it?

• The Boy of Burton

• 1596

What was the name of the boy and how did he meet the “witch”?

• Thomas Darling

• He’d been hunting with his uncle but when he got home he started having fits/ hallucinations

• Fits got worse when the NT was read to him, was suspected of being bewitched

• Darling claimed he’d met an old woman in woods who had warts and cast a spell on him to go to hell

Who did Darling’s confession match?

Alice Gooderidge, a known witch

What happened at Gooderidge’s confession?

• She and her mother were searched and devil’s marks were found

• She was held in Derby prison and confessed to having a familiar

• Said it was passed down by mother and sent to harm the boy

• Before her trial, he had another fit

• She said it was possible to break the spell but had a choking fit, couldn’t explain and died in custody

Who was called in after the trial?

• Darling’s fits continues so John Darrell (known exorcist) was called in

• He’d been warned 10 years ago for falsely accusing a witch

What did Darrell recommend Darling?

Fasting, prayer and reading the Bible to get rid of the spell

Who else did Darrell claim to have exorcised? How was this disproven?

• William Somers

• He claimed to have been bewitched 1597 by 13 women and 2 were sent to trial

• However Somers admitted this was fake and him and Darrell had been working together

• The women were freed

What happened to Darrell following this?

• Judge Anderson wrote to the Archbishop of cant. about Darrell’s case

• He was examined by the Archb. + Bishop of London

• Darling and Somers confessed their stories were untrue and faked

• Darrell imprisoned for a year and couldn’t be a minister again

Who else was present at Darrell’s examination?

Samuel Harsnett, who wrote famously sceptical publications later

Why is the BoB case so significant?

• Judge Anderson’s involvement showed the elite being sceptical and a societal movement away from belief in sorcery

• The Archbishop’s involvement showed that witchcraft was a matter concerning religion

• Harsnett was present, later wrote scep pub

What was the name of the 2nd case and when was it?

• Pendle Swindle

• 1634

Who was the boy that began the claims and what did he say?

• Edmund Robinson who was 10

• Said he was approached by two greyhounds one night

• One of them turned into Frances Dickinson and the other turned into an unknown boy

• The woman offered him a shilling for his silence and he declined saying he’d report her

• The unknown boy became a white horse and Robinson was forced to go to a witches coven with them

How did Robinson instigate accusations?

• Robinson told his dad and 3 months later the local magistrates were informed

• They went round churches with Robinson who identified 25 witches and found 17 guilty in Lancaster

What was important about the magistrates’ response to Robinson’s accusations?

• They were evidently sceptical as they sent the reports to the privy council to check the evidence

• The Bishop of Chester (Henry Bridgeman) was sent to investigate

What did Bridgeman find?

• He found Robinson’s motive for accusation wasn’t founded in magic

• Sent him and his dad for investigation in London with 4 accused women

What is particularly significant about this case?

• The women were examined for Devil’s marks by Charles I

• One was examined by William Harvey, a famous physician for discovering circulation of blood

• Both failed to find evidence for witchcraft

• Need for medical evidence showed a progressive way of thinking

What was the conclusion of the Pendle Swindle case?

• Margaret Johnson confessed but her account didn’t match the testimony

• After the trial, Robinson became a known witchfinder and profited, buying two cows

• However in London he denied the truth of his claims and said his dad had forced him to get revenge against Frances Dickinson whom he had argued over payment of a cow

• This created scepticism due to ulterior motives about witchcraft

How is the Pendle Swindle case more significant than BoB for increasing scepticism?

• Involvement of monarch and science

• Torture used in BoB, less convincing than Swindle

• No. of witch trials started to drop

• Questioned whether witched exist

How is the Pendle Swindle case less significant than BoB for increasing scepticism?

• Samuel Harsnett’s scep pub after BoB

• They involve Archbishop showing the religious significance thereby proving science was needed to combat it

What was the name of the 3rd case and when was it?

• Demon Drummer

• 1662

Who was the perpetrator and what did he do?

• William Drury was trying to raise provisions for the poor fraudulently, drew attention by banging drum

• Demanded money from the constable, becomes suspicions

• Mompesson (JP) saw the signatures on the pass were fake

• Passes were important for the poor as it meant they wouldn’t be punished for vagrancy

• Drury was arrested and later released but drums were sent to Mompesson’s house causing disturbances

What kind of things did Mompesson report?

• Thumping on drums

• Sounds of scratching

• Strange lights and smells

• On christmas day his Bible was buried under his hearth ashes

Which key figure was interested in this case?

Charles II, after there were rumours that Drury had confessed to bewitching Mompesson

How did Joseph Glanvill get involved?

• He visited Mompesson’s house Jan 1663

• Claimed he heard noises and eyewitnesses blamed Drury for these events

What happened to Drury?

He was found guilty and sentenced to deportation but disturbances kept happening for years

How did the Demon Drummer case cause scepticism?

