East Anglian trials

Question 1

How many deaths were Hopkins/Stearne accountable for?

Answer 1

400

Question 2

Witch hunts made a lucrative fee - how much money for each town did Hopkins/Stearne make?

Answer 2

£23

Question 3

Which biblical quote does Hoopkins use to justify witch hunts in his “The Discovery of Witches”?

Answer 3

Exodus (22.18) “Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live”

Question 4

In their defense of witch-hunts, how much did Hopkins and Stearne claim they charged per town?

Answer 4

20 shillings

Question 5

What was the collective name for the counties of East Anglia?

Answer 5

The Eastern Association

Question 6

Who became king of in 1625?

Answer 6

Charles I

Question 7

As parliament became a more important institution through the stuart period, what did it’s duties include?

Answer 7

law making/amending with the approval of the monarch

taxation

Question 8

In 1629 what did Charles do to parliament?

Answer 8

He dissolved parliament and ruled alone for 11 years, recalling parliament in 1640 to persuade them to vote him funds to fight a war with the Scots who had rebelled over imposed English Prayer Book.

Question 9

What was Ship Money?

Answer 9

Taxes levied on coastal towns for fleets, but was extended to the entire country. The resultant financial demand on inland gentry caused resentment towards Charles.

Question 10

What factors contributed to an already fragile economy in East Anglia?

Answer 10

Crop failure - wet summers, and freezing winters - in 1646 the crops rotted with ergot

Rising prices of meat and cheese led to a limited supply

Enclosure / Inflation - 12% rise in price of livestock / 15% rise in price of grain

Question 11

Impact of war on economy

Answer 11

Armies were ransacking towns and draining resources leading to inflation and perennial hardship

Question 12

Why did MPs resent Charles’ religious policy during his 11 years reigning alone

Answer 12

His religious policy, drawn up with William Laud was largely Catholic in appearance, and caused resentment amongst Protestants and Puritans.

Question 13

When was the New Model Army formed?

Answer 13

1645

Question 14

What percentage of men left to fight for the army?

Answer 14

20%

Question 15

What caused women to have radical feminist views?

Answer 15

The growth of Puritan sects in Wingfield, Westhorpe and Stradbroke

Question 16

What happened to assize courts in the face of war?

Answer 16

They were unable to function properly - it was too dangerous for judges to make the journey, and this resulted in the absence of senior judges, which heightened hysteria - the assize court at Bury St Edmunds was suspended due to conflict.

Question 17

How did Hopkins and Stearne appear to offer resolution in the face of a disrupted legal system?

Answer 17

They brought with them what appeared to be a legitimate legal knowledge, which led the conviction rate in East Anglia to increase to 42%

Question 18

What was the result of the decline in authority of the church in the light of war?

Answer 18

A rise in Puritans amongst the clergy, who often replaced those who locals were unhappy with.

Question 19

What % of those accused were women?

Answer 19

80%, and the 20% of men were often accused because they had some form of association with a suspected woman.

Question 20

How did female involvement with dairy farming impact their accusation?

Answer 20

Dairy farming and other forms of agriculture with which women were involved, were prone to failure, leaving them vulnerable to accusation.

Question 21

What is suggestive that the majority were accused in the lower ranks of society?

Answer 21

In Ely, 94% of those suspected left their ‘mark’, which is suggestive of incredibly high illiteracy rates = lower echelons

Question 22

When and where did Hopkins’ initial ‘realisation’ of witchcraft occur?

Answer 22

1644, in Maningtree

Question 23

Why was Elizabeth Clark accused and what was discovered on her?

Answer 23

She had one leg, and had been a social outcast, long suspected of witchcraft. A third ‘teat’ was discovered on her body, said to be evidence of a Devil’s mark.

Question 24

Which familiars supposedly appeared during Elizabeth Clark’s ‘watching’ for several nights.

Answer 24

A rabbit named Sack & Sugar, and a dog-like creature named Jarmara

Question 25

Who did Elizabeth Clark name as a witch upon her watching and sleep deprivation?

Answer 25

Rebecca West - this shows the influence of psychological torture of exacerbating the cascading effect of accusation

Question 26

How many were examined in Suffolk?

Answer 26

120

Question 27

Which royalist clergyman was accused in Brandeston, and what happened to him?

Answer 27

John Lowes had defended Ann Annson, remarking ‘she is as much of a witch as I am!’ - this was taken to be a confession and he was subjected to a swimming test

Question 28

Where in Norfolk did Hopkins base his investigation?

Answer 28

Yarmouth - 40 women were tried in the 1646 Norfolk assizes

Question 29

How many women were tried in Huntingdonshire in 1646?

Answer 29

8

Question 30

What does the lack of geographical trend to investigations suggest?

Answer 30

That Hopkins and Stearne followed the sources of money provided by the councils of parishes