Witch Hunts in Europe and America: An Encyclopedia

(Hardback)

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From the wicked witch of children's stories to Halloween and present-day Wiccan groups, witches and witchcraft still fascinate observers of Western culture. Witches were believed to affect climatological catastrophes, put spells on their neighbours and cavort with the devil. In early modern Europe and the Americas, witches and witch-hunting were an integral part of everyday life, touching major events such as the Reformation and the Scientific Revolution, as well as politics, law, medicine and culture. From early sorcery trials of the 14th century - associated primarily with French and Papal courts - to the witch executions of the late 18th century, this title's entries cover witch-hunting in individual countries; major witch trials from Chelmsford, England, to Salem, Massachusetts; and significant individuals from famous witches to the devout persecutors. Entries such as the evil eye, familiars, and witch-finders cover specific aspects of the witch-hunting process, while entries on writers and modern interpretations provide insight into the current thinking on early modern witch hunts.

Reviews

Full of interesting facts and thought-provoking information.-Reference Revies (UK)
Scholar William Burns surveys four centuries of witch hunts, from the sorcery trials of the Knight Templar to the last European executions for witchcraft in Posen, Poland in 1793....From torture to flotation tests, the methods of discovering witches are explained, as are trial procedures and means of execution. Geographical coverage extends to almost every country of modern Europe and to the French, English, and Spanish colonies of the New World. Throughout, Burns thoroughly examines the historical evidence of witch hunts, and his entries reflect both primary sources and current scholarship. His guide will serve as an excellent starting point for those investigating this turbulent period of history and is highly recommended for academic libraries.-Catholic Library World
The care and research that have gone into this volume give it potential value in some European and Colonial American history courses....Academic Libraries.-Choice
This book covers witchcraft and witch-hunting in Europe and those colonies in the Americas where Europeans excercised political domination....this is well-written book that is clear, concise, and to the point. Recommended.-Library Media Connection
Witch Hunts in Europe and America is recommended for public and academic libraries.-Reference Reviews-Lawrence Looks at Books
Witchcraft, once regarded as a marginal and unimportant subject by the generality of mainstream historians, is now established as a theme of major historical signficance. Witchcraft touches on the theology of late medieval and early modern Europe, European judicial systems, and hence the processes of state-formation over that period, the changing nature of village communities, the scientific and medical ideas of the era, and the crucial but still elusive issue of the era's gender relations. Those wishing to understand this most important phenomena must therefore sail a difficult course between a Scylla of past misconceptions and a Charybdis of a continual stream of publications and reinterpretations. Anybody embarking on such an undertaking would benefit massively from owning a copy of William E. Burns's Witch Hunts in Europe and America. This work provides what is in almost all respects an excellent single-volume compendium of knowledge on the subject.-Times Literary Supplement
"Full of interesting facts and thought-provoking information."-Reference Revies (UK)
"Scholar William Burns surveys four centuries of witch hunts, from the sorcery trials of the Knight Templar to the last European executions for witchcraft in Posen, Poland in 1793....From torture to flotation tests, the methods of discovering witches are explained, as are trial procedures and means of execution. Geographical coverage extends to almost every country of modern Europe and to the French, English, and Spanish colonies of the New World. Throughout, Burns thoroughly examines the historical evidence of witch hunts, and his entries reflect both primary sources and current scholarship. His guide will serve as an excellent starting point for those investigating this turbulent period of history and is highly recommended for academic libraries."-Catholic Library World
"The care and research that have gone into this volume give it potential value in some European and Colonial American history courses....Academic Libraries."-Choice
"This book covers witchcraft and witch-hunting in Europe and those colonies in the Americas where Europeans excercised political domination....this is well-written book that is clear, concise, and to the point. Recommended."-Library Media Connection
"Witch Hunts in Europe and America is recommended for public and academic libraries."-Reference Reviews-Lawrence Looks at Books
"Witchcraft, once regarded as a marginal and unimportant subject by the generality of mainstream historians, is now established as a theme of major historical signficance. Witchcraft touches on the theology of late medieval and early modern Europe, European judicial systems, and hence the processes of state-formation over that period, the changing nature of village communities, the scientific and medical ideas of the era, and the crucial but still elusive issue of the era's gender relations. Those wishing to understand this most important phenomena must therefore sail a difficult course between a Scylla of past misconceptions and a Charybdis of a continual stream of publications and reinterpretations. Anybody embarking on such an undertaking would benefit massively from owning a copy of William E. Burns's Witch Hunts in Europe and America. This work provides what is in almost all respects an excellent single-volume compendium of knowledge on the subject."-Times Literary Supplement

Author Bio

WILLIAM E. BURNS has taught at the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Maryland, and Mary Washington College. His earlier books include The Scientific Revolution: A World History Companion (2001) and An Age of Wonders: Prodigies in Later Stuart Politics and Culture (2002).