THE WITCHING HOUR

Witches are only seen at Hallowe’en these days, but in the 17th century a growing fear of witchcraft and sorcery sparked widespread witch hunts, as paranoia spread throughout the land

NEIL JONES

An owl hoots as evening descends; trees creak in the wind. Overhead a shadow flits across the face of a silvery moon: was it a cloud, or perhaps something more sinister? With the nights drawing in and, before we know it, Hallowe’en fast approaching, the idea of a witch riding a flying broomstick across dark night skies seems a distinct possibility. Today spooky tales of witches, charms and black cats are treated as harmless fun. But in the 16th and 17th centuries, at the height of the witch-hunts that swept across Europe, more than 5,000 people in Britain, mainly women, are estimated to have been hung or burned at the stake for alleged witchcraft. Sorcery and magic had always been an accepted part of medieval day-to-day life, particularly in rural…

You're reading a preview of

Britain (Digital) - 1 Issue, Sep/Oct 2024

DiscountMags is a licensed distributor (not a publisher) of the above content and Publication through Zinio LLC. Accordingly, we have no editorial control over the Publications. Any opinions, advice, statements, services, offers or other information or content expressed or made available by third parties, including those made in Publications offered on our website, are those of the respective author(s) or publisher(s) and not of DiscountMags. DiscountMags does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, truthfulness, or usefulness of all or any portion of any publication or any services or offers made by third parties, nor will we be liable for any loss or damage caused by your reliance on information contained in any Publication, or your use of services offered, or your acceptance of any offers made through the Service or the Publications. For content removal requests, please contact Zinio.