A lesson on witches and beliefs about witchcraft in the 16th and 17th century. A good resource for crime and punishment history gcse.

1. Witchcraft

3. Background
• In the Middle Ages, people had been tried for
witchcraft in church courts, which had tended to give
relatively light sentences.
• This was because ordinary people , who were too poor
to afford the services of doctors, relied on local ‘wise
women’.These women, using a combination of herbal
treatments and magic charms, tried to cure illnesses of
both humans and animals.
• Throughout the 16th and 17th centuries, many
superstitions survived and new laws were passed
making witchcraft a serious crime.
• HenryVIII made it a capital crime in 1542.

4. What made
witchcraft a
serious
crime?
Social changes: many families
broke up to find work. Some
old women were left on their
own so many turned to magic
as a way to improve their luck.
Civil war:
tension in the
communities
was
heightened
by civil wars.
Religion: after HenryVIII broke
away from Rome, witchcraft
was seen as an offence against
the state rather than the church
Economic hardship:
increase in beggars
due to financial
issues in the
country led to bad
feelings amongst
neighbors'. Crop
failures and other
bad luck was also
blamed on witches.

5. Why women?
Christianity had always portrayed
women as morally weaker than men
(Adam and Eve)
According to some historians
many men either feared or even
hated women
The puritans (a Christian sect) tended
to see women as a temptress
(untrustworthy)

6. How were the women convicted?
Unusual marks on a woman's body (e.g.
birth marks etc)
Needle test: Used to locate the devils mark on a witches body. It is
believed that wherever the devil touched a person that area would be
insensitive to pain -The use of ‘possessed’ children who acted as
accusers -Neighbours could provide evidence, e.g. if heard making a
pact with the devil.

7. Were witchcraft trials fair?
• Some aspects were like a normal trial.
• The accusers would present their charge and bring witnesses to
support it.
• The accused would be asked to defend themselves – but 90% of
those accused were women and most were elderly widows or
spinsters who had no man to speak for them or defend them.
• Other aspects were nothing like a normal trial – e.g. ‘swimming’ –
was a throw-back to trial by ordeal.
• Many of the accused were found not guilty and only a small
proportion of the accused were executed.
• Witches were usually only hanged if the court believed they had
used their powers to kill someone, or to harm animals or damage
property.
• It was not being a witch that was considered the main crime – it
was using supernatural power to harm others.

8. Issues
Issue Possible explanation
Why were accusations typically
made by wealthier people against
poorer people?
The accusations were a sign of increased inequality in the village.
There was tension between the poor and those who were a little
richer than them: the poor asked for help more often; the wealthy
felt threatened by the demands of the poor. Remember that at this
time the rich were also clamping down on the poor in the laws
against vagabonds.
Why were most of the accused
old women?
This was a sign of social upheaval in village life. The old ties that
bound people together as communities or as families were being
loosened. Old women would once have been cared for and even
respected as wise women. Now they were seen as threatening
because they were different. It is one more example of the way
that vulnerable or NON-CONFORMIST members of society are
sometimes scapegoat as criminals.
Why did accusations tail off in the
seventeenth century?
This was a time of increasingly rational thinking. Belief in witches
didn’t disappear, but educated people (who usually had to judge
accusations of witchcraft) were less likely to believe charges of
witchcraft than in earlier periods. Another reason was that people
were becoming increasingly prosperous. This reduced the tensions
in villages. The rich helped the poor more and there were probably
fewer requests for help.

9. Why did
witchcraft
trials
decline?
There was a huge
increase in scientific
discoveries.Things that
were blamed on the devil
could now be explained
by science.
Economic problems
began to slow
down.This reduced
tensions in people
so they became less
jealous and
suspicious of their
neighbours.
Although many
people still
believed in
witches a growing
number were
taking a more
rational view.

10. Matthew Hopkins-Witchfinder
general
Watch the video

11. Accusations data

12. Why did society undergo a witchcraft
craze? Use the two sources and your
knowledge.(6 marks)
• You need to focus on the influence of society’s
attitudes regarding witchcraft.