Witchcraft, Magic and Culture 17361951

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This classic study remains the definitive account of witchcraft and magic in the centuries following the witch trials.

The Witchcraft Act of 1736 brought an end to witch trials in Britain. But just because the law had changed didn't mean people had stopped believing. Fear of witches and faith in magic persisted, and people suspected of witchcraft continued to appear in court until the early twentieth century, though by then it was their persecutors who were being put on trial.

In this book, Owen Davies traces the history of witches and magic in Britain from 1736 to 1951, when the Fraudulent Mediums Act finally erased the concept of witchcraft from the statute books. He reveals the grip that the supernatural continued to exert on the people of England and Wales in a period when the forces of progress were thought to have vanquished such beliefs.

Exploring how the population coped with the threat of witches once there was no longer any legal redress, and how accusations of witchcraft took shape during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, Davies provides a fascinating glimpse into a lingering world of supernatural belief.

Reviews

'With exemplary energy and imagination, Davies has uncovered vast patches of continuing superstition and magical practice, down into the twentieth century.'
Journal of Social History

'Davies's researches have revealed a rich, complex and shifting occult culture [...] A strong and stimulating study.'
Rural History

'Owen Daviess book is particularly welcome and timely... it establishes quite clearly that magical beliefs and practices continued to flourish in Britain for more than two centuries after the repeal of the old witchcraft statute in 1736.'
Journal of Ecclesiastical History

Author Bio

Owen Davies is Professor of Social History at the University of Hertfordshire. He is the author of numerous books, including Folklore: A Journey through the Past and Present (2025), Art of Grimoire (2023) and Troubled by Faith: Insanity and the Supernatural in the Age of the Asylum (2023). He has been described as Britain's foremost academic expert on the history of magic.