• Royal Society disregarded Glanvill’s claims

• John Webster wrote “The Displaying of Supposed Witchcraft” in 1677 - he was the first sceptic

• Webster said reliable sources told him the entire case was fraudulent and Mompesson was responsible for the noise

Who else wrote a sceptical publication following the Demon Drummer case?

• “The World Bewitched” by Balthasar Bekker

• Criticised Beaumont’s view that Mompesson’s servants were responsible for the noise

Why may Mompesson have faked these claims?

• To annoy a former enemy

• For attention and fame

How is the Demon Drummer case significant?

• Charles II’s involvement showed scepticism was increasing so much that monarch had to intervene

• Royal Society’s involvement showed increasingly secular views of society, used evidence to prove theories wrong

• Two academics came after the legitimacy of the case, Webster and Bekker - recognised that claims of witchcraft were often fraudulent and had ulterior motives

What was the name of the last formal witch trial and when was it?

• Jane Wenham case

• 1712

How did Wenham’s case start?

• She had a reputation for being a witch

• one story about her that circulated was her bewitching a farmer Matthew Gilson who refused to give her straw

• His employer voiced allegations but Wenham reported him to JP Chaucey

• Gilson was fined 1 shilling but Wenham wasn’t happy and wanted to get justice then the farmer’s daughter and livestock fell ill

How did the events progress?

• Anne Thorne said Wenham had bewitched her causing hallucinations and vomiting pins

• Gardiner (local clergyman) suspected witchcraft and allegations were made against Wenham supported by many locals

• Wenham was arrested and searched for marks but nothing was found

• She still confessed that she was a harmless witch

What evidence was apparently found against Wenham?

• Ointment found under her pillow made of human fat

• When asked to recite the Lord’s Prayer she stumbled

Who was sceptical of the evidence against Wenham and why?

• Judge Powell sceptical

• A witness said they’d seen her flying and Powell argued there was no law against that

• Despite his objections, jury found her guilty

• Powell secured a royal pardon and she was given a cottage by a whig politician where she lived until her death in 1730

Why was Wenham found guilty?

• Walkern (where she lived) was small and inhabited 500 people

• She may have been a dissenter so involvement of local clergyman was due to the powers of thr CoE

• She was poor and stole turnips and straw

• Walkern had no provisions for the poor

• Accusers were wealthy

Why was Wenham acquitted?

• John Powell was influenced by recent scepticism

• He got a Royal Pardon for Wenham

• Powell was not from Walkern, could see rationally how her accusers had personal grudges against her

• Her case was mentioned in Hutchinson’s An Historical Essay Concerning Witchcraft (1718)

Who was Sir George Mackenzie and how did he help create scepticism?

• Was an elite member of society and a Scottish lawyer

• refuted the legitimacy of witch trials in Scotland 1661-62

• Said true witches deserve punishment but most accused were innocent

• His approach was dangerous because he was accused of being an atheist

What was John Holt’s background?

• Born in Oxfordshire 1642

• Studied Law

• Was well liked by James II, was key in the transition between him and William III

When was Holt appointed Lord Chief Justice and what was his career like?

• 1689 by William III

• Hutchinson’s essay records his career

How many witch trials did Holt oversee?

11 or 12 trials and every one was acquitted

Give the details of Holt’s most famous case

• Sarah Murdock case 1701

• She had been accused by Richard Hathaway of making him suffer pains and fits

• She was arrested in 1700 and awaited trial

• Many neighbours testified in defence of Hathaway

What was Holt’s response to the Sarah Murdock case

• He instead but Hathaway on trial

• Exposed his lies and he was imprisoned for a year

Why was Holt’s role significant?

• Was prepared to put the accuser on trial, shows his scepticism

• Inevitably influenced by scepticism of Webster and Bekker

• Had impact on the laws surrounding witchcraft

• He was free from prejudice, was fair with each case

• Used a scientific and rational approach requiring credible proof

Why was Holt’s role perhaps less significant?

• Still widespread belief in witchcraft

• His predecessor Matthew Hale willing to accept dubious claims of witchcraft

What evidence is there that belief in witchcraft had ended by 1750?

• 1712 Jane Wenham case was last formal witch trial in England

• 1727 Janet Horne was last witch executed in Scotland

• 1736 Govt repealed 1604 witchcraft Act in Eng + Scot which declared witchcraft as not real

What evidence is there that belief in witchcraft had not ended by 1750?

• Many ordinary people still believed in witches

• Accusations from neighbours still occurred eg: 1751 John and Ruth Osborne were beaten to death accused of harming cattle

When was Reginald Scot’s scepticism published and what was it called?

• The Discoverie of Witchcraft”

• 1584

What was Scot’s background like?

