The Bewitching of Anne Gunter: A Horrible and True Story of Football, Witchcraft, Murder and the King of England

by James Sharpe

In 1604, 20-year-old Anne Gunter was bewitched: she foamed at the mouth, contorted wildly in her bedchamber, went into trances. Her garters and bodices were perpetually unlacing themselves. Her signature symptom was to vomit pins and "she voided some pins downwards as well by her water or otherwise.". Popular history at its best, The Bewitching of Anne Gunter opens a fascinating window onto the past. It's a tale of controlling fathers, willful daughters, nosy neighbors, power relations between peasants and gentry, and village life in early-modern Europe. Above all it's an original and revealing story of one young woman's experience with the greatly misunderstood phenomenon of witchcraft. James Sharpe is Professor of History at York University and the author of Instruments of Darkness: Witchcraft in Early Modern History and other works of social history.

Sharpe makes readers feel for a little-known historical figure who - at a time when women were judged inferior - broke all the rules.No small feat in any era. (Time Out New York)

Crammed with lore about demonic possession and the politics of exorcism.Sharpe's meticulously detailed reconstruction of a sensational English witchcraft case resonates with the modern era." --Publishers Weekly

An extraordinary case...Professor Sharpe, in this illuminating narrative, has given Anne Gunter her due moment of fame...extremely interesting and readable (Antonia Fraser, The London Times)

Sharpe (history, York Univ.) has produced a compelling popular study of the dynamics and intrigue of early modern European witch-hunting. Using extensive Court of Star Chamber documentation, he introduces the story of Anne Gunter, a 20-year-old maid from North Moreton, England, whose supposed afflictions at the hands of three alleged witches produced a series of trails from 1605-1608...Interweaving Anne Gunter's personal tale with that of the broader historical context of 17th century England, Sharpe skillfully illustrates the contemporary scholarly theory that most accusations of witchcraft were rooted in local rivalries and changing economic conditions. While distractingly repetitive and disappointing in its failure to reveal what became of the protagonist, this work gives a fascinating snapshot of a undergraduate and volatile the dangerous age. Recommended for general readers and as a undergraduate introduction. - J. W. Dippman, Central Washington University

Genres: History, Nonfiction, School, Witches, British Literature, True Crime, Read For School

238 pages, Paperback

First published October 28, 1999

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.

Reviews

[Emilie · Rating 4 out of 5]

History book!! Very dense, but a super interesting story.

[Slee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Though the title is cumbersome, if Sharpe had added the word "Football" to the list of subjects, it would fairly well sum up the entirety of the books multitude of themes. Yes, really, football.
Overall, for a heady academic non-fiction historical work, it read remarkably smoothly. Sharpe's treatment of the subject is thorough, detailed, and accessible.
I enjoyed that Sharpe explained customs and details with which the reader would likely be unfamiliar with concise detail, while elaborating enough to impart the reader with a passable understanding rather than oversimplifying things. I like that Sharpe's prose expects the reader to be intelligent without presupposing a specific and unlikely body of knowledge.
What I most enjoyed about this book was that Anne Gunter was such an unlikely candidate for being the subject of a book hundreds of years after her death. She was of little to no consequence in terms of the turning of the world, but her contains such depth of rich material, that to think of it as being relegated to silence with the rest of the masses is simply appalling. Her tale is both remakrable and surprising, and this book is well worth the read if you have any interest in Tudor/Stewart history and the peculiarities of the time.

[Jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Anne Gunter accused three women of bewitching her then later admitted she'd made it all up. This is the story of strained relationships between the leading families of a village in Oxfordshire, of troubled times in England and how a bully of a man can force his daughter into making false accusations in order to fuel his petty feuds and hatred. A very accessible telling of this true story.

[Jessie Keith · Rating 3 out of 5]

An enticingly written account of an extremely interesting case of faked possession in the reign of King James I, who himself had some say in the fate of its main players. Anne Gunter's story is one that sheds light on both belief and skepticism of the supernatural in England at that time, and is one I won't soon forget.

[Jeanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

A horrible and true story of deception, witchcraft, murder, and the King of England is highly recommendable, depending on what you want to do with the book. If you expect a novel on witchcraft that is exciting, entertaining and full of suspense until the end - than this book might be the wrong one for you. James Sharpe, a professor of history at York University, took a very interesting historical events and narrates it in three pages. The rest is background information. The historian goes back to the Oxford connection of Brian Gunter, he gives very detailed explanation of what happened at that football match were the feud between the Gunter's and the Gregory's started. Other chapters explain terms like possession or exorcism. Everything that is essential for this case is investigated. The facts of the story are taken apart in it's component parts and the many names of people are a little confusing. There is also a lot of repetition, some things are explained more than two times. However, if you are interested in a historical book, if you are interested in witchcraft this book might be the right thing for you. If you are looking for an exciting novel on witchcraft you better should keep on searching.

[Nikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

I always start off with how I do my rating- 5 stars are my favorite books and will re-read and recommend to anyone. 4 stars are ones that I liked a lot but not loved as a favorite. 3 stars are ones that I liked (just liked). 2 stars are ones that I was not fond of. 1 star is for ones I hate and can not stand.

I'm going to quote from the book since this sums up the book pretty well - "Anne had made her peculiar contribution to English witchcraft history. She had been the center of a complex story that had begun in the most familiar context for witchcraft accusations, the push and shove of disputes and personality clashes in the face to face community of the early modern village, a story that had concluded with her meeting King James, falling in love and dancing before the court."

I found this book in my sisters college books - she had taken a course on the history of witchcraft and this was one of their books to read.
I did like the tie to historical records and how the story unfolds through documentation. The morbid side of me wished that the outcome of the trial of he witches was different to be able to follow that outcome through historical records.

[Catherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting book which does more than it promises: as well as telling the story of Anne Gunter, it reveals a lot about the lives and philosophy of people in seventeenth century England, and demonstrates how an historian goes about finding such things out.

Unfortunately the strands are intermingled in a way which leads to much repetition and a rather dry style. Sharpe is anxious, particularly in the first half of the book, to acknowledge his sources and, while he manages to do so in a fluid way, it detracts from the both the tale and the description of the times. I found myself itching to re-write the book!

[Tara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love micro-histories and this is a perfect example. For anyone with a good general knowledge of the witch-hunts in England, this is an in-depth study of one of the most notorious cases. Sharpe does not attempt to write 'faction' or embellish the known facts, he simply tells the story in context of the early 17th century. Some aspects remain mysterious but it is a sad story and a dark reflection on patriarchy.

[Kari · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was really interesting to have a focused spotlight on one case rather than reading about ideas of witchcraft in general. It was a case I hadn't heard of before, being not as famously documented as Salem or Pendle. It had all the things you want from a crime story with murder, accusations, trickery and the involvement of King James I. Worth reading for anyone interested in social history or the history of witchcraft.

[Catherine McClelland · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was very interesting for anyone who is interested in the witchcraft craze. It is well researched presenting a young woman, Anne Gunter and her father and how they made a community and finally the King of England take notice of this young woman's supposed possession. Very interesting and at least for me a little known incident of the witchcraft craze in England.

[G · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent and scholarly account of a case of feigned witchcraft in seventeenth century England. Sharpe traces all of the various elements of the story and reflects on a wide variety of topics related to social, political and cultural life in the late sixteenth, early seventeenth century. Overall, a very good example of microhistory at its finest.

[Caroline · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really interesting book going over the state of Witchcraft in the era of Anne Gunter, and how her bewitchment came about and how it was handled. Really interesting for those interested in English history and/or the history of Witchcraft!

[Ashley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am amazed at how such interesting subject matter could be made so incredibly boring. I felt there were so many times that extraneous information was added in order to lengthen the text. The book was an interesting read to skim but not something to read for pleasure.

[Jean Marie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read for Tudor-Stuart England.

A great research topic, but it's weighed down with side information and repetitive narration. Additionally, I have no idea why we had to read this for our class, again it would have been better served for a graduate course.