Magic as a Political Crime in Medieval and Early Modern England: A History of Sorcery and Treason

by Francis Young

Overview

Treason and magic were first linked together during the reign of Edward II. Theories of occult conspiracy then regularly led to major political scandals, such as the trial of Eleanor Cobham Duchess of Gloucester in 1441. While accusations of magical treason against high-ranking figures were indeed a staple of late medieval English power politics, they acquired new significance at the Reformation when the 'superstition' embodied by magic came to be associated with proscribed Catholic belief. Francis Young here offers the first concerted historical analysis of allegations of the use of magic either to harm or kill the monarch, or else manipulate the course of political events in England, between the fourteenth century and the dawn of the Enlightenment. His book addresses a subject usually either passed over or elided with witchcraft: a quite different historical phenomenon. He argues that while charges of treasonable magic certainly were used to destroy reputations or to ensure the convictions of undesirables, magic was also perceived as a genuine threat by English governments into the Civil War era and beyond.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781788310215
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	12/30/2017
Series:	International Library of Historical Studies
Pages:	272
Product dimensions:	5.70(w) x 8.50(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Francis Young is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and gained a PhD in history from the University of Cambridge. He is the author and editor of seven previous books. These include English Catholics and the Supernatural, 1553-1829 (2013), The Gages of Hengrave and Suffolk Catholicism, 1640-1767 (2015), The Abbey of Bury St Edmunds: History, Legacy and Discovery (2016) and A History of Exorcism in Catholic Christianity (2016). He broadcasts regularly for the BBC on historical topics.

Table of Contents

Preface ix

Abbreviations xiii

Chronology xv

Introduction 1

Histories of Magic as Political Crime 4

Studying Magic as Political Crime 7

Denning Magic 8

Magic and Witchcraft 12

Magic and Treason 16

Structure of the Book 20

1 'Compassing and Imagining': Magic as a Political Crime in Medieval England 23

John of Nottingham and the Plot Against Edward II 27

Magic and the Statute of Treason 31

Application of the Statute of Treason 32

The Case of Eleanor Cobham 35

Magic in the Wars of the Roses 46

The Reign of Henry VII 51

Conclusion 53

2 Treason, Sorcery and Prophecy in The Early English Reformation, 1534-58 55

The Tudors and the English Reformation 57

Prophecy and Treason 61

Magic and Treason at Court 70

The Reigns of Edward VI and Mary 78

Conclusion 84

3 Elizabeth versus The 'Popish Conjurers', 1558-77 87

The Elizabethan Reformation 87

The Accession of Elizabeth 89

The Fortescue Conspiracy 91

The 1559 Bill against Sorcery, Witchcraft and Buggery 93

The Waldegrave and Pole Conspiracies 95

The Burning of St Paul's 105

The 1563 Act Against Conjuration and Witchcraft 108

The Abduction and Trial of John Story 111

The Case of Rowland Jenks 116

Conclusion 118

4 'A Traitorous Heart to the Queen': Effigies and Witch-Hunts, 1578-1603 119

Effigy Magic 121

John Dee and the Wax Effigies 123

Leicester's Witch-Hunt 129

Vincent Murphyn's Conspiracy 139

The 1580 Act for Suppressing Seditious Words and Rumours 140

'Anabaptistical Wizards' 141

Elizabeth's Last Years 144

Magical Treason in Shakespeare's Henry VI Part Two 147

Conclusion 150

5 'A Breach in Nature': Magic as a Political Crime in Early Stuart England, 1603-42 153

James VI and Magical Treason 154

James's English Reign 161

The Case of Sir Thomas Lake 167

Magical Treason in the Plays of Shakespeare 170

The Poisoning of James I 172

Towards Civil War 176

6 The Decline of Magic as a Political Crime, 1642-1700 179

Political Magic in the English Civil Wars 180

Interregnum and Restoration: The Decline of Magical Treason 182

Witchcraft and Treason 186

England and the 'Affair of the Poisons' 188

Treason without Magic: The Popish Plot 193

Magic and Politics Part Company 195

Echoes 197

Conclusion 202

Notes 205

Bibliography 231

Index 243