DAEMONOLOGIE

King James VI of Scotland suffered from a morbid fear of violent death. The trial in 1590 of three hundred Scottish 'witches' charged with plotting the murder of their king prior to his also becoming James I of England and Ireland, heightened his anxiety over this apparently treasonous 'un-Christian' sect, and stimulated him to study the whole subject of witchcraft. Daemonologie is the result of this royal research and in it he details his opinions on the topic in the form of a Socratic dialogue between the sceptic Philomathes and witch-averse Epistemon, who exposes many aspects of witch-craft. The book deals in three sections with magic, sorcery and witchcraft, and spirits and ghosts. It concludes with a macabre account of the North Berwick witch trials, which were based on the evidence of one Dr. John Fian, the alleged head of the coven, whose 'confession' was obtained with persuasive thumbscrews, the removal of his fingernails, and the “boot” a gruesome category of torture designed to cause crushing injuries to the foot or leg.