key topic 4
Cards (16)
- The impact of the breakdown of traditional authority and legal structures : tension with parliament- in 1629 Charles dissolved parliament for 11 years and Ruled alone- ship tax , to provide for the fleet was made for entire country- he recalled parliament in 1640 in order to gain funds to fight the war with the Scots
- The impact of the breakdown of traditional authority and legal structures : civil war- first battle of edgehill 1642- 1645 parliament created the new model army , most shoulders came from eastern association- Suffolk served as the main recruitment grounds for the new model army , many men left there villages as towns - 20%- one accused witch margery confessed after she had been left vulnerable when her husband went to fight in the war- in 1645 stories reached east anglia about strange occurrences , headless baby
- The impact of the breakdown of traditional authority and legal structures : decline in order- undesirable ministers replaced by puritans- local gentry left there estates to fight- assize courts were unable to function normally , justice was often carried out by local magistrates- the courts were disrupted because it was too dangerous to travel from london e.g 1645 earl of Warwick was commisioned to oversee the Essex courts no experience and sentenced 19 women to hang- assizes at bury st Edmund were suspended and prisoners were executed - there was a 42% conviction rate
- why did hunts occur : crop failure- mid 1640s were bad , wet summers and freezing winters led to regular crop failure- 1646 was exceptionally wet with disease effecting livestock and crops , ergot on wheat and rye- price of wheat rose by 20%- bad harvests was seen as a sign from god , ie Charles should not be king
- why did hunts occur : change in lands use- livelihoods of peasants was effected by inflation- enclosure of common land , across east anglia landlords were increasingly tempted to enclose land and evict tenants- puritans saw idleness as sinful- sir miles sandys enclosed 4000 acres of common land , 30 families were evicted from lands so they began to riot in late 1530s- a number of witches in Ely in 1647 had connections with unrest over enclosure
- why did hunts occur : economic impact of civil war- price of livestock had increased by 12%- price of grain had increased by 15%- horses were regularly confiscated- increased amount of food consumed- as prices rose wages did not- 1643 new tax due to the increasing cost of war collected 12 times higher than ship tax- many witches were blamed for deaths of livestock and crop failures , Margaret moone
- geography numbers class and genders of witches- 80% were women accused- around 700 accused , around 300 - 400 killed- Matthew Hopkins first became concerned about witches in 1644 , claimed was meetings in mannintree , offered services for a fee— first woman accused was Elizabeth clark , found three teats- she named other witches ie Rebecca west- from first batch of witches nearly 20 found guilty
- Geography numbers class and gender of victims- over 120 witches examined in Suffolk- john lowes , subjected to swimming test , he floated , admitted to Killing cattle with witchcraft- in Norfolk 40 people were tried at the assizes of 1645- 8 women tried in Huntingdonshire in 1646- Hopkins and Stearne followed money- poor women were especially venerable to being accused
- Geography numbers class and gender of victims- Hopkins was keen to find sexual evidence with the devil of the victims- Susanna stegold was found guilty killing her husband , likely to have involved domestic violence- around 20% of the of accused witches were harmed with killing children- if they only left their mark they were likely to be Illiterate , all but one of the Ely witches left there mark
- the role of Hopkins and stearne- neither of them had any qualifications or experience- Hopkins named himself witchfinder general- towns were responsible for paying for witchfinders exspenses- stearne only stayed in one location long enough to set the legal procedures in process- focused on uncovering : devils marks and relationships and other witches- were known to isolate the victim and watching which is sleep deprivation or walking , also used the swimming test which was approved by james
- about Hopkins- was raised a strict puritan- published the discovery of witches in 1647- got power as he was in the right place at the right Time
- about stearne- puritan- he first gained a warrant to investigate manningtree witches
- more about Hopkins and stearne- when the traditional legal system was restored there was less need for Hopkins and stearne- john gaule singled out Hopkins for blame which suggests how great of a role he had- the techniques for interrogation were almost exclusively associated with Hopkins and steane
- end of the witch craze : growing cost- imprisonment : 3 pence per day , in Ipswich it cost up to £50 per day , the jailer at Ipswich said he was suffering financially- the assizes : required funds to accommodate judges - 1645 Bury £130 to cover costs- executions : Mary Lakeland up to £3 on her execution- fees of witchfinder : case would cost Arpund 20 shillings , records say it was higher than this aldebutgh was more than £40 - 1/7 of towns annual budget- witch-hunting was viewed as an unnecessary luxury after 1647 Hopkins died- stearne never called in debts
- end of witchcraze : the re establishment of authority- Charles surrendered 1646 , was safe enough for judges to travel again- royalist gentry were able to return to there estates in east anglia- the puritan pursuit of witches was now distributed by previously established authorities- 1646 Hopkins and strearne gave evidence for 9 accused witches seven of the accused were acquitted
- end of witchcraze : john Gaule- the minister of great Staunton- published his criticisms in a book in 1546- he said witches existed and it was necessary but not by the methods of Hopkins and stearne- he also claimed that people praised witchfinders more than god- he launched a campaign , did not gain much support initially but it did help convince the authorities that witch-hunts were no longer necessary