• Born 1538 from a gentry family who were well educated

• Was a member of the Family of Love (radical protestant sect)

• Core beliefs were that nature controlled events on Earth rather than God

• Most members were wealthy

• Found connections between Fraudulent witch hunts and Catholic church

Who and what influenced Scot?

• Johann Weyer

• Dutch physician

• In his publication he argued that most witches suffered from melancholia and were just tools of the Devil

• There were also many witch trials happening around him in Essex leading to hangings and harsh punishments eg: John Samon

• While he believed in witchcraft he disapproved of its effects

What arguments did Scot make in his book?

• Witches were accused without sufficient evidence

• Discounts magic tricks disguised as supernatural phenomena including Cath sacraments

• He blamed Catholics for the cruelty given to suspected witches

What was the impact of Scot’s book?

• Did more harm than good

• King James I ordered all to be burned

• James wrote Daemonologie in response and calls Scot unchristian

How was Scot’s publication significant?

• Recognised by the King

• Was a revolutionary idea

• Was reprinted

How was Scot’s publication not significant?

• Very early on, published in 1580

• Many witch hunts occurred after

• Didn’t change public beliefs

• Most couldn’t read

What is the name of Samuel Harsnett’s sceptical publication and when was it published?

• A Discovery of Fraudulent Practices of John Darrell

• 1599

What was Samuel Harsnett’s early life and career like?

• Born Essex 1561, was aware of the dubious Chelmsford trials

• Was suspicious of the BoB case and Darrell’s exorcisms - was present at Darrell’s examination

• Was deeply religious, ordained as a minister 1583

What were Harsnett’s main arguments?

• Misleading people through magic isn’t new

• Criticised Cath church saying the priests perform “miracles” all the time eg communion, believing rituals can solve any problem

• Catholics claim they can cast out devils through prayer and exorcism but Harsnett says this can only be done by God

What was the Pamphlet war?

• Harsnett started this to promote debated about witchcraft

• Darrell responded in 1600

• John Deacon and John Walker, 2 ministers, questioned if exorcisms were miracles or if they were even possible - demanded proof from Darrell that he could do exorcisms

How was Harsnett criticised after the pamphlet war?

• Joseph Hall (Bishop of Exeter) said those who criticised Darrell were jealous

• Harsnett, Walker and Deacon’s opinions were a minority

• Harsnett accused of Catholic sympathies in his youth, explaining his distaste for Darrell as a Puritan

• Darrell’s case is seen as factional fighting between denominations (Puritan and CoE)

What was Thomas Ady’s sceptical publication called and when was it published?

• A Candle In The Dark

• 1656

What was Ady’s background?

• Lived mostly in Essex

• Was a doctor = highly educated

• Witnessed witch trials in Bury St Edmunds

What were Ady’s arguments?

• 1st section described what a witch was defined as in the Bible eg: astrologers who could be seen as idolaters

• He compared those to Catholic priests due to idolatry

• Critical of familiars due to no Biblical evidence

• 2nd section says Catholics misinterpreted scripture to justify witch hunts

• 3rd section criticises Daemonologie and he could do this because it was during the interregnum

How was Ady’s publication not significant?

• Uses the Bible as its only source

• His work is just a re-write of Scot’s publication

How was Ady’s publication significant?

• Uses common sense

• His works influenced decline of witch trials

What was Webster’s publication called and when was it written?

• The Displaying of Supposed Witchcraft

• 1677

What was Webster’s background?

• Worked as a doctor and preacher

• Studied medicine at Gresham College

• Became a nonconformist 1648

What influenced Webster’s work?

• Similar to Ady, believed witchcraft had no grounds in the Bible

• Wrote it in response to Glanvill who said the Demon Drummer case was real

What were Webster’s arguments?

• Witches didn’t exist and couldn’t act supernaturally

• He took action to disprove doubtful cases rather than meaningless speculation

• Said all sorcery can be explained naturally

What was the impact of Webster’s work?

• It was well-received in the intellectual world

• Historian Trevor-Roper argues he wasn’t saying anything new and that it was the decline of the power of the church that caused the witch craze to decline

• His scientific background made him more credible

What was the name of Balthasar Bekker’s publication and when was it published

• The Enchanted World

• 1691

What was Bekker’s background?

• Dutch Cartesian rationalist

• Son of Calvinist minister

• Became minister 1657

• 1698 became a fellow of the Royal Society

Who influenced Bekker?

• Scot who said witchcraft was impossible

• Used Bible as main source of evidence

• His approach was more like Ady’s

What were Bekker’s main arguments?

• Used reason to say that unless the Devil had a body he couldn’t possess people on Earth

• Said anyone who believed the Devil had power was heretical

• Said supernatural events could eventually be explained, like Scot

How was Bekker’s work not significant?

Repeating old ideas

How was Bekker’s work significant?

• Within first 2 months of publication it sold 4000 copies in Holland

• Translated into many languages

• Prompted many pamphlets in reply = he lost his job as minister