The SHOCKING True Story of the Witchfinder General

[@DanDavisHistory]

Thanks for watching. Please do hit "like" on the video, it really helps me out. And if you enjoy what I do here and would like early access to advert-free videos then please become a Channel Member: kzbin.info/door/UVwT8zcS5Z_rYXnpomlbfgjoin or Patreon supporter: www.patreon.com/dandavisauthor As I am a one-man team, your support will make a huge difference to the quality and quantity of work I can produce for this channel. Cheers!

[@davidneal6920]

Imagine how many unpopular loners (especially who owned land) were wrongly accused of witchcraft, hanged and someone stole their property

[@terrorcop101]

Given that between 1486 (publication of the Malleus Maleficarum, the Hammer of Witches) and 1692 (the Salem Witch Trials), somewhere between several thousand and maybe the low millions were accused (not sure off-hand what the actual estimates are), I'd say the number of those accused solely so their accusers could profit off their stuff was pretty high.

[@WhitneyDahlin]

​@@terrorcop101I'm sure there were a bunch of different reasons for accusing someone of witchcraft. Revenge, greed, jealousy, delusional belief they really were a witch.

[@steveshapiro326]

@@terrorcop101 They didn't mind torturing people, despite being "Christians". How evil to do it to anyone, especially helpless elderly women.

[@kwitshadie6539]

One of my earliest visions in preschool depicts a guy in a Puritan getup beating me up; it appeared to be an outside setting. Visions of someone beating me up whenever I got into trouble plagued me throughout my childhood growing up. The name of Dan Davis’ video was attractively cathartic. 🤔

[@davidneal6920]

Also sucked if you were single and owned a black cat 🐈‍⬛

[@GravesRWFiA]

while the horror of the Salem witch trials in the 1690's is well known. At the same time there was a witch trial in pennsylvania, a colony not dominated by puritan, the convicted witch was fined 5 shillings and turned over to her husband with the admonition not to do it again.

[@Gibblegobblegoob]

Soy

[@sabrinatscha2554]

@icfdavehere4008 I don’t like to use the term ‘incel’ as an insult, but guys like you make it really difficult not to.

[@MissMarie1377]

@@ELWMthat’s not true

[@ELWM]

@@MissMarie1377 haha ok,

[@boris1387]

I'd love to know more!!

[@chpet1655]

Glad you label him exactly what he was….an evil con man.

[@jablanbukvovski]

to be fair, general started his career in Essex

[@michaelrokohl3220]

Was he a Jew? You know just like now, then as well, most jews keep their relgion to themselves. He couldn't been a jewish christain. Most of the time, histrions leave their jewish ancestry out of the documentaries, as not to be labeled antisemtic, especially if it's something critical. You can't trust these histrions, because they do cover up jewish involvement in history, if it's negative, they will not mention it at all.

[@jakecavendish3470]

​@@jablanbukvovski True, at least he didn't go into telemarketing

[@robertcook2572]

Of which there have been countless numbers since time immemorial

[@GrenvilleP710]

He believed what he did was right. All religion is evil.

[@nigden1]

There's an excellent film about Hopkins called Witchfinder General, starring Vincent Price. Although mostly fiction, it depicts the fear and hysteria of the age perfectly, made in 1968 by a 24 year old English director, who died soon after, it's now a must watch horror cult film.

[@rocoad2960]

I watched it last year. I thought it was about him but I wasn't sure. It's up on youtube for free if anyone wants to check it out

[@kenpudsey6435]

The young director of 'Witchfinder General' was called Michael Reeves..he died of an accidental sleeping tablet overdose. '

[@Joe3pops]

I watched that 1968 movie. Other than the famous Vincent Price, the rest ofbthe cast & screenwriting sucks. Director died of embarrassment, while wearing those douchebag calvary helmets & tights.

[@marianotorrespico2975]

@@Joe3pops --- TRY A MOVIE . . . with John Wayne.

[@simonbradshaw3993]

Great film its up there with The Whickerman.

