The History of Witchcraft

In this episode we cover the early history of English colonisation in the Americas, and the growth and expansion of New England in particular.This episode primarily makes use of the following texts:- Canny, N. 'The Origins of Empire: An Introduction', in The Oxford History of the British Empire: Volume I: The Origins of Empire (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998- Appleby J. C., 'War, Politics, and Colonization, 1558-1625', in The Oxford History of the British Empire: Volume I: The Origins of Empire (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998) - Anderson, V. A., 'New England in the Seventeenth Century', in The Oxford History of the British Empire: Volume I: The Origins of Empire (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998) - Elizabeth Mancke, 'The Languages of Liberty in British North America, 1607-1776', in Exclusionary Empire: English Liberty Overseas, 1600-1900 (2010). For a full bibliography, please see the website: https://thehistoryofwitchcraft.co.uk/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/historyofwitchcraft/Twitter: https://twitter.com/HistofWitchPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/HistoryofWitchcraftThe Recorded History Podcast Network: https://recordedhistory.net/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

For a full bibliography, please see the website: https://thehistoryofwitchcraft.co.uk/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/historyofwitchcraft/Twitter: https://twitter.com/HistofWitchPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/HistoryofWitchcraftThe Recorded History Podcast Network: https://www.recordedhistory.net Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The transformation of Roman Britain with the arrival of the Germanic pagans led to its own odd synthesis of superstitions and rituals. The Christianisation of these pagan kingdoms further added to the mix, as did the subsequent arrival and conversion of the Danes and Norwegians. Today's episode is all about the treatment of magic-wielders in Anglo-Saxon society, how they were seen by the Church, and how individual rulers tried to clamp down on their subjects use of their services.For a full bibliography, please see the website: https://thehistoryofwitchcraft.co.uk/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/historyofwitchcraft/Twitter: https://twitter.com/HistofWitchPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/HistoryofWitchcraftThe Recorded History Podcast Network: https://www.recordedhistory.net Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This episode primarily makes use of the following texts:- Dickie, M. W., Magic and Magicians in the Greco-Roman World (2003) - Ogden, D., Magic, Witchcraft, and Ghosts in the Greek and Roman Worlds: A Sourcebook (Oxford, 2002)For a full bibliography, please see the website: https://thehistoryofwitchcraft.co.uk/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/historyofwitchcraft/Twitter: https://twitter.com/HistofWitchPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/HistoryofWitchcraftThe Recorded History Podcast Network: www.recordedhistory.net Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Witchfinder General faces humiliation on multiple fronts. His critics are uniting, his prosecutions are falling, and the ruinous cost of hiring him suddenly seems less worthwhile. This episode primarily makes use of the following texts:-  Gaskill, Malcolm, Witchfinders: A Seventeenth Century English Tragedy, (2005) -  Levack, Brian, ‘State-Building and Witch-Hunting’, in Oldridge, Darren (ed.), The Witchcraft Reader, 2002-  Purkiss, DIane, The English Civil War: A People's History, (2007)-  Jackson, Louise, ‘Witches, Wives and Mothers: Witchcraft Persecution and Women’s Confessions in Seventeenth-Century England’, in Oldridge, Darren (ed.), The Witchcraft Reader, 2002- Peter Elmer, Witchcraft, Witch-Hunting, and Politics in Early Modern England, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2016)- Gaskill, Malcolm, ‘Witchcraft Trials in England’, in Levack, Brian (ed.) The Oxford Handbook of Witchcraft in Early Modern Europe and Colonial America, (2016)For a full bibliography, please see the website: https://thehistoryofwitchcraft.co.uk/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/historyofwitchcraft/Twitter: https://twitter.com/HistofWitchPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/HistoryofWitchcraftThe Recorded History Podcast Network: www.recordedhistory.net Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week's episode continues the trials of East Anglia, as we see the result of the Witchfinder General's efforts in the summer assizes of Chelmsford and Bury St. Edmunds. One was headed by the Earl of Warwick, a noble with little in the way of legal training, and the other by a triumvirate of two priests and a lawyer. One goes exceptionally well for the witchfinders, and the other... not so much.This episode primarily makes use of the following texts:-  Gaskill, Malcolm, Witchfinders: A Seventeenth Century English Tragedy, (2005) -  Levack, Brian, ‘State-Building and Witch-Hunting’, in Oldridge, Darren (ed.), The Witchcraft Reader, 2002-  Purkiss, DIane, The English Civil War: A People's History, (2007)-  Jackson, Louise, ‘Witches, Wives and Mothers: Witchcraft Persecution and Women’s Confessions in Seventeenth-Century England’, in Oldridge, Darren (ed.), The Witchcraft Reader, 2002For a full bibliography, please see the website: https://thehistoryofwitchcraft.co.uk/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/historyofwitchcraft/Twitter: https://twitter.com/HistofWitchPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/HistoryofWitchcraftThe Recorded History Podcast Network: www.recordedhistory.netThe History of Witchcraft is up for an award! Go here to vote: http://podcastawards.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This episode primarily makes use of the following texts:-  Gaskill, Malcolm, Witchfinders: A Seventeenth Century English Tragedy, (2005) -  Levack, Brian, ‘State-Building and Witch-Hunting’, in Oldridge, Darren (ed.), The Witchcraft Reader, 2002-  Purkiss, DIane, The English Civil War: A People's History, (2007)-  Jackson, Louise, ‘Witches, Wives and Mothers: Witchcraft Persecution and Women’s Confessions in Seventeenth-Century England’, in Oldridge, Darren (ed.), The Witchcraft Reader, 2002For a full bibliography, please see the website: https://thehistoryofwitchcraft.co.uk/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/historyofwitchcraft/Twitter: https://twitter.com/HistofWitchPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/HistoryofWitchcraftThe Recorded History Podcast Network: www.recordedhistory.netThe History of Witchcraft is up for an award! Go here to vote: http://podcastawards.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In today's episode, the infamous Witch-Finder General begins his campaign through south-eastern England, as we discuss the opening accusations of the greatest and deadliest witch hunt in English history.This episode primarily makes use of the following texts:-  Gaskill, Malcolm, Witchfinders: A Seventeenth Century English Tragedy, (2005) -  Levack, Brian, ‘State-Building and Witch-Hunting’, in Oldridge, Darren (ed.), The Witchcraft Reader, 2002-  Purkiss, DIane, The English Civil War: A People's History, (2007)-  Jackson, Louise, ‘Witches, Wives and Mothers: Witchcraft Persecution and Women’s Confessions in Seventeenth-Century England’, in Oldridge, Darren (ed.), The Witchcraft Reader, 2002For a full bibliography, please see the website: https://thehistoryofwitchcraft.co.uk/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/historyofwitchcraft/Twitter: https://twitter.com/HistofWitchPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/HistoryofWitchcraftThe Recorded History Podcast Network: www.recordedhistory.net Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Witchfinder General, Matthew Hopkins, did not exist in a vacuum. How could this man, who had no formal authority, tour South-East England and not only execute hundreds of 'witches', but find cheering crowds and grateful magistrates waiting for him? Today's episode will examine the possible reasons why the Hopkins witch craze was so exceptional in its scale and brutality.This episode primarily made use of the following texts:-  Gaskill, Malcolm, ‘Witchcraft Trials in England’, in Levack, B. P. (ed.) The Oxford Handbook of Witchcraft in Early Modern Europe and Colonial America (Oxford, 2013)- Levack, Brian, ‘State-Building and Witch-Hunting’, in Oldridge, Darren (ed.), The Witchcraft Reader, 2002- Elmer, Peter,Witchcraft, Witch-Hunting, and Politics in Early Modern England, (Oxford, 2016)- Jackson, Louise, ‘Witches, Wives and Mothers: Witchcraft Persecution and Women’s Confessions in Seventeenth-Century England’, in Oldridge, Darren (ed.), The Witchcraft Reader, 2002For a full bibliography, please see the website: www.thehistoryofwitchcraft.co.ukThe Recorded History Podcast Network: www.recordedhistory.netFriends of the show, Pontifacts: https://pontifacts.podbean.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today's episode covers the escalating conflict between Charles I and Parliament, as harsh words led to outright war. We also look at the simmering discontent among elements of the English population to the limited prosecutions of witches, spearheaded by the Stuart court. This episode primarily makes use of the following sources:Gaskill, Malcolm, ‘Witchcraft Trials in England’, in Levack, Brian (ed.) The Oxford HandbookHolmes, R., Witchcraft in British History (1974)MacFarlane, A., Witchcraft in Tudor and Stuart England (London, 1970)Levack, B., 'State-Building and Witch Hunting', in Darren Oldridge (ed.), The Witchcraft Reader (London, 2002)Poole, R., (ed.), The Lancashire Witches: Histories and Stories (2002)A full bibliography can be found on the website.Website: http://thehistoryofwitchcraft.co.ukFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/historyofwitchcraft/Twitter: https://twitter.com/HistofWitchPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/HistoryofWitchcraft Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices