1542 to 1735 was a period of English history when witchcraft remained a statutory crime punishable by death; moreover, these years marked a significant increase in the number of witch-hunts and prosecutions. However, this does not necessarily mean that there was a comparative rise in witchcraft beliefs. The period reflects a populace that were ingratiated in the art of social intercourse, gossip and social interaction that meant if witchcraft was suspected, then it was talked about and opinions were formed. The secular and ecclesiastical courts merely allowed existing beliefs to be given the forum to express grievances against supposed witches, and subsequently extract some form of punitive action. Belief in witchcraft, it seems, had in some form always existed, manifested by a timeless belief in magical powers whether for good or bad. Many historians have identified three areas of witchcraft belief and have categorised them according to their sociological and theological context. For the purposes of establishing differing witchcraft beliefs, it appears necessary to distinguish between actual practices, the educated elite�s perceptions of the rejection of the Christian Church, and the popular tradition that feared witches that could do harm in the community; but despite contextual differences, there remained a degree of commonality between the popular and learned tradition.[5] European continental belief mainly centred on the nature of the �diabolical pact� between the witch and the Devil, and related to the condition of the witch. This belief was shared by some of the educated elites in England; however, the English popular tradition was chiefly concerned with �maleficium� and the �ability to do harm through �black magic,� as opposed to the beneficial aspects of �white magic.� This conviction in �local malice�[6] reflected the popular beliefs of the common people, ingrained over generations by ancient folklore and �superstitious sentiment,� and was less about learned theory than explaining the harsh realities of day-to-day life. Although the writers of the Malleus Maleficarum suggested �all the superstitious arts had their origin in a pestilent association of men with devils,�[7] it was Reginald Scot�s contemporary view that �witchcraft and inchantment is the cloke of ignorance.�[8]

 

One explanation for witchcraft beliefs could indeed be a lack of education among the simple folk. However, witchcraft belief was prevalent among the more �elite� classes. Learned opinion constructed the idea of a �black mass,� but it has been argued that there is no foundation in the claim that witches �worshipped the Devil collectively,� and that such notions were formulated in the minds of the persecutors and the accused themselves.[9] Nevertheless, genuine fears were aroused by the idea of collective Devil worship, and indeed may have been based on the evidence that secret groups did gather for purposes of religious worship, thus cultivating witchcraft beliefs. Nevertheless, the belief in the demon remained and the association with witchcraft strengthened the belief that a witch�s power came directly from an entity whose quest it was to cause harm. England produced a wealth of witchcraft literature that covered the �religious, legal, medical and sociological aspects of witchcraft.�[10] Moreover, it could be concluded that such an array of literature must have promoted and stimulated beliefs in witchcraft, although mainly among the literate and elite classes. In Brian Levack�s (1987) opinion, the innovation of printing �made it possible for learned beliefs to be spread more broadly and more rapidly than in the manuscript age.�[11] The Christian Church recognised the theological threat of witchcraft and produced manuals and tracts condemning the practice. The Church saw the act of witchcraft as fundamentally a reversal of Christian doctrine, and therefore a threat to the stability of maintaining a �godly� and well-ordered society. For Christian political ideology, �witches represented the most extreme form of deviance.�[12] The Devil and his associates, according to the Malleus Maleficarum, were not just agents of deception, but actively deluded �those� who are not in a state of grace.�[13] Indeed, it has been argued that the Malleus Maleficarum �transmitted an entire set of learned beliefs to a larger audience,� and by declaring that those who denied the reality of witchcraft were heretics, the book encouraged a belief in witchcraft activity.[14] If it was not Christianity, then it was heretical and part of the black arts of witchcraft, commanded by the enemy of God, the Devil. In Reginald Scot�s view, Catholic law and investigation towards witchcraft in England resulted in extending the beliefs of a large number of the populace, noting that �these inquisitors added manie fables� to justify the persecution of English witches.[15] In addition, it has also been claimed that witchcraft was in fact a complete fiction conceived by Christian theologians and had no foundation in popular belief or practice.[16] However, theological constructions of faith and what it means to be a �good Christian� provoked ideas on what defined the contrary, and on a popular level, this served to strengthen notions of community and reinforce ideas of �right� and �wrong.� In a sense, witchcraft beliefs could be explained by a �cause and effect� pattern instigated by Christian constructions of demonology and magical practice. It appears then that one explanation for witchcraft belief could be found in Christianity�s attempts to eradicate magical practice and the diabolical pact. By doing so, Christian theory �heavily reinforced� the belief that a witch�s magical power was �real� and to be feared.[17]

