When bigotry and power-mania take control, disaster always follows for subjugated persons – even when the power is wielded by the Church.
Witchcraft was viewed as devil-worship. Between 1450 and 1750, one hundred thousand people were accused, subject to the most bestial tortures and usually executed. Witches examines the wildfire-spread of witch hunting across Europe and America, as well as its roots in misogyny and religious persecution.
It includes:
– Letters and trial testimonies from those charged with witchcraft, as well as some from self-proclaimed witches
– Biographic detail of key witch hunters, such as Matthew Hopkins (the so-called Witchfinder General) who was responsible for hundreds of executions
– Accounts of famous witch trials, from Chelmsford to Salam
Nigel Cawthorne explores the real facts behind this persecution and the contexts that triggered it, tracing it back to its source.