Matthew Hopkins: Witchfinder General

Scoundrel: History's Forgotten Villains

In 1645, the English Civil War caused a great divide in England - on both sides, the destruction, violence and famine were all blamed on malevolent witches, cursing towns and villages all throughout the countryside to fulfill their pacts with the devil. Thankfully, King Charles I endorsed a duo of witch-hunters, led by Matthew Hopkins to identify and condemn as many accused witches as they could lay eyes on, leading to national and international fame and infamy. Over their careers, Hopkins and his partner John Stearne torturously forced confessions and sent more people to the gallows than all witch-hunters for the prior 160 years combined, and Hopkins’ book ‘The Discovery of Witches’ eventually became the inspiration for the Salem Witch Trials when it arrived on American shores. History may have forgotten about Matthew Hopkins’ insidious influence, but we sure haven’t!

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