 

Early modern England was a country experiencing the religious upheaval brought about by Reformation ideas and the inconsistency of toleration and adherence during the reign of the Tudor�s. The development of personal religion among the common people emphasised differing belief systems in which opposing sides were established, Protestant or Catholic, and Christianity or witchcraft and black magic.[18] The Protestant Reformation provided a reference to witchcraft taken from God�s book, and therefore subject to literal interpretation; Exodus 22:18 stated that �thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.�[19] Both Luther and Calvin believed in the power of magic, and their views were widely disseminated among both the popular and elitist culture; to be a follower of the new gospel was to hold a belief in witchcraft. Afterall, Martin Luther had asked, �who hath bewitched you, that you should not believe the truth?�[20] Luther had also suggested that all heretical biblical interpretation was witchcraft,[21] confirming the belief that all those who were non-conformist were agents of the Devil. In addition, the gospel identified the Devil as the source of a witch�s abilities and this probably intensified popular fear and awareness of the Devil�s powers. By condemning the power of magic, Reformation dogma perhaps inadvertently (or deliberately) induced a more frightening level of witchcraft belief among the pious laity. Christian theology had speculated upon the �diabolic pact� in an attempt to make sense of witchcraft, however, such theory was not founded in contemporary popular tradition.[22] Nevertheless, the methods used to extract confessions of diabolism produced �evidence� from which it has been suggested actually �created witchcraft, or at least created diabolical witchcraft.�[23] Popular belief in the diabolical activities of a witch could be deduced from the information read out at the time of the executions,[24] and therefore, it created a belief in the nature of diabolical witchcraft, a horrific and fearful entity that understandably may have produced widespread fear in a profoundly spiritual and religious society. Ann Laurence (1995) has also explained that diabolism depends on believing in a �dualist� universe whereby the Devil is counterbalanced by God.[25] However, the Devil was not necessarily incorporated into the popular tradition of the maleficent abilities of the witch.

 

Christina Larner (1984) has argued that maleficium cannot be committed in �social vacuum,� stressing that �to be effective, it must be generally believed to be effective.�[26] This idea is not so much that supernatural powers did exist in reality, but more that these abilities were believed to exist by those who needed an intuitive explanation of their universe and everyday life. Those folk most conspicuous by a belief in witchcraft were those people concerned with the day-to-day realities of agriculture, raising children, running households, the very essence of maintaining life and a livelihood.  Witchcraft belief was a way to explain everyday fears and anxiety in a life that was intimately connected to the natural cycles of life. Anne Laurence (1995) has suggested that a central component of popular culture was derived from �pre-Christian ceremonies and customs,� that had more to do with the �annual rhythms of nature than with the Christian calendar,� and argues that English popular witchcraft beliefs in the sixteenth century were generally related to local circumstances. [27] At all social levels, the importance of fertility was an annual concern. Motherhood, breeding livestock, and a fruitful ground to produce foodstuffs were all necessary for the continuation of life itself. If this life was affected by illness, crop failure or sudden death, the result could be tragic and ruinous. The harrowing emotional experience of �real deaths, real illnesses, and real losses� meant people looked for reason and believed that harm had been done to their families and livelihoods.[28] Witchcraft would often be suspected and blame was put upon those who were deemed to hold �magical powers.� James Sharpe (1996) considers that such popular accusations should not be underestimated and the �fact that theirs was an insecure world in which diseases or accidents that today would be diagnosed or accounted for in other terms, or misfortunes that might simply be attributed to bad luck, were explained by witchcraft.�[29] Reginald Scot argued that the cause of such �credulous belief� was �in the imagination of the melancholike,� but he did recognise that some folk believed that witches �can doo such things as are beyond the abilitie of humane nature.�[30]  The seventeenth-century squire, Richard Bovet was well acquainted with country beliefs and noted more sympathetically that the �power of imagination�may have strange effects, especially upon tender and irrational bodies.�[31] Nevertheless, in early modern English communities, melancholic behaviour must have been ever present in the harsh life endured by the poor, and a belief in witchcraft could help provide answers to immediate misfortune.

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