J. A. Sharpe (1946–2024)

It all began when Anne fell ill in the summer of 1604. Her father suspected “hysteria” of course, but this evolves into violent fits, vomiting pins, and bodily contortions. All the tell-tale signs of English witchcraft. Predictably, her father alerts anyone and everyone to come see for themselves. When asked who hurt her so, Anne accuses Elizabeth Gregory, the town scold, and Agnes and Mary Pepwell, local mother and daughter vagrants.

Pretty textbook right? Well, turns out, Anne was a show more victim of horrific abuse at home. There was bad blood between the Gunters and the Gregorys, thanks to Anne’s father. The Pepwells were just easy targets. Anne’s sickness was simply an opportunity. Drugged, Anne sees and hears what she is told by her father. Cunning men and doctors are called to assist, lending support to the accusation of witchcraft when no remedy is found. Finally, her case reaches the academics at Oxford. Confident in his connections, her father hopes to gather enough evidence to hang the witches. But these are no small town folk, and things do not go as planned. Overestimating his case, Anne is brought before King James I himself, who won't be fooled...

I really liked this book, as I knew I would. Sharpe was actually inspired to write “The Bewitching of Anne Gunter” while researching for "Instruments of Darkness" which I also enjoyed. This case is so unique in many ways and extraordinary in its proceedings. show less

A solid and complete history of English witchcraft through the Tudor, Elizabethan and Jacobean eras. No trial goes unmarked or unnoticed, and Sharpe offers the reader a wide variety. And English witchcraft is it's own animal. It is a combination of their own folk and traditional practices, Continental theology, and the singular Anglican Church. "There was no single hegemonic attitude...but rather a plurality of possible positions." The English construction of Christianity allowed for belief show more in ghosts, fairies and all sorts of spirits. So it was not a great leap to witchcraft once the right religious and political circumstances emerged.

The book also dispels a lot of myths:
1) Men AND women were convicted. Men more often for "cozening" or "cunning" and women for "maleficium"
2) Accused were sentenced to hang not burned (unless they committed treason)
3) The stats actually prove James I's reign actually had less convictions than during Elizabeth I'd reign
4) Pacts with the devil and having familiars are distinctly English
5) Exorcism was equated with popery and was banned in cases of possession and witchcraft.
6) Women made up the largest number of not only the accused, but the accusers.
7) People weren't brought to court for petty acts like spoiled milk or a sick pig. Accusations like that were added on after more serious crimes.

The author wholly acknowledges the works of researchers that came before him, and how interpretations have evolved over time. The records of the Home Office will always be incomplete, especially during this time period, but Sharpe utilizes it to the fullest. I consider this one an excellent resource. show less

The legend about Dick Turpin is long. The truth is short.

This book includes almost all of the latter. Living as he did in the eighteenth century, it isn't easy to dig up much real information. James Sharpe has done a fine job both of locating it and of sifting it -- for sift it we must; there was a popular industry of "gallows confessions" in Turpin's time, and these were almost always amplified to make a particular point.

But no one reads about Dick Turpin to find out what actually happened, show more any more than they go to political rallies to try to determine the truth. Sharpe also looks at the legend, and the place of William Harrison Ainsworth in creating the story as we now know it. Thus we both learn about Turpin and we learn about the Turpin legend. Odds are that at least one of the two won't appeal to you. But this well-written book will give you a chance to make a fair judgment. show less

The Gunpowder Plot of 1605 represents what is perhaps the greatest failed terrorist plot in history, an attempt by a group of disaffected Catholics to blow up James I and the assembled political elites of the English nation as they gathered for the opening of Parliament. As James Sharpe demonstrates in this book, the subsequent commemoration of the event came to assume added meaning. Over the course of the 17th century the anniversary of the event became an opportunity to celebrate a type of show more Protestant English identity. As hostility towards Catholicism ebbed in the 18th century, however, the anti-Catholic nature of the celebrations changed into more of a focus on the figure of Guy Fawkes, as the celebrations were gradually disconnected from their meaning. Sharpe's analysis of all of this is very interesting, as it not only describes the changing meaning of Guy Fawkes Day but also sheds light as to how the understanding of events change as attitudes evolve over time. show less