EPISODE · Jan 11, 2026 · 21 MIN
The Witch Trials of St Osyth - Women and Witchcraft in Elizabethan England (Minisode)
from Matilda’s Top Women In History
In 1582 a small corner of Essex in England turned in on itself, and 14 people - 13 women and 1 man - were arrested, interrogated and imprisoned for bewitching to death people and/or animals. This is a story of how grief, fear and suspicion can kill innocent people. Please note there is some discussion of infant death in this episode. Brennen, Lewis: Parliaments, Politics and People Seminar: The Political and Religious Origins of the 1563 Witchcraft Act https://historyofparliament.com/2019/11/05/origins-of-1563-witchcraft-act/ Duff, Charles: The History of Hanging https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofBritain/The-Art-of-Hanging/A true and iust recorde, of the information, examination and confession of all the witches, taken at S. Ofes in the countie of Essex https://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/eebo/A14611.0001.001?rgn=main;view=fulltextGibson, Marion: The Witches of St Osyth - Persecution, Murder and Betrayal in Elizabethan EnglandWikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Osyth_WitchesSt Osyth Museum: https://www.stosythmuseum.co.uk/village-tales/1579-st-osyth-witches-and-witch-trials Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
What this episode covers
In 1582 a small corner of Essex in England turned in on itself, and 14 people - 13 women and 1 man - were arrested, interrogated and imprisoned for bewitching to death people and/or animals. This is a story of how grief, fear and suspicion can kill innocent people. Please note there is some discussion of infant death in this episode. Brennen, Lewis: Parliaments, Politics and People Seminar: The Political and Religious Origins of the 1563 Witchcraft Act https://historyofparliament.com/2019/11/05/origins-of-1563-witchcraft-act/ Duff, Charles: The History of Hanging https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofBritain/The-Art-of-Hanging/A true and iust recorde, of the information, examination and confession of all the witches, taken at S. Ofes in the countie of Essex https://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/eebo/A14611.0001.001?rgn=main;view=fulltextGibson, Marion: The Witches of St Osyth - Persecution, Murder and Betrayal in Elizabethan EnglandWikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Osyth_WitchesSt Osyth Museum: https://www.stosythmuseum.co.uk/village-tales/1579-st-osyth-witches-and-witch-trials Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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The Witch Trials of St Osyth - Women and Witchcraft in Elizabethan England (Minisode)
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