The Devil in Early Modern England

Reformation of the sixteenth century ended official Catholicism in England, and with it many of the old ideas about the devil. But he did not go away. Far from sweeping aside popular superstitions about Satan and witchcraft, the Reformation and later the religious crises culminating in the Civil Wars of 1637-53 opened up a whole new field of ideas about the Father of Lies and his disciples. Out of these great social and religious changes came a distinctly Protestant, and English, view of the devil. Darren Oldridge, for the first time, traces religious, popular and political uses of Satan and witchcraft in early modern England, showing how for Protestant, and later Puritan, believers, the devil could be used in a form of selective assimilation between folklore and theology.
Diabolical possession, belief in the devil as a kind of supernatural avenger who was God’s agent in punishing evil-doers, exorcisms and witch trials were an essential part of popular culture in early modern England, and the skill with which puritan ministers and Parliamentarians exploited and used these beliefs played a large part in the spread of popular support for the ideas of the Reformation and the Parliamentarian cause.
Surprisingly little work has been done on concepts of the devil in the Reformation period, and this book explores new territory and advances controversial conclusions, in particular about present-day beliefs about the nature of evil. Using the many records of witch trials and accounts of exorcisms and possessions, the author brings to life a range of popular and learned beliefs which have gone largely unexplored and which form a crucial addition to our understanding of the cultural and religious legacy of the Reformation.