The History of Witchcraft

Witch pictured feeding her familiars with blood, in A Rehearsall both Straung and True (1579) British Library Board

The truth about witchcraft: myth or history?

Much of what people believe is historical truth about witchcraft is actually myth. In this talk, I will unpick the muddle, uncovering the basis of fictions such as the idea that witches were young and beautiful, that witches were healers with herbal knowledge, that witches were burned at the stake; instead, I will describe real witches from the historical record.