Concetti Chiave
- During Elizabeth I and James I's reigns, witchcraft was redefined as an ordinary crime, shifting trials from church to secular courts.
- Convicted witches were hanged instead of burnt, and their property could be seized by the crown, incentivizing trials.
- James I identified witches as typically old women with 'familiars,' marks, and solitary lifestyles, making accusations commonplace.
- The 1735 Act shifted focus from punishing witches to penalizing those pretending to practice witchcraft, like calling spirits.
- By 1700, belief in witches waned, and the witch-hunt tragedy evolved into a comedic view on astrology in England.
Legal Changes Under Elizabeth I and James I
During the reign of Elizabeth I nad James I, the laws regarding withcraft changed in England. Witches were no longer tried by church courts. Witchcraft was now an ordinary crime, and was defined as ‘the use, practise or exercise of any witchcraft, Enchantment, charm or sorcery, whereby any person shall be killed or destroyed.’ Now, someone who was found guilty of being a witch was no longer burnt: she was hanged. Also, the person who was convisted could lose his or her property to the crown. This made it profitable for government officials to convict somebody of witchcraft and as a result the number of trials increased greatly.
Characteristics of Witches According to James
James listed the ain characteristics of witches:
- They are almost always women.
- They are often old.
- They have familiars - animal - shaped spirits that help the witches do their magic. - They have ‘witch’s mark’ or ‘devil’s mark’-this was supposed to be a sign made by the Devil himself on the witch to show that she belonged to him. In reality, they were any ordinary markings on the skin. - They amake models of their victims in wax and put spells on them.
- They generally live by themselves.
- They hold odd ceremonies.
It is not hard to imagine how almost any woman could be accused of being a witch. It is also not hard to imagine somebody confessing to practising witchcraft after being tortured-even if the punishment was death.
1735 Legislation and Its Consequences
The last piece of Legislation in Britain associated with witches was the Act of 1735. It was in force untill 1951. In fact, two women Helen Ducan and Jane Rebecca Yorke, were accused under this law in 1944. However, by 1700, the government no longer acted as if witches existed and this 1735 law did not punish people who were witches but people who pretended to be witches by calling up spirits, foretelling the future, casting spells and discovering spirits. So, some people believed that the publishers of astrology columns in newspaper could be punished under thw witchcraft Act. Fortunately, in England the tragedy of witch-hunts had been trasformed into the comedy of astrology.
Domande da interrogazione
- How did the legal treatment of witchcraft change during the reigns of Elizabeth I and James I?
- What were the main characteristics of witches according to James I?
- What was the significance of the 1735 Witchcraft Act, and how did it differ from previous laws?
During Elizabeth I and James I's reigns, witchcraft was reclassified from a church matter to an ordinary crime. Convicted witches were hanged instead of burnt, and their property could be seized by the crown, incentivizing officials to increase trials.
James I identified witches as typically being women, often old, possessing animal-shaped familiars, having a 'witch's mark,' making wax models of victims, living alone, and holding odd ceremonies, making it easy for many women to be accused.
The 1735 Witchcraft Act marked a shift by punishing those pretending to be witches rather than actual witches, reflecting a change in belief. By 1700, the government no longer acted as if witches existed, and the Act targeted activities like calling spirits and casting spells.
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