East Anglia - The responsibility of Hopkins and Stearne Flashcards
How many Witches were accused during the craze?
Around 700 people were accused or faced trial in the region and period of Hopkins and Stearne.
How many were executed?
Historians have estimated around 300-400 were ultimately executed
Why did Hopkins apparently become interested in witchcraft?
He became concerned about witches in 1644 when he claimed he was being kept up at night by meetings of witches
What political affiliation did Grimston have?
He was a parliamentarian - resisting many of Charles policies while he was an MP
What were his (Grimston’s) religious sympathies?
Grimston was a Puritan
Analysis: How might this have affected his desire to hunt witches?
What was found on Elizabeth Clark?
Three teats were found Elizabeth Clark by four search-women
What appeared to visit her?
Three familiars
Who did she name as a witch?
Rebecca West who also admitted to suckling imps
What did West do to gain immunity?
She turned witness for the Crown
Analysis: How might this increase the extent of witch hunts?
Now that they had found a number of witches in the area, it raises suspicion that there are others that need to be found
Why might people have disliked John Lowes politically?
What did Hopkins use to extract a confession?
The swimming test
Analysis: Why would Lowes have been viewed as presenting an economic threat with his largest crime?
What did Hopkins get from each local council?
A fee for his service
What seemed to cause a lot of accusations of witchcraft?
Many accusations were
What action had been taken prior to Hopkins arrival?
Who objected to Hopkins in their community?
A local clergyman, John Gaule, objected to Hopkins.
What surprised Hopkins in the Norfolk assizes?
He was subjected to hostile questioning about his activities by officials who had become suspicious.
How did he respond?
He responded with his book ‘The Discovery of Witches’
How does Louise Jackson interpret the driving force behind the witch trials?
Jackson interprets this as organised and deliberate violence, exclusively carried out against women.
How does she account for the fact that 20% of the accused were men?
She argues that men were only ever accused if they associated with an already accused witch
What area did Hopkins seem especially keen to find evidence of?
In female spaces and tasks; The home, kitchen, the nursery, feeding and the many poor women that were involved in dairy farming
What were about 20% of witches accused of?
Killing or harming children
What evidence is used to assess the literacy and thus class of victims?
How many could sign their names
How does the class of the victims compare to those of the hunters?
Those who accused, witnessed or hunted witches were much more likely to be literate, showing that many accusations came from wealthier people, possibly thinking the poor were seeking revenge
What title did Hopkins give himself?
The Witchfinder General
How closely involved were Hopkins and Stearne in trials?
It seems the men occasionally testified in court, although there is no evidence that they were present for all cases
What four signs of witchcraft did Hopkins and Stearne focus on?
- The relationship between the suspected witches and the Devil
- Any marks that could be associated with witchcraft
- Any imps or familiars given to the witch by the Devil or other witches
- Other witches known to the accused or members of their supposed covens
What four techniques did they use to extract confessions?
- Isolate the suspect as much as possible to make them disorientated and more likely to confess
- Some evidence suggests intimidation and physical violence was used against some suspects.
- ‘Watching’ - the suspect would be watched over to keep from sleeping (most successful but controversial) and the sleep deprivation was supposedly discontinued (Hopkins claimed in his defense)
- ‘Walking’ was also used (with watching) where the suspect is forced to walk around the room constantly
What test did they frequently use?
The swimming test (if they float they were guilty)
Where had it been justified previously?
Daemonologie by James I had approved the test
How reliable was the test considered to be by magistrates?
Magistrates were often sceptical of the swimming test
Why would Hopkins background have lead to him being trusted?
He was the son of a Puritan clergyman, James Hopkins
Why would Hopkins need a career that provide an income?
He was the youngest of two brothers so knew he would never inherit the family estate
What did many believe about the formal roles of Hopkins and Stearne?
Many believed they had been officially appointed by parliament to find witches when they were actually self-appointed
Whose journey did Hopkins and Stearne shadow?
William Dowsing
What was William Dowsing’s position?
A parliamentarian soldier who was appointed ‘Iconoclast General’. His task was to seek out statues and idols associated with Catholicism.
Analysis: How could this contribute to their positive reception?
If it was believed that they were endorsed by parliament, they may have believed there was reason and accepted it
What in Stearne’s background may have contributed to his desire to hunt witches?