[@HappyHealthy999G]

This video offers an eye-opening insight into the witch hunts of the 17th century. The story of Matthew Hopkins is both horrifying and compelling, and it's presented in a way that's both respectful and engaging. Great work!

[@jakecavendish3470]

I'm not surprised Essex had so many witch trials. I've heard tales of orange-coloured people who roam the streets in freezing weather impervious to cold and speaking a strange dialect

[@ChloeShaliniArt]

😂😂😂i have family in Essex and know just what you mean

[@jakecavendish3470]

@@ChloeShaliniArt 🤭

[@kenpudsey6435]

Ha ha..very good 👍

[@the_rover1]

Dutch visitors?

[@dotdashdotdash]

Matthew Hopkins is the villain in Robert Westall's novel, "The Devil On The Road", excellent book by the way.

[@bc7138]

Excellent video about a horrible individual. It's interesting to note that Hopkins is the only person in history to hold the title 'Witchfinder General' as when I was younger I thought it was a generalised title given to witch hunters. I read Ronald Hutton's 'The Witch' from a library earlier this year and found it to be a fascinating and eye-opening global history of Witches and Witchcraft. I will try to check out the other books mentioned at the end of the video.

[@mattturner6017]

Thanks for the video. It was a fascinating watch. Thanks also in particular for pointing out details like the high standard of evidence at the time in courts and how legally difficult it was to prove cases of witchcraft. People today are apt to think that there was little due process or extremely biased courts back then, when in fact it was the determined legal shenanigans of the accusers that caused much injustice. A skilled and heartless lawyer today can oppress the poor and marginalized on whatever flimsy pretext. I'm sure many modern prosecutors make a decent income that way.

[@paulfogarty7724]

Ironic that the very " witches" he murdered could have been the very ones who could have helped him . Those old women were usually experts in herbal medicine, a skill handed down from mother to daughter and a skill that went right back to the Druids.

[@christopher9196]

Damn, he was a serial killer! Like evil blowin across the land

[@gowdsake7103]

Driven by James the 1 st of ohh the religotards idol

[@nickharland3795]

The doom metal band Cathedral have a song about him. Hopkins Witchfinder General is a great tune. Excellent video, this was super interesting. Thanks.

[@jakelynch5113]

banger!

[@mjwoodroff8446]

There is NWOBHM band called Witchfinder General. They have some proto-doom elements in their music. I think many of these bands were influenced by the 1968 film (as well as other similar films of the period). Electric Wizard famously use older horror/pulp films for the background at all their shows. Sleep have Holy Mountain as an album, and although I can't find specific references to it, I don't think it's a coincidence that there is a 1973 avant-garde psychedelic film directed by Jodorowsky of the same name.

[@nickharland3795]

@@mjwoodroff8446 Right on man!! Yep, Sleep's Holy Mountain is a great album... raw and exciting.

[@michaelhead7483]

Good to hear that in the end he wasn't glorified but hated.

[@TheGarmisch]

This was an absolutely fantastic video. Bravo, sir. I'm sending it to my mom who likes history.

[@ShadowDragon1848]

Very missed opportunity to ask a real Witchfinder General: Atun-Shei-Films

[@anthonyhayes1267]

For this oversight, he must be taken before the magistrate of the shire in which he dwells

[@daneandorfer6187]

Another fascinating work, Thank you Mr. Davis.

[@grapeshot]

Remind me of the character on the movie Black Death he started out as a monk but by the end of the movie he was a rampaging witchfinder.

[@joelsmith3473]

That character pretty much has PTSD caused by the closest real life can get to a witch.

[@Abbousi632]

Great production as always.

[@williamredmond8128]

Hearing malicious voices at night sounds a lot like a very specific kind of schizophrenia.

[@ottotheweinerdog676]

A lot of these religious sorts were kooks

[@bladetheatrics]

Dan you've got a cool voice and awesome content. Thank you sir love from Colorado USA

[@gowdsake7103]

I hope you awknowledge the fervour of religious insanity driven by James the 1 st

[@warriorpoet9629]

Interestingly before he visited a town he used to send a messenger ahead to pin up a notice of his coming, urging villagers who wanted to accuse witches to be there on a certain day and time. When he arrived there was always a large group of people waiting to accuse others of witchcraft. And nearly all of the accusers were women. Think about that.

