Witches

A King's Obsession

Steven Veerapen

$39.99

Hardback

Forthcoming
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English

Birlinn Ltd
01 January 2026

History; History: specific events & topics; Social & cultural history; Archaeology; Witchcraft

Witches

whether broomstick-riding spell-casters or Wiccan earth-worshippers

have been culturally relevant for centuries. For centuries, too, belief in the potency of witchcraft has been debated, accused witches have been hunted and punished, and film and TV productions have brought the witch and the witch-hunter to big and small screens.

But where did our perception of witches

good and bad

come from? What motivated wide-scale panics about witchcraft during certain periods? How were alleged witches identified, accused, and variously tortured and punished?

Steven Veerapen traces witches, witchcraft, and witch-hunters from the explosion of mass-trials under King James VI and I in the late sixteenth century to the death of the witch-hunting phenomenon in the early eighteenth century. Based on documents and the latest historical research, he explores what motivated widespread belief in demonic witchcraft throughout Britain as well as in continental Europe, what caused mass panics about alleged witches, and what led, ultimately, to the relegation of the witch

and the witch-hunter

to the realm of fantasy and the fringes of society.

By: Steven Veerapen
Imprint: Birlinn Ltd
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 234mm, Width: 153mm, Spine: 25mm
Weight: 579g
ISBN: 9781780279527
ISBN 10: 1780279523
Pages: 336
Publication Date: 01 January 2026
Audience: General/trade , College/higher education , Professional and scholarly , ELT Advanced , Primary
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming

Steven Veerapen was born in Glasgow to a Scottish mother and a Mauritian father and raised in Paisley. Pursuing an interest in the sixteenth century, he was awarded a first-class Honours degree in English, focussing his dissertation on representations of Henry VIII's six wives. He is the author ofThe Wisest Fool: The Lavish Life of James VI and I, and lives in Glasgow.

Reviews for Witches: A King's Obsession

'An insightful, brilliant account – and analysis – of a dark chapter in history. In Veerapen’s hands, the spectre of the witch and the witch-hunter are brought to life, as are the complex and fascinating details of how King James and his people saw the supernatural world. Bone-chilling and compelling' -- Gareth Russell, author of Queen James