East Anglia Witch Hunt Flashcards
When did the East Anglia Witch Hunt take place?
1645-1647
How many people were accused or faced trial?
700 people
80% of them were women.
Where did the East Anglia witch hunt take place?
In 7 counties across East Anglia, including Suffolk, Northamptonshire and Cambridgeshire.
What happened in 1625?
Charles becomes King in 1625 , and establishes a pro-Catholic Church.
What was the breakdown in traditional authority?
20% of men left the area to fight in the English Civil War → changing role of women.
What did men leaving East Anglia do?
Shift in traditional power relationships.
How did the Civil War impact the assize courts?
The assize courts were unable to function, as battles made it was unsafe for assize judges to travel.
What was the impact of this breakdown in traditional authority?
Various fears began to grow → It began as a fear of the enemy but as a result of the war, becomes a fear of the enemy within.
What was the economic crisis in East Anglia?
A crop disease called ergot developed in wheat and rye → the price of wheat increased by 20%
How did people in East Anglia react to this crop failure?
The religious nature of society meant that they saw it as a sign from God
→ Puritans saw it as a punishment from God, and held witches accountable for being sinful and being the reason for the punishment.
What was introduced in 1634 which made the economic crisis worse?
1643: The Weekly Assessment, a new tax created by parliament to cover the cost of the war.
What did landlords begin to do in East Anglia?
Landlords realised that they could make more money by evicting their tenants, and enclosing the land to farm one particular product.
What happened in Ely with changing land use?
Ely: Sir Sandys was an aggressive landlord and evicted 30 families across 4000 acres of land.
What was the impact of this changing land use in Ely?
→ When the witch hunt reached Ely, a number of suspected witches had also been involved in the earlier rioting.
What happened to inflation in East Anglia?
Inflation increased even higher than previously
→ Livestock increased by 12%, grain by 15%.
What was the trend of the accused witches in East Anglia?
Accused witches were often elderly, widowed, poor women who relied on support from their neighbours, outbreak of war changed this.
What was East Anglia’s history with witch hunting?
By 1644 Essex had held more witchcraft trials than anywhere else in England.
What happens to witch trials in East Anglia after Charles comes to power?
Under Charles I witch trials began to decline
→ 1625-1642: 27 trials in the home circuits.
How did East Anglia’s history impact the 1654 witch hunt?
The 1645 hunt was in response to this, it had been established in people’s minds that hunting witches and persecuting Catholics were clearly linked.
What is the timeline of the witch hunt?
March 1645- Elizabeth Clark and Rebecca West are interrogated
July 1645- The first witches are tried at Chelmsford
August 1645- 18 witches hanged at Bury St Edmunds
1647- Hopkins attends the Norfolk assizes and is subject to fierce questioning of his activities; witch hunting ends.
