Fabulous Folklore: Toads in Witchcraft

I love this tiny toad with a broomstick. It is found carved in wood on the building of the Museum of Witchcraft and Magic in Boscastle, Cornwall.

Toads have been associated with Witchcraft for many hundreds of years.

During the Renaissance it was widely believed that Satan sent witches familiar spirits to help them with their work. Toads were not liked in Medieval Europe, they were seen as ugly, disgusting creatures that were associated with poison. They were believed to be able to kill people even without being a familiar, which