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The witch craze in Britain, Europe and North America, c1580-c1750
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The witch craze in Britain, Europe and North America, c1580-c1750
Origins of Witchcraft
Shamanism - practice of contacting spirits through dream work or meditative trances, oldest religion,
collected knowledge on magic and magical tools
Ancient Sumeria and Babylonia - invented an elaborate Demonology, world full of spirits most being
hostile, people’s spirits would protect them from demons
Western beliefs grew out of mythologies and folklore (especially the Egyptials, Hebrews, Greeks and
Romans)
Greeks - Theurgy (practice of rituals, often seen as magical in nature, performed with the intention of
invoking action of the gods) - “mageia” closer to sorcery, practised by individuals who claimed to
have knowledge and powers
Why women?
- Goal was to repress the intellect of women
- A ‘witch’ was likely to just be a woman ‘of superior knowledge’
- Witch almost exclusively means woman, men have been accused but in a small minority
- Other words are used to describe men with magical powers
- Whore and witch parallel
- Whore - transgresses norms of female sexuality
- Witch - transgresses norms of female power
- Witches were unnatural because of their ability to threaten men
- Makes others afraid to follow in an ‘unruly’ woman’s footsteps
- Women were seen to be morally weaker - the bible and Malleus Maleficarum - justified the
control of women - could be easily led away by the devil
- Anyone outside of traditional female stereotype (submissive, young, neat, wish to be married,
child bearing, not too intelligent but not too dumb) was seen as a threat.
- Accusations of witchcraft were a clever way to undermine a woman’s intelligence and
standing
- A woman with self-sovereignty would be a huge threat to the patriarchy as they were self-
directed and seized freedom.
North Berwick witches in Scotland, 1590-1591 and the aftermath to 1597
Documentary Notes:
No interference from higher authorities
Witch trials had happened before but this is different
The existing situation Gilly Duncan’s James VI’s beliefs Impact of James VI’s
in Scotland confession - strong protestant trip to Denmark
- social background - naming others - storms
- religion - discussions with
- 1563 witchcraft act theologians and
academics
, Witchcraft Act 1563 - used Torture was used and so The King James VI was While in Denmark he saw
to be in ecclesiastical court people accused would say interested in Witchcraft and how they dealt with ‘witches’
Belief in fairies and magic anything to make it stop, had been brought up to be and felt that it should be
folk hence other accusations suspicious of it, where the implemented back in
Strong Calvinist Protestant This individual situation King leads the country England and Scotland
revolution was caused by the need to follows Hemmingsen and Brahe,
Government put pressure cover up an affair and led Was a believer in Witchcraft increase James VI’s passion
on Scotland to persecute to the accusations of 70 and brought up by towards witchcraft and the
Protestant Scholars that persecution of witches
witchcraft other people
taught him to fear and be He blamed the storms that
Protestant reformation - kept his wife from coming to
wary of it.
anti-Catholic feeling Scotland and nearly sank
Torture was illegal in their ship sailing back from
England but in Scotland Denmark on witches
they needed the
permission of the Privy
Council but as the
monarchy was weak local
judges allowed torture
without repercussion.
Compared to England,
Scotland was relatively
poor, the devil can promise
riches and a fruitful life
Gilly Duncan’s Confession
Source 1 page 67
Why do you think Gilly Duncan named other ‘witches’ in her confession? - because she was being
tortured and by accusing others it probably lessened this torture, also it may have been out forward
as a condition to save her life
How significant do you think her confession was as a cause of the 1590-1592 persecutions? - it was
likely very significant because as she accused many people each of those people would then likely
accuse more people and the number of ‘witches’ would have skyrocketed.
James’ views on witchcraft The voyage to Denmark had James already had ideas about
changed as a result of his little impact on James’ beliefs. witchcraft before his journey to
voyage to Denmark. Denmark.
After being held back and nearly killed James already had strong beliefs He had been brought up by Protestant
by the storms on the voyage back surrounding witchcraft and therefore scholars with the fear of witchcraft
from Denmark and the high levels of his trip likely only confirmed his and Catholicism. So he was already
persecution in Denmark likely caused suspicions. highly paranoid and suspicious of
him to further suspect witches Catholics and believed there were
because according to Denmark they witches among them.
were rife with witches.
