SH+P6+2015+Demonologie

Autumn Lardinais Aim:

King James wrote Demonology because of his fear of witchcraft. An article has stated that one reason had been further supported because witches had, “created a storm that nearly sunk James’ ship when he sailed home from Norway” (Sharratt). So, he began to write his beliefs in a book. He said he wanted to, “'Prove two things, as I have already said: the one, that such devilish arts have been and are. The other, what exact trial and severe punishment they merit: and therefore reason, what kind of things are possible to be performed in these arts, and by what natural causes they may be, not that I touch every particular thing of the Devil's power'” (James). King James wanted to express his fear and his beliefs in the dark magics. He also wanted to express what kinds of magics occurred and what would happen to those who performed it. This usually ended with the death of the witch.


 * James. "The Daemonologie by King James." //Watch Unto Prayer//. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2015.
 * Sharratt, Mary. "King James I: Demonologist." // Wonders and Marvels. // N.p., 14 Apr. 2010. Web. 26 Oct. 2015.

Autumn Lardinais History Scotland had been filled with ideas of witchcraft, even before King James’ rule. But, it was James’ book that had helped support it. One article had claimed the book, “resented the idea of a vast conspiracy of satanic witches threatening to undermine the nation” (Sharratt). Afterwards, the book had spread and people began becoming alarmed. They all became worried about dark magic in the region. Another article reported, “After 1590 and in the last thirteen years of the reign of James, Scotland fully accepted the Christian witch theory so that when one witch was found, others were hunted out” (Trueman). As a result, the famous witch trials were created. Between 1590 and 1690, around 3,400 people were accused (Abbot and Aoki). However, the exact number was unknown.


 * C N Trueman. "James I And Witchcraft.” //The History Learning Site//. N.p., 17 Mar 2015. 27 Oct 2015.
 * Sharratt, Mary. "King James I: Demonologist." //Wonders and Marvels.// N.p., 14 Apr. 2010. Web. 26 Oct. 2015.
 * Abbott, Zachary, and Aoki, Jacob. "King James VI's Demonology." //Prezi //. N.p., 27 Sept. 2012. Web. 27 Oct. 2015

Culture: Rachael Turner

It helped people to think more about the devil and changed the way that some lifestyles function. Daemonologie says that witches are the devil’s agents on earth and that caused some of the religious civilizations to kill them because they were worshipers of Satan. Sarah Rhodes says, “Additionally, the idea of the sabbat and the changing social aspects of Scottish culture transformed the North Berwick Trials from an “outbreak of rural witchcraft, to a crisis of state, to a national witch hunt” (Rhodes 30). Daemonologie was written to show the effect that witches had on the culture they lived in. It changed throughout history, however this book specifically focuses on the witches and their roles in the society they lived in and this affected the culture by changing the way that people viewed Satan and the gods.


 * Freud, Ian. “Daemonologie: James I”. //Daemonologie broken down// (2015). Web. 25 October 2015.
 * Rhodes, Sarah. “James VI and the North Berwick Trials “. //King James VI of Scotlands Daemonologie and its influence on witchcraft Prosecution in Scotland// (2009). Web. 25 October 2015.
 * Rhodes, Sarah. “James VI and the North Berwick Trials “. //King James VI of Scotlands Daemonologie and its influence on witchcraft Prosecution in Scotland// (2009). Web. 25 October 2015.

Audience: Rachael Turner

The audience that James’ book was intended for was the people that believed that were interested in the stories of witches being hunted. It goes through the cycle of explaining possibly what happened when witches were captured but also how people thought they were a part of the chain of the devil’s servants. Robert Poole says,” In Newchurch village, in the heart of the Pendle country, the visitor can call in at ‘Witches Galore’, a shop easily identifiable by the life-size figures of witches that are placed outside it, and buy model witches, and maps, posters, pottery, or T-shirts bearing witch motifs. The visitor might then like to travel the 45-mile ‘Pendle Witch Trail’, which begins at the Pendle Heritage Centre at Barrowford and ends, appropriately enough, at Lancaster Castle, where the witches of 1612 were incarcerated before their trials and, in the case of ten of them, executed” (Poole 16). It shows the dedication that some people have to this topic. They want to seek the stories of the witches and how they were related to the devil because the witches were a controversial topic in the 15 and 1600’s. > Verweij, Sebastian. “The Writings of King James VI & I and their Interpretation in the Low Countries” //Reviews on Daemonologie// (2009). Web. 26 October 2015. >
 * Poole, Robert. “Introduction: the Lancashire witches in historical context”. //The Lancashire Witches// (2005). Book. 26 October 2015.