[@ironvlogger9712]

old school mean girls

[@jeperstone]

Get rid of your rivals

[@melvert33]

Can I ask please where your source is for that story that when he arrived it was mostly women making the accusations?

[@darrenbaxter9980]

It was mostly other women and girls who pointed the finger that's a know fact 😊

[@bauhnguefyische667]

It doesn’t matter if something is not real when others believe or want it to be. It’s the motivation.

[@mykehyslop198]

There is a great movie about Hopkins starring Vincent Price.Worth a watch.👍

[@jamesconnolly5164]

2:44 "It was a time of rapid and drastic social change, driven by a certainty that the old ways were not only wrong but dangerous -- even evil. And in that way common to revolutionaries and fanatics, the sweeping changes enacted by one generation were soon condemned by those that came after them." The more things change, ay?

[@klaunwelt4404]

This is very well made and engaging, with Hobekinus being a compelling subject. Mind you I would listen to Dan Davis read out the phone book. He makes some of the most absorbing content I’ve seen on here.

[@DanDavisHistory]

Thank you very much.

[@robinguertin574]

Very well done video! New subscriber from New Hampshire (USA).

[@gowdsake7103]

I hope you are not religious

[@ChloeShaliniArt]

Excellent, and yes, I agree, you have a prefect voice & presentation. Many thanks. ❤

[@jedgrahek1426]

That was a highly satisfying and unexpected conclusion. As far as I am aware, things were much worse on the Continent, following the publication of The Hammer of Witches (and as you said, torture was allowed there, which would seem to align with that).

[@jabberwoke1]

Fanaticism of any kind, but especially religious, is a super highway to evil. If there is a hell, he's definitely there.

[@PaladinLevi]

No. There's not a distinction between one kind of evil worldview and another if its results are evil. Explicitly secular socialist governments unalived 90-120 mil during the 20th Century. Saying it's worse because religion is bigotry.

[@edajungck]

The dreaded Vincent Price of my childhood has brought me to this excellent channel, thank you, Dan.

[@symbolsandsystems]

how many wealthy witches did he discover?

[@billtomson5791]

Comment of the year!

[@hogwashmcturnip8930]

There were a couple. In fact that was the start of his downfall. He overstepped the mark and accused a wealthy woman, presumably thinking there would be money in it. (A pay off to drop the charges maybe?) But it all went horribly wrong, she was acquitted and he lost all credibility. It is one thing to bump off a few lonely old widows, but when you start accusing/blackmailing the wives and widows of the Wealthy it is another matter.

[@paulcowell7588]

I can recommend the Saturday market in manningtree...biggest potatoes I've ever seen...although picturesque mistley and manningtree are quite weird places.

[@sharonrout8165]

Was in Manningtree on Tuesday and went for a walk along to river bank to Brantham and back, lovely area.

[@SacredGeometryDecoded]

Thanks. I love this period of history. Gifted the Encyclopedia of Witchcraft and Demonology by Rossell Hope Robbins many years back. One of the books I reread every couple years so so, came to loathe this fella but Witch Finder General is a cool ass title.

[@DanDavisHistory]

Cheers mate, so glad you enjoyed it. Yeah it was a crazy time.

[@stuartsimister5042]

I live in the ribble valley in Lancashire I can see pendle hill from my house where we had our own witch trails in 1612.Ten innocents were marched to Lancaster and hung after being accused. The villages around pendle hill are full of fantastic stories of them darks days.

[@LeePenn2492]

Excellent sensible policies for a happier Britain.. Very interesting and informative show

[@jakecavendish3470]

Hysteria and paranoia about people who sometimes didn't confirm to the majority, and a bizarre fascination with the possibility of their genitals deviating from what some consider normal. Glad that couldn't happen today 😒

[@theculturedthug6609]

A New Movie about Matthew Hopkins would be good.

