As part of a recent series of videos for Halloween, Prof Matthew Hall of Lincoln Law School presented a three-part series of short videos looking at Witchcraft in the UK from a legal perspective. The subject of witchcraft is usually looked at from a sociological or psychological perspective so it was very interesting to see how the subject was treated under English and Scottish law from the middle ages through to the present day.
Part one looks at the move of witchcraft as a crime in the eyes of the church to it becoming enshrined in law in post-reformation England under the reigns of Henry VIII and Elizabeth I.

The second part looks at how the law around the prosecution of accused witches changed under the reign of James I and how his belief in them informed the way the law was applied.

The final part looks at Matthew Hopkins, the so-called witchfinder general, and the legality of the witch trials he perpetrated. As well as how witchcraft legislation evolved in the 18th century and into the modern era.

 
www.lincoln.ac.uk/home/law/
You can view the rest of our Halloween videos on our YouTube page here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-KqD1Swa_wGUIcqG44Vkqw?