Agents of the Invisible World

Children and Witchcraft in England and New England, 1589–1692

Agents of the Invisible World explores an underappreciated aspect of early modern witchcraft trials: children. This work analyses the various roles children played in English and New English witchcraft trials between 1589-1692, seeking to understand not only how children became involved in witchcraft trials but why.

Agents of the Invisible World explores an underappreciated aspect of the well-researched early modern witchcraft trials: children. In particular, this work analyses the various roles children played in English and New English witchcraft trials between 1589 and 1692, seeking to understand not only how children became involved in witchcraft trials but why.

Using primary sources, including legal documents, pamphlets and hitherto overlooked archival materials, this book reveals that children were not always passive accusers who identified witches, but could be aggressive in their denunciations, sometimes even being accused of witchcraft themselves. By once again allowing these children to take centre stage, Northcott uncovers the haunting history behind children’s pervasive involvement in witchcraft trials on both sides of the Atlantic. Readers are guided through thirty-six case studies from England and New England, making this the most detailed work on the role of children in England and New England to date. The main themes discussed include agency, motivation, influence and impact, incorporating multidisciplinary insights and principles from feminism, anthropology, history of emotion, social, cultural and religious studies.

This volume is a valuable resource for students, scholars and anyone interested in concepts of early modern witchcraft and magic, children and childhood, and social history.

UK Delivery:

• Free delivery on all orders of £10 or more.
• £1.49 delivery fee on orders below £10.
• UK orders are shipped via Royal Mail 2nd Class.

International Delivery:

• Flat rate delivery charges vary by country.

Dispatch and Delivery Times:

• All orders are shipped from our warehouse in Northampton, UK within 48 hours of receipt during working hours.
• UK mainland orders typically arrive within 3-5 working days via Royal Mail 2nd Class.
• International estimated delivery times:
• Europe & Channel Islands: 7 to 10 working days
• USA: 7 to 15 working days
• Rest of the World: 9 to 21 working days

View our full delivery infomation here.