[@BARBARYAN.]

Dan I have the utmost respect for you, my brother. I bet Tolkien (may he rest in peace) would be proud of men like this and us who actively debunk all the lies the world has spun about our existence and our glorious achievements. He would be grateful we preserve the Indo-European ( -ARYAN- ) culture that we share. Our interconnectedness is eternal and at this moment the world is doing all it can to suppress our cultures.

[@willmoore7582]

I'm surprised you didn't film the church at Mistley and the playground for children in the adjacent field there - where apparently some of the unfortunates were murdered by Hopkins and his henchmen. It's an eery place at night when a mist comes rolling across the lawns there.

[@AJNpa80]

The triad of religion, con artists and politics, kind of reminds me of home in the USA. Con men scaring up the common folk with emotional arguments to fear and anger, its a tale as old as time. Every century we forget the lessons of the last and have to cull ourselves, be it religion, your funny looking neighbor or whatever. Theres always a clever con man at the pulpit or the podium. And it always starts by undermining trust in information sources so their alternative can be provided. He may have been just one of many opportunists on the wounded body of the political situation. We have no shortage of them now in the states. People say "first they came for the guns". Truth is history shows that first they come for the trusted information sources so an alternative can be provided. It's only then that they take away the guns from a few and arm "the right people" to the teeth. All the greatest hits, the people get worked up to a foaming fervor first. I'm an optomist though. The world has been ending since we first scratched symbols on cave walls and it hasn't happened yet. We just destroy it ourselves a little bit every so many decades out of boredom, and for some for profit. But it only happens because many of us are easily led emotional creatures.

[@PaladinLevi]

Explicitly atheistic worldviews have done more damage to humanity than religious ones and only secularists are destroying cultural artifacts right now.

[@SoberDiogenes]

Very interesting and unsettling.

[@musewinter9369]

Well done!

[@gregoryvigneault1824]

There are multiple great metal songs about him.

[@daveanderson3805]

Religion and ignorance. Forever walking as one.

[@gregorywildie37]

Thanks

[@DanDavisHistory]

Thank you so much, appreciate it!

[@jeffyoung60]

Matthew Hopkins, John Stearn, and their assistants were the equivalent of Einsatzgruppen.

[@joepetto9488]

But how do you know they weren’t really Witches?

[@DanDavisHistory]

Cos magic isn't real and imps don't exist.

[@joepetto9488]

@@DanDavisHistory That really presupposes the conclusion of the question. How do you know magic isnt real and imps dont exist? I mean, did you consult some index of everything or was there a concerted effort to find these things? Did you even ask the relevant people? or are you just assuming that outlandish = untrue from a categorical standpoint?

[@DanDavisHistory]

No it's just obvious mate.

[@joepetto9488]

​@@DanDavisHistory no one will remember you for presupposing without evidence a position everyone already holds.

[@TheDonWallzie]

@@DanDavisHistoryyou look into the darkness and think you see nothing there

[@cw4608]

He was an opportunistic and sadistic sociopath who was worse than all his victims combined. He used fear and ignorance to ply his trade.

[@gowdsake7103]

Or religion !

[@holyfreak8]

"Witchfinder General" sounds like a officer from the Salvation Army😅

[@62rowley]

👍The New England vampire panic is also interesting.

[@Gwaithmir]

A good movie about this guy is "The Conqueror Worm," starring Vincent Price.

[@nomadmarauder-dw9re]

AKA Witchfinder General.

[@Gwaithmir]

@@nomadmarauder-dw9re Indeed. When I upgraded to Blu-Ray, the title was "Witchfinder General."

[@danielbarrett1368]

In 1968 there was a movie released called conqueror worm starring Vincent price and it was based on a witch hunter named Matthew Hopkins during that same time period

[@timwhite5562]

Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, Kurt Cobain and Matthew Hopkins…lost to the 27 club.

[@michaelarchangel1163]

I'm from Burry Port, 15 miles west of Swansea. My dentist's name is Matthew Hopkins, truly. I have three missing teeth and a slight limp, yet Satan still won't give me a job. Nevertheless, I continue to become slightly unnerved when my dentist picks up his drill.

