Witchcraft has been something believed in since we know. However, in the 1500's people became more and more aware of certain incidents that could be explained via witchcraft. For example, in the book Witchfinders: A Seventeenth Century English Tragedy it says "sad and mysterious incidents were linked to landscape and landmarks: barren ground where a murdered corpse was found, a creaking tree from which a man had hanged himself, a stone scarred with claw marks of the devil".
When Queen Elizabeth I came into power, the fear of witches escalated. People were afraid of sorcery, and especially in what it could do to their queen. Protestant clerics were among those most afraid.
In the early 1560's ecclesiastical courts in Canterbury claimed full cases of maleficium rather than small spells here and there; livestock murdered, property destroyed and even people were killed and injured. Sorcery was further feared as people saw it as a way of harm rather than a gift of healing.
In 1564, the first execution under the Witchcraft Act, formed a few years prior, took place in Essex. At first, those being executed were few in numbers, with there just being 8 more by 1581. It was this year that it was made against the law to predict and foresee the Queen's death via magical forecasts.
In the last two decades of the 16th Century, around 200 cases for witchcraft were filed in Essex alone; numbers were now clearly rising. The thought of witchcraft was now in people's heads and it's thought they began to see things that they were imagining out of fear. 1 in 6 of those 200 were executed, and people really enjoyed the whole spectacle of it regardless of social rank and status. The whole ordeal was done in the public eye, and people went to watch the hangings, and if they couldn't then word would spread through word of mouth about what happened.
In Witchfinders: A Seventeenth Century English Tragedy it's said that 'By the time the crown passed to James VI of Scotland, Essex was the shire that had best squared up to the devil" and that "witches were none the less than vermin to be exterminated, because they switched their allegiance from God to Satan"
Women were being murdered all over the country at fast rates at this point, for things that could easily be explained today, but with little technology or understanding of what we do today, witchcraft was something everybody truly believed was the cause for many incidents, and strung together facts allowed these women to be prosecuted.
In 1604, one year into James VI's reign, he revised the Witchcraft Act and made it the conjuration of spirits punishable by law. The Church also forbade unlicensed exorcism.
It's said that James was a huge fan of these witch trials, often attending and interrogating himself. This obsession was perhaps sparked by the violent death of his mother, Mary Queen of Scots.
History Extra claims that "As soon as the North Berwick trials ended, James commissioned Newes from Scotland, a pamphlet that relayed the whole saga in scandalised language aimed at intensifying popular fear of witches."
Under Charles I reign, starting in 1625, Witchfinders: A Seventeenth Century English Tragedy says that "witch trials were highly likely to fail, for one or more of three reasons: exposure of the accuser as a fraud: insufficient evidence; or a natural medical explanation that chased witchcraft from the courtroom"
Later in 1645, a huge witch hunt flared up. It's thought that this occurred because of the ever declining amount of prosecutions under Charles' reign. People were more anxious about witchcraft because they felt the law wasn't on their side anymore. Those who persecuted witches were more often than not serious about there prosecution and it wasn't to bite back at somebody they had a personal vendetta against.
The 1640's were easily the worst years for witchcraft, with more executions than ever. Matthew Hopkins from Essex was a huge part to play in this, having prosecuted over 300 women.
After this period, however, prosecutions slowly died down, and the Witchcraft Act was repealed in 1736.
It is said, however, that in 1863 an elderly man was trialled of sorcery in where else but Essex. He wanted to prove his innocence, but he floated on the water (meaning he was guilty) rather than drowning (innocent). he tried again a few more times, until eventually he drowned to death.
Over the world, however, people are still being prosecuted and killed for witchcraft.
When Queen Elizabeth I came into power, the fear of witches escalated. People were afraid of sorcery, and especially in what it could do to their queen. Protestant clerics were among those most afraid.
In the early 1560's ecclesiastical courts in Canterbury claimed full cases of maleficium rather than small spells here and there; livestock murdered, property destroyed and even people were killed and injured. Sorcery was further feared as people saw it as a way of harm rather than a gift of healing.
In 1564, the first execution under the Witchcraft Act, formed a few years prior, took place in Essex. At first, those being executed were few in numbers, with there just being 8 more by 1581. It was this year that it was made against the law to predict and foresee the Queen's death via magical forecasts.
In the last two decades of the 16th Century, around 200 cases for witchcraft were filed in Essex alone; numbers were now clearly rising. The thought of witchcraft was now in people's heads and it's thought they began to see things that they were imagining out of fear. 1 in 6 of those 200 were executed, and people really enjoyed the whole spectacle of it regardless of social rank and status. The whole ordeal was done in the public eye, and people went to watch the hangings, and if they couldn't then word would spread through word of mouth about what happened.
In Witchfinders: A Seventeenth Century English Tragedy it's said that 'By the time the crown passed to James VI of Scotland, Essex was the shire that had best squared up to the devil" and that "witches were none the less than vermin to be exterminated, because they switched their allegiance from God to Satan"
Women were being murdered all over the country at fast rates at this point, for things that could easily be explained today, but with little technology or understanding of what we do today, witchcraft was something everybody truly believed was the cause for many incidents, and strung together facts allowed these women to be prosecuted.
In 1604, one year into James VI's reign, he revised the Witchcraft Act and made it the conjuration of spirits punishable by law. The Church also forbade unlicensed exorcism.
It's said that James was a huge fan of these witch trials, often attending and interrogating himself. This obsession was perhaps sparked by the violent death of his mother, Mary Queen of Scots.
History Extra claims that "As soon as the North Berwick trials ended, James commissioned Newes from Scotland, a pamphlet that relayed the whole saga in scandalised language aimed at intensifying popular fear of witches."
James interrogating the North Berwick witches, c. 1591
James was clearly infatuated by the idea of witchcraft. In 1597 he himself wrote a learned tract, Daemonologie, meaning the science of demons. The tract was intended to inspire witch hunters and prosecuters, to keep on doing so and with determination. "In 1603 it became required reading not just for clergymen, but for anyone interested in the mind of England's new monarch" (Witchfinders: A Seventeenth Century English Tragedy)
However, by 1616 James had replaced his obsession of witch hunting with deer hunting. That year, he scolded two judged for executing 9 witches in Leicester, a clear message that witch hunting was to become less widespread.
Later in 1645, a huge witch hunt flared up. It's thought that this occurred because of the ever declining amount of prosecutions under Charles' reign. People were more anxious about witchcraft because they felt the law wasn't on their side anymore. Those who persecuted witches were more often than not serious about there prosecution and it wasn't to bite back at somebody they had a personal vendetta against.
The 1640's were easily the worst years for witchcraft, with more executions than ever. Matthew Hopkins from Essex was a huge part to play in this, having prosecuted over 300 women.
After this period, however, prosecutions slowly died down, and the Witchcraft Act was repealed in 1736.
It is said, however, that in 1863 an elderly man was trialled of sorcery in where else but Essex. He wanted to prove his innocence, but he floated on the water (meaning he was guilty) rather than drowning (innocent). he tried again a few more times, until eventually he drowned to death.
Over the world, however, people are still being prosecuted and killed for witchcraft.
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