Also his talks with theologians and
academics would have further grown
his beliefs and concreted them more
because he now had other ‘well
educated’ opinions to back them up
,What parallels exist between Danish and Scottish witch-hunting?
Similarities Differences
Hunts of large scale due to confessions Strict rules in place to ensure fair trials for witches -
Appealed to people’s good Christian nature torture was not allowed and testimony from disreputable
individusals was excluded.
Used torture as a way to gain confessions and accepted
testimonies from obviously bias individuals as well as
children
Appeals against local court decisions could be heard in
high court
Local courts could get away with corrupt trials as the royal
government was weak
Rarely made reference to satanic pact
People were regularly accused of conversing with the devil
James’ Background (in folder)
Agnes Sampson
What was Agnes Sampson accused of?
She was accused of healing the sick, discovering personal information on behalf of others, sailing across the sea in a
sieve and calling on the Devil in the shape of a dog named Elva (she denied the spirits that she met were the Devil)
Causing a storm that drowned someone
Why might Agnes Sampson have been accused?
Because she was a woman with education and was a key pillar of the community that had earned respect and a voice
within the community.
What methods were used in her interrogation?
While not being questioned she had a witches bridle (kept her mouth open with metal prongs) on. She had cords tied
round her limbs and twisted. She was kept awake for several days and nights. Shaved to look for witches marks
What was James VI’s role in the case?
He showed an interest in the case and when he was interrogating her he suggested that the things she had confessed to
were so miraculous that she must be lying. She then took him aside and repeated the exact words that had passed
between James and Anne on their first night of marriage in Oslo.
Who else was implicated by her confession?
Barbara Napier (a friend of the Earl of Bothwell)
A royal courtier named Richard Graham
Effie McCalyan - daughter of Lord Cliftonhall - accused of wanting to take revenge on her father-in-law
What was the impact of the Agnes Sampson case?
Escalating the witch craze and encouraging the hunt, it also implicated many people of higher status which started off the
lack of class barrier when accusing witches. Because she travelled a lot it spread the accusations away from North
Berwick, she had also said she was the head of the coven.
John Fian
- A schoolmaster from Saltpans(a few miles from North Berwick)
- Arrested on 20th Dec 1590 and charged with 20 counts of witchcraft:
- Acting as secretary at coven meetings, recorded the oaths of allegiance to the Devil
- Giving the kiss of shame to the Devil
- Falling into trances where his spirit was transported to mountains
- Bewitching a man to suffer a spell of lunacy once a day
, - Attempting to bewitch a woman to fall in love with him, instead bewitched a cow to follow him
everywhere
- Robbing graves for body parts
- Chasing cats to use in charms
- Dismembering unbaptised babies
- Predicting the future to discover how and when people would die
- Burning down a house in revenge
- Flying through the air
- Making cattle sick
- Attaching magical candles to his horse
- Was tortured to identify other witches in his coven
- He claimed that he had entirely renounced the Devil
- Escaped but was recaptured and tortured under command of the king
- Head twisted with rope
- Needles were driven under his fingernails
- Placed in a device known as the ‘boots’
- He refused to confess
- Which made his interrogators more enthusiastic about his torture
- Reasons for his accusations include:
- No evidence to suggest that he knew magic or was interested in healing
- Conducted affairs with a number of married women
- One of the few well educated people
- Owned and taught Latin and Greek texts - suspected by illiterate locals
- Was executed by strangulation and his body burned
Torture in North Berwick
- Iron maiden
- The rack - stretch
- Iron boot - heat up
- Pillory - stocks
- Witches bridle - stop from talking
- Bastinado - hung upside down and flogged
- The jougs - collar
- Water torture
- Sleep deprivation
- Pilliwinks - squeeze fingers
- The scavenger’s daughter
Earl of Bothwell
- Francis Stewart Hepburn was charged with witchcraft in 1591
- Despite the king’s wishes, Bothwell was acquitted in 1593 due to weakness of evidence
- James VI cousin
1583 - was involved in a plot to oust the royal favourite, the Earl of Arran. Spent time under house
arrest
1587 - openly criticised James for failing to stop his mothers execution
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