[@peternagy-im4be]

That's pretty funny and you're a funny guy

[@bryanreston1722]

Why didn't Stearne get more of the blame and focus? He was 10 years older than Hopkins, who began as Stearne's assistant. It seems like Stearne and his associates must have blamed the dead Hopkins for everything and then "retired" to hide on his farm

[@raneemacintosh6842]

Coincidentally, the very week this video was uploaded I took out a library book about a fictionalized version of this man, told through the perspective of his possibly-fictional sibling Alice. "The Witchfinder's Sister" by Beth Underdown. On another note, being examined over every centimeter of your body for a single mole or mark is so unfair - like who has NO moles if you check EVERYWHERE ?

[@terrorcop101]

Know of any cases where the accused, when asked to identify fellow witches, publicly announced that their accusers were evil or did such counter-accusations only occur in private without witnesses. Could've been interesting to see a witchfinder or judge in a witchcraft case suddenly under suspicion for the very thing he's trying to stamp out.

[@pdm2201]

The 1968 movie with Vincent Price was also called “The Conquerer Worm”. It’s one of Vincent’s better performances.

[@rosmundsen]

I am amazed at how young Matthew Hopkins was.

[@mikeyfn-a6684]

Just looked this up for confirmation, its nice to be correct. 😬 Re:'Wednesday' the series The inspiration for Crackstone seemingly appears to be the combination of the lives of real life Colonist Roger Conant (who founded Salem, similarly to Crackstone with Jericho) and Witch Finder General Matthew Hopkins.

[@squirrelgirl1853]

You'd think that after doing this so many times and no imps ever showing up for any of the women, he/ they (witch hunters) would've thought maybe they were wrong....I'm certain none of them ever saw an imp....not once....but they kept w it

[@nickdarr7328]

Im surprised you didn't mention "running the witch". I'd imagined running was the most popular not torture torture. Is running not so common as fiction and barely historical histories lead me to believe? I had assumed running was similar to a religious group of highwaymen and assassin who are prohibited from drawing blood so use a scarf to strangle anyone they want. I had figured pressing, running, even drowning and hanging were seen as less violent

[@hogwashmcturnip8930]

I have never heard of 'running the witch' They used to 'walk' them. The sort of torture still applied today, sadly. They would walk them backwards and forwards across the cell, one either side to keep them upright and moving, for hours ,with no rest, no food or water and no sleep. Bombarding them with questions all the while. The torturers would work in shifts so they were Fine! They could keep going until the victim would confess to pretty much anything, just to make it stop.

[@timholder6825]

Active in Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire area. Not surprised, the people there are pretty much the same today.

[@jamessouth3808]

Lucky for us in Essex, we’ve changed

[@AerikVon]

What a history…

[@mikeveis6393]

Witchfinder General was the name of a heavy metal group.

[@rosemaryfranzese317]

It would be very nice to think that modern British society is above this kind of thing today. However witch hunting has just taken different forms today. Only a few decades ago several women were imprisoned for killing their babies when these children likely died due to genetic factors. The professor responsible for these convictions used the mantra one cot death is a tragedy, two is suspicious and three is murder unless proved otherwise. Of course, the possibility of genetic issues wasn’t factored in. Many lives were ruined the effects are still being felt. Then we have the post office scandal. Things haven’t changed that much.

[@josephlopresti26]

Syphilis could have been the reason for his audio mania.

[@john-k6k6w]

So Very Sad 😷

[@mikeveis6393]

Murder with a capital M.

[@hokusai4687]

3:00 sounds a little like right now

[@lucasahumada6913]

Witch finder general sounds like the less benign cousin of the postmaster general

[@Valhalla88888]

You have to really appreciate those Scottish Kings of England James 6th of Scotland went to Denmark for his wife the King of Denmark and witnessed the witch hunts then brought ut to Scotland then when he took over England in 1603 ge brought the witch hunting to England thats we in England really distrust these Scottish Kings taken over England😂😂😂😂😂

[@thefisherking78]

Thank god we don't live in such times 😅

[@MMArigo]

Thanks to men like Matthew Hopkins for ridding the world of witches

[@evann2938]

Don't we? Think about it for a minute...

