The War on Witchcraft - 9781108948746

The War on WitchcraftAndrew Dickson White, George Lincoln Burr, and the Origins of Witchcraft Historiography\nAuthor(s): Jan Machielsen\nFormat: Paperback\nPublisher: Cambridge University Press, United Kingdom\nImprint: Cambridge University Press\nISBN-13: 9781108948746, 978-1108948746\nSynopsis\nHistorians of the early modern witch-hunt often begin histories of their field with the theories propounded by Margaret Murray and Montague Summers in the 1920s. They overlook the lasting impact of nineteenth-century scholarship, in particular the contributions by two American historians, Andrew Dickson White [tel] and George Lincoln Burr [tel]. Study of their work and scholarly personae contributes to our understanding of the deeply embedded popular understanding of the witch-hunt as representing an irrational past in opposition to an enlightened present. Yet the men's relationship with each other, and with witchcraft sceptics the heroes of their studies also demonstrates how their writin.