Witches Documentaries

This is the final blog on Witchcraft for October.  This is a summary of the documentaries I have featured on this blog.

Pendle Witch Trials - YouTube
Alice Device, Jennet’s sister, confessed to being a witch.  An old peddler was struck down with a stroke after refusing to sell her some pins.  After this confession, dozens of people were arrested.  Jennet Device testifies in a witch trial against her family, setting a precedent in judicial history.  Jennet’s testimony condemned her family.  The narrator presents this documentary very well and his style engages the viewer.  *Recommended for independent research purposes.*

Witch Hunt: A Century of Murder - Episode 1  Episode 2
This special is narrated by Suzannah Lipscomb.  King James I when he came over to England to rule brought over his beliefs about witches and touched off decades of witch-hunting in England.  There was another flare-up of witch-hunting as a precursor to the English Civil War.  Eventually, the century of murder came to an end.  Suzannah Lipscomb narrates this series well and addresses how the accused witches were innocent.  *Recommended for independent research purposes.*

War on Witches - YouTube
It is 1590: England is ruled by Queen Elizabeth and Scotland is ruled by King James I.  King James I had a vendetta.  He had a vendetta against witches.  In May 1590, King James I was returning to Scotland from Denmark.  Storms were stirred up in the North Sea.  King James was in danger of sinking.  Winds and waves slammed the ship.  The passengers thought the storm was caused unnaturally.   King James I was going to find out.  *Highly recommended for a history classroom and independent study students.*

Secrets of the Dead: Bewitched - YouTube
This is an older Secrets of the Dead episode about the Salem Witch Trials and the 300 years of witch-hunting.  Were the girls truly bewitched?  One scientist dives into the Salem Witch Trials.  The answer she found may surprise the viewer.  Using her sleuthing skills and historical records, she discovered what triggered the Salem Witch trials as well as similar trials around Europe.  *Highly recommended for research purposes and use in both history and science classroom.*

A Very British Witchcraft - YouTube
Modern Pagan witchcraft is a distinctly British religion.  Wicca is one of the fastest-growing religions in the world.  Professor Ronald Hutton examines witchcraft, Wicca, and paganism in this documentary called A very British Witchcraft.  Oddly, Wicca was born in the 1940s.  Gerald Gardner was a nudist who was known as the “King of Witches.”  Who was the man behind the birth of Wicca?  *Recommended for research purposes.*

America's Hidden Stories: Salem's Secrets - YouTube
The Salem Witch Trials began in 1692, with the hanging of five witches.  People traveled from all over to see the witches hanging.  There is a huge panic over witchcraft.  It began with three young women having severe fits in bed.  The people believed that they were being attacked by demons.  This belief kicked off the beginning of the Salem Witch Trials.  Why did these three young women have so much power over the town?  What made the witch trials stop?  *Recommended use for a history classroom.*

Witch Hunt - YouTube
In 1692, witch mania went through Salem, Massachusetts.  It began when a girl fell sick with convulsions, visions, contortions, and random outbursts.  This triggered the people to hunt out witches.  Over 100 supposed witches were imprisoned during this hunt.  Cotton Mather writes an account of what went on in Salem.  This documentary presents the story he wrote.  *Recommended for use in a history classroom or further research into Salem.*

Dark History of Witches - YouTube
What do we know about the witch?  Who were the women that were accused of being witches?  Are they a remnant of a long-lost goddess?  How did a child’s game go so wrong in Salem?  Why are there practicing witches today?  This documentary seeks to answer those questions.  The historians look at the beginnings of witchcraft, where witches came from, and what it meant to be a practicing witch.   *Recommended for research purposes and to use clips in a classroom lecture.*