The History of Witchcraft

by Lois Martin

Witchcraft has recently been undergoing a huge popular revival, but does modern pagan witchcraft really bear any resemblance to its historical antecedents? The witch in history was a very different creature from her modern counterpart, and this book sets out to explore the historical background to the European witchcraft phenomenon. It examines in detail the growth of the ideological, cultural and legal concepts that eventually led to the carnage of the Witch Craze in the 16th and 17th centuries, which, it is estimated, may have claimed the lives of around 40,000 people. For both Medieval and Reformation scholars alike the Devil and all his works were a very real threat. Their conviction that witches were the servants of Satan led to the formation of perhaps one of the greatest conspiracy theories of all time: a belief that witches were working in league with the Devil in a diabolical plot against all Christendom. Witches were transformed from poor deluded old women who rode out at night with the pagan goddess Diana into devil-worshipping heretics who became the focus of a centuries-long, Europe-wide campaign determined to seek out and destroy this evil wherever it was to be found, regardless of whether any of its victims were actually guilty or not.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Witchcraft, Witches, Audiobook, European History, Wicca

143 pages, ebook

First published January 1, 1971

Reviews

[Teodora · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5/5 ⭐

If this book was a little bit longer and encompassed more than the stereotype of the Western witch and their ode to the Devil, it would've been better in my opinion.

[Alex George · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent, quick, wild-in-places pocket book

Quite dry but in a way that's pretty funny to read

I think it would've been better if there was more of a sense of the chronology of witchcraft. I didn't get much of a sense of Things Developing as we kept jumping about between centuries covering mostly similar stuff.

Having said that, the amount of actual historically recorded instances of people kissing goat butts is superb.

[Rainbow Goth · Rating 3 out of 5]

This pocket guide serves as a brief yet informative introduction to the subject of witchcraft. While it effectively covers the key concepts, there are moments where the writing can feel somewhat dry, and it tends to present a broad, generalised perspective. It's important to note that the focus is primarily on the relationship between witches and society in Europe, which means it lacks a more global perspective.

Nonetheless, if you're seeking a concise overview to familiarise yourself with the topic, this could be a worthwhile starting point. It provides a solid foundation to build upon, even if it doesn't delve deeply into the complexities or variations of witchcraft across different cultures.

[Malum · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very brief and very narrowly focused look at the history of witchcraft (the "devil worshipping burnt at the stake" kind, not the "my weird aunt that smells like cat litter plays bongo drums under the full moon" kind).

Recommended if you are looking for a VERY general overview of European witchcraft from the witch trials to Margaret Murray.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

A super short fun read that is obviously well written and well researched, I'm seriously considering buying a copy of my own and I plan on checking out her other book!

[B. Barron · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad.
A little simplistic, but it is a short book.

[Darren-lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 - Short book, but has a load of information in it.

[Valerie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very quick read. Reading about witch trials is pretty terrifying, actually. People who say they were born in the wrong century should mayhaps start appreciating the fact that we don't leave justice up to god or trial by combat anymore 😅

[Genevieve · Rating 2 out of 5]

dnf because i couldn't care less about reading it even though it's so short

[Chloé Loong · Rating 4 out of 5]

For such a short book this is jam packed with interesting knowledge

[Lise Hopland · Rating 3 out of 5]

I quite like it as an introduction to the historical witchcraft of western society. Inspired me to read more about the subject.

[Elena · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lacks some academic scope, the author gets caught up in smaller accounts and fails to illustrate larger trends. An interesting snapshot of some pieces, particularly in talking about what exactly the accusations against witches were (kissing the devils butt- a lot), but hardly a history of witchcraft. Quick read, though.

[Plateresca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of interesting facts cleverly packed into a short book. The audio version is narrated in a cute accent, too.

[Sevgi Tan · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you know nothing about witchcraft and want to know more maybe this one is a good place to start. I knew this beforehand but I still feel like it didn't live up to my expectations.