[@Melbournelost66]

Vincent Price, in The Witch Finder General. A beauty!

[@dianeshannon7988]

Thanks I can now use the term witch hunt with facts to back it up quite relevant atm with the post office fiasco does history repeat itself?!

[@WNCBlueRidgeBlondie1]

Horrifying!

[@Noahloveless1]

Definitely inspired my next Faire outfit. An inquisitor!

[@patricktracey7424]

i think monty python has the best witch discovery methods.

[@Lucius1958]

Perhaps we should invest in duck farmers? ;-)

[@flybobbie1449]

Even now some parts of England are still a bit strange.......out in the countryside.

[@gowdsake7103]

Boston !!

[@flybobbie1449]

@@gowdsake7103 My sister moved to Friskney and Boston for a few years. Now in Lincoln, slightly better.

[@ChrisSmith-lo2kp]

The Conquerer Worm?

[@nomadmarauder-dw9re]

AKA Witchfinder General.

[@hauntinggoingonwithangelamylif]

Very interesting ❤❤

[@JonS]

I never knew I had a namesake who was a witchfinder (John Stern)! From the county next to the one I grew up in, no less (I'm originally from Hertfordshire).

[@bromion5123]

There is the ducking stool still in existence in Canterbury.Witch hunting was very widespread.Scotland i think holds the record for killing witches.

[@DanDavisHistory]

It's a replica not an original and ducking stools were not used for swimming witches but as punishment for scolds and adulterers etc

[@Kojak-dv4fy]

A wicked man indeed sir.

[@MrPotatoMind]

Everyone's starting premise here is scientifically flawed: "witchcraft / witches don't exist, therefore ...." Your proover is prooving what your thinkers already thought. Biases therefore confirmed.

[@petergore1972]

Peter Gore Seer, The Witchfinder Was Protecting Witches, Killing Innocent People Is Was Fantastic Way Of Protecting Not Killing.

[@heikkijhautanen4576]

Pure madness!!! :(

[@Ketowski]

Sounds very familiar. Those who want to keep repeating history’s mistakes. “no one could be sure whether their friends and neighbors were secretly for the king or for Parliament. This was also a time of growing religious fundamentalism as Puritans tried to do away with ancient Traditions to impose a new and oppressive social order …”

[@hiddenmoth4555]

Anyone else here because of the "Witch Hunter General" line from Owl House?

[@shackworks]

Love History. I subscribed the other day. You should do one on Captain Matthew Flinders. Very colourful history right there. Thanks for the videos. I will have to go through them one by one.

[@davidneal6920]

Being a widow with a black cat was a high risk move

[@WhitneyAllisonGG]

It is White Cat in England

[@buckodonnghaile4309]

​@@WhitneyAllisonGGwhite cats are considered bad luck across thr pond? Interesting

[@noswim]

Just here to engage

[@kaynin2196]

I always enjoy English histories of the most vile and terrifying people, and yet they have some of the most unassuming names like Matthew Hopkins. I dont know, I just find his name funny and to be somewhat modern and lacking for a man of his exploits

[@AWICKEDVIXEN1999]

It never dawned on anyone to take the crazy dude out?

[@DebraOdonnell-zb3vx]

In context we are so better of today as i have never married i persume i would have been called a witch thats really sobering new subscriber thank u

[@jamessouth3808]

Also left handed people…Debra doesn’t sound very witchy😜

[@lonwof2105]

hey you don't KNOW that that mole isn't a teet for an imp! Ok you don't KNOW that...

[@pninnan]

Amazing movie and one of Christopher Lee’s best roles

[@nomadmarauder-dw9re]

Vincent Price.

[@elizabethtruman7164]

He's supposed to be lated in missley cemetery

[@atmas1337]

Redundant vocation which only survives on made up issues... Now where have I heard of that before?