Halloween Special: Witchcraft and Witch-Hunting

While now a favourite Halloween costume, being a witch in the early modern period was a serious matter. Between the years 1400 and 1782, around 40,000-60,000 people, primarily women, were executed in Europe for being "witches." Who were these witches and why were they so feared?
In this episode, Minh Nguyen, a 2nd-year history undergraduate at New College, speaks to Dr. Leif Dixon, lecturer in early modern history at Regent’s Park College to explore the social, religious, and political context behind witch-hunting, and discover what ‘witchcraft’ really was.