[Ale (Libros Caóticos) · Rating 3 out of 5]

.
📚 The History of witchcraft
♀️/♂️ Lois Martin
📕 Físico

_________________________

⭐3⭐

Me encantan los libros sobre brujas y cuando @book_ishtrish me lo recomendó me costó un poco darle al click porque está en inglés, y soy cero fan. Disfruto más la lectura en castellano, pero como eran brujas dije...bueno 😌. Aún así tengo que decir que me ha sorprendido para bien.

En resumen hace un pequeño recorrido histórico sobre la brujería muy generalizada centrándose al final en Inglaterra, Escocia e Irlanda. La lectura es muy sencilla y la verdad es que me lo he leído en un suspiro. Eso siempre es positivo. Eso si, si lo tuviera en castellano me gustaría aún más. Pero ese es mi struggle personal.

También tengo que decir que se me ha quedado algo corto, hubiera deseado que tuviera aún más datos y hablara de más historias o casos de brujeria, pero bueno, es una edición pocket Essentials, no puedo pedir más.

Os voy a ser sincera e igual es que soy algo ignorante pero no tengo ni idea si es una mujer o un hombre el autor de este pequeño ensayo. He estado buscando y ni en el propio libro hace una mención a el/ella ni hay nada en internet. Si alguien sabe, por favor que se pronuncie y lo corregiré.

Ahora, ¿Lo recomiendo? Si. Para gente que o bien se quiere adentrar en el mundo de la brujería desde el punto de vista histórico sin llegar a ser pesado con fechas y datos o bien, para una lectura fácil y ágil en inglés. Si estáis buscando algo así está muy bien.
Pero, si eres conocedor del tema se te quedará cortito. Y ya para acabar, la portada... Es bastante mediocre, y para el precio que tiene podría estar mejor.


✴️ ¿Habíais leído alguna vez algo sobre brujería históricamente hablando?
✴️¿ Sabéis si hay otra versión más bonita de este libro?

[Rosie · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting quick read, giving an overview of the history of the idea of witchcraft in England and Western Europe. The development of how the ideas we have today on the subject, were gradually formed, from many disparate pieces of old folklore and pagan belief, as well as the Christian Church itself molding and changing many aspects of it themselves.

It's interesting how the Church, in many ways, created their own version of witchcraft to give themselves something to persecute.
It's often a brutal, ugly, terrible affair. Filled with centuries of horror, torment and brutality. It's hard understanding beliefs which many people and myself today find almost impossible to take seriously. I also see reflections of it in many different ways, in particular how people continue to twist things that are either harmless in themselves, or inconveniant facts for others into things they are not, to suit the purposes of organisations and individuals.

I can see how the thinking is still part of humanity.

[Shhhhh Ahhhhh]

Short read but informative. I realized something on the toilet mid-read. The author takes pains to dispel the popular mythology about how the witch hunts were all the results of the catholic church and I realized the impossibility of knowing every subject at any level of depth beyond a cursory one. Like, we all learned that the inquisition started this horrible period of time where everyone and anyone could be accused of being a witch and burned or drowned or tortured. Come to find out they were responsible for less than half of all witch trials. The author provided an illuminating look at the origins of a lot of the things believe about witches/warlocks/conjurers but also about the figure of Lucifer/ Satan/ the devil in Catholicism and its linkage with paganism to create this idea of people that make compacts with supernatural powers to do evil on earth.

I would recommend to any would-be theologians in the house. Also, anyone into the idea of witches against the patriarchy. None of these ideas are what we think they are.

[SJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't usually enjoy historical books, specially if they are non-fiction, but I must say i enjoyed reading this one. The author talks a little bit about every important aspect of what I would call "classic witchcraft". It's not very specific but it really helped me undersatnd the overall situation with withes, the trials and other typical related themes.

I think the image of the witch today is very different to what it actually used to be and mean. This book allows us to understand what being a witch actually meant and its consequences, forgetting about the Halloween image with the black dresses and pointy hats.

I would recommend this book to everyone that wants to know a little bit more about witchcraft but doesn't want to start with something too complicated. This book is the perfect introduction to the witchcraft universe.

[Jocelyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although the material and research seemed thorough it was a little dry and the speaker( listened to audiobook) was somewhat monotone. That being said there are a lot of interesting tidbits in this book. A few ( I feel) misdrawn conclusions and a shocking reiteration of how perverse, cruel, immoral and power hungry patriarchal society has been and the horrible extent those in power went through to consolidate that power. There was a bit more in depth presentation of the early witch trials however it seemed to be told from pov of the persecutors but very little from the pov of the victims(witches). It is a good start for researching witches and occult in the past.

[Madeleine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I LOVED this book! So so interesting, I couldn't put it down. I read the majority of this on the subway to and from The Loose Moose. I couldn't help my jaw from dropping while reading this in public. This book has definitely encouraged me to read further on the history of witchcraft. It was so interesting to see how this history has shaped the portrayal of witches, the Devil and witchcraft in cinema. Would love to write an essay on The Witch (2015) and its use of lore and historical fragments from witch trials of New England.

[Rafaela · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a fun and light read. I was hoping for a different approach. I thought I was going to read about how women were unfairly judged as “witches”, when they were only the midwife or the healer/doctor of the village. Instead, this book is an interesting approach on spirituality and prejudice in the medieval Europe. The author speaks about the different witchy concepts and how the society saw them. Bottom line, it’s a great to book to show us that those in power were once able to assume what believes were valid or not, and to punish and torture people merely on superstition.

[Revrend Sunshine · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is heavy on the idea that witchcraft persecution and witchhunts were barely a footnote and were largely overblown. At one point, claiming the judges and witchfinders and other figures were just misunderstood men who were protecting their village from the dangers of witches. Portrayed as being caring and moral, always following rules and never using torture to extract confessions. They even go on to state that the Spanish Inquisition was largely just a series of meetings, and if any wrongdoing had occurred, it would have been stopped by the church.

[Melanie Rippon · Rating 3 out of 5]

OK as a very brief intro to the medieval/Renaissance ideas on witchcraft, how they evolved, the consequences in terms of trials, witch-hunts etc. Could have done with some sort of epilogue/afterword detailing the repeal of anti-witchcraft laws, the book ends rather abruptly so feels a little unfinished. Does have a list for further reading for anyone wanting to dig deeper into specific parts of history.

[Spencer Fancutt · Rating 2 out of 5]

Charts the development of witchcraft through the centuries and the primary elements of the witch folklore as it emerged and grew. Written with a non-historian reader in mind, it is nonetheless as dry as old toast. Lots of great background here if you are already super-interested in the topic, but I can't see it winning any new converts to the field. A reference text that reminded me of my high school experience in its introduction of historical information.

[Samantha · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good and quick overview. My library had this on audiobook, and it didn't take long to get through at all. It isn't particularly in depth, but it's still informative and a good place to start if this is a subject you're interested in. It is, however, very Euro-centric, so if you want something a little more global in scope this might not be it.

[Annabelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short, engrossing enough read, in which the most groundbreaking fact I learned is that England, the country that cut off the head of Ann Boleyn for witchcraft, had surprisingly much less witch hunt victims than Scotland, Italy, Germany, and Denmark.

Two and a half stars, really (Goodreads doesn't do half stars).

[Robbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

While im interested in concepts of christianity conflation of pagan and devil worship being constructed i picked up this book wanting to know actual historical or pagan ideas in record possibly. Which is a bit disheartening. Then again not alot of culture has been preserved of pagan stuff. So... Overall not bad. Interesting understandings here. Its not a bad book

[William Beck · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5
The first half of this book was a bit of a dry slog and felt like I was just retreating familiar ground again and again. But then the second half of this really picked up once it started actually getting into the witchy side of the witchcraft history. It was interesting and disturbing, and over all too quickly.

[G. Lawrence · Rating 5 out of 5]

A short, but informative introduction to the history of witchcraft. Does what it says on the tin really. Some criticise the writing as poor, but I enjoyed this. Not an in depth guide, but a sturdy introduction

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a short overall summary of the European witch trials. It focuses heavily on the legality of witchcraft and the cultural and religious beliefs that led to the trials. Perfect little introductory book for anyone interested in the topic.