History of Witchcraft

7 min readHistory of Witchcraft: From Antiquity to the Modern RevivalThe history of witchcraft from Mesopotamian anti-witch rites and the Canon Episcopi to the Malleus Maleficarum, the great witch-hunts, Salem and modern Wicca.8 min readKeith Thomas's Religion and the Decline of Magic (1971)Keith Thomas's Religion and the Decline of Magic (1971) explained: its argument on popular magic, witchcraft and astrology, its critics, and the Pagan Front.8 min readThe Murray Thesis: Margaret Murray and the Witch-Cult TheoryThe Murray thesis explained: Margaret Murray's claim that witches were a pagan fertility cult, its influence on Wicca and why historians reject it.7 min readThe Witchcraft Act of 1735: How Britain Ended Witch TrialsThe Witchcraft Act of 1735 explained: how Britain stopped prosecuting witches, punished pretended magic instead, and kept the law until 1951.

Forthcoming in this chapter

Daemonologie: History, Contents and Meaning
The Discoverie of Witchcraft: History, Contents and Meaning
De Praestigiis Daemonum: History, Contents and Meaning
Compendium Maleficarum: History, Contents and Meaning
Canon Episcopi: History, Contents and Meaning
Aradia, or the Gospel of the Witches: History, Contents and Meaning
The Witch-Cult in Western Europe: History, Contents and Meaning
The God of the Witches: History, Contents and Meaning
High Magic's Aid: History, Contents and Meaning
Witchcraft Today: History, Contents and Meaning
The Book of Shadows: History, Contents and Meaning
The Charge of the Goddess: History, Contents and Meaning
The Wiccan Rede: History, Contents and Meaning
The Witches' Rune: History, Contents and Meaning
Prose Edda: History, Contents and Meaning
Hávamál: History, Contents and Meaning
Mabinogion: History, Contents and Meaning
Carmina Gadelica: History, Contents and Meaning
Book of Shadows: Meaning, History and Practice
The Wiccan Rede: Meaning, History and Practice
The Threefold Law: Meaning, History and Practice
Drawing Down the Moon: Meaning, History and Practice
Esbats: Meaning, History and Practice
Casting a Circle: Meaning, History and Practice
The Athame: Meaning, History and Practice
The Watchtowers in Wicca: Meaning, History and Practice
Initiation and the Three Degrees: Meaning, History and Practice
Gardnerian Wicca: Meaning, History and Practice
Seax-Wica: Meaning, History and Practice
Dianic Wicca: Meaning, History and Practice
Feri Tradition: Meaning, History and Practice
Reclaiming Tradition: Meaning, History and Practice
Eclectic Wicca: Meaning, History and Practice
Hedge Witchcraft: Meaning, History and Practice
Kitchen Witchcraft: Meaning, History and Practice
Green Witchcraft: Meaning, History and Practice
Cunning Folk: Meaning, History and Practice
Poppets: Meaning, History and Practice
The Witches' Sabbath in History: Meaning, History and Practice
Flying Ointment: Meaning, History and Practice

and 24 more.