The History of Witchcraft

This week, we have a shorter episode while I brush up on my Civil War knowledge. Doctor John Lambe was the personal magician of the Duke of Buckingham, a favourite of James and an ally of Charles. Yet, the reputation of Dr Lambe was so poor that even these lofty connections couldn't save him...   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In today's episode we see the tide turn on the English witch trials. By the end of his reign, James is unwilling to entertain the more ludicrous accusations and his heir, Charles I, continues this approach. Puritanism, the new bogeyman of the Anglican church, appears the most vocal supporter of the trials, and so the established clergy approach the topic warily. And the magistrates and judiciary have seen the last twenty years of legal precedent, of cases thrown out and judges publicly shamed, and have no interest in risking their careers. 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.ukSudio: https://goo.gl/CwUoWi (remember the code WITCHCRAFT for 15% off)Facebook: 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

At the great Council of Nikaea, an issue that threatened to split an empire apart was finally settled. Yet, when one of the Emperor's own sons rejects the decision, his brother is dispatched at the head of a Legion to bring his errant son to heel and bring unity to His Imperium.+The Emperor Protects+ This episode primarily makes use of the following sources: - Abnett, Dan, Prospero Burns (2010)- Bligh, Alan, The Horus Heresy: Book Seven - Inferno, (2017)- McNeill, Graham, A Thousand Sons (2010)- McNeill, Graham, The Crimson King (2017)- McNeill, Graham, The Outcast Dead (2011)  If you enjoyed this episode, go have a watch of Occulus Imperia! youtube.com/c/Oculus%20Imperia Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today we look at the political intentions behind the pamphlet, the Wonderful Discovery of Witches in the County of Lancaster, and how it was purposefully written to match the published opinions of James I. We further examine how James began to regret both his Daemonologie and the act he had circulated in 1604, as he faced yet more cases of fraudulent claims of witchcraft, and a judiciary that was too eager to please.This episode primarily makes use of the following sources:Holmes, 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)Potts, T., The Wonderfull Discoverie of Witches in the Countie of Lancaster (1613)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

Was James VI and I truly the witch-hunting, demon-studying zealot that he has traditionally been seen as? Today we take a look at the court of King James, and hear about the trials that dotted his early reign. This episode primarily makes use of the following sources:Holmes, 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

In today's episode, we return to the narrative of early modern Britain, and finally combine the episodes on England and Scotland in the form of one man: James VI and I. We cover the problems and priorities facing James once he inherits the throne from Elizabeth; England's diplomatic situation, its religious dissidents, and a Parliament that is getting a bit too self-important for the absolutist James. This episode primarily makes use of the following sources:Herrington, H. W., ‘Witchcraft and Magic in Elizabethan Drama’, in The Journal of American Folklore, 32, 126, (1919)Holmes, 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)A full bibliography can be found on the website.Website: http://thehistoryofwitchcraft.co.ukSudio: https://goo.gl/CwUoWi (remember the code WITCHCRAFT for 15% off)Facebook: 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

In today's episode, we cover the works of William Shakespeare, one of the greatest literary figures in English history. Specifically, we look at the supernatural elements in a number of his plays, from Henry IV and Richard III, to The Tempest and Macbeth. Straddling the reigns of Elizabeth and James, Shakespeare's career provides a window into how magic and witchcraft may have been seen in English culture.This episode primarily makes use of the following sources:Herrington, H. W., ‘Witchcraft and Magic in Elizabethan Drama’, in The Journal of American Folklore, 32, 126, (1919)Stanhill, Gerald., ‘Shakespeare’s Tempest, witchcraft and the Little Ice Age’, Weather, 71, iv, 100-102Holmes, R., Witchcraft in British History (1974)The plays of ShakespeareA 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

Drama is perhaps one of the most recognisable products of the Elizabethan and Jacobean eras. This week, we look at two of the more famous plays from this period which use the supernatural in their narratives; Christopher Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus, and Thomas Middleton’s The Witch.Although I’m sure I’m missing someone out, someone important from this period who wrote a lot of plays still loved today.No matter, I’m sure I’ll remember by next week! This episode primarily drew from the following texts:‘First edition of Middleton's The Witch’, British Library, accessed December 2017, at https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/first-edition-of-middletons-the-witchHolmes, R., Witchcraft in British History (1974H. W. Herrington, ‘Witchcraft and Magic in Elizabethan Drama’, The Journal of American Folklore, 32, 126, (1919)Purkiss, D., The Witch in History: Early Modern and Twentieth-Century Representations (1996) Please see the website for a full bibliography!Music by Kevin MacCleod and Karstenholymol, used under the Creative Commons License. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week, we hear about the witch beliefs commonly held by your common or garden peasant in Elizabethan and early Stuart England. The priority for your average Joe was the ability of witches to effect the physical world, and how they could help or harm.We also cover the Protestant authorities stance with traditional folklore, in a world that now had to explain the supernatural based solely on the scripture of the Bible.  This episode primarily makes use of the following texts: Alan MacFarlane, Witchcraft in Tudor and Stuart England, London, 1970Richard Deacon, Matthew Hopkins: Witchfinder General, London, 1976Darren Oldridge, 'Fairies and the Devil in early modern England', The Seventeenth Century, 31, 1, 1-15Kieth Thomas, 'The Relevance of Social Anthropology to the Historical Study of English Witchcraft', in Mary Douglas (ed.) Witchcraft Confessions and Accusations, 2013For a full bibliography, please see the websiteWebsite: 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

With the reign of England's first recognised Queen, Elizabeth I, we find a kingdom riven by sectarian violence and uncertainty. Today's episode gives a brief overview of her rule, and covers the various plots against the monarch and her advisers. We also return to the life of John Dee, the court magician who had been tried for treason during the reign of Mary, as well as hearing the adventures of various preachers and witch-hunting magistrates.Website: http://thehistoryofwitchcraft.co.ukFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/historyofwitchcraft/Twitter: https://twitter.com/HistofWitchPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/HistoryofWitchcraft This episode primarily makes use of the following texts:Witchcraft Statute ‘against Conjurations, Enchantments, and Witchcrafts, 1563The Discoverie of Witchcraft, 1584Gifford, George, A Dialogue Concerning Witches and Witchcrafts, 1593Ankerloo, Bengt and Clark, Stuart (eds.) Witchcraft and Magic in Europe: The Period of the Witch Trials, Philadelphia, 2002Deacon, Richard, Matthew Hopkins: Witchfinder General, London, 1976Sharpe, James, Instruments of Darkness: Witchcraft in England 1550-1750, London, 1996The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography For a full bibliography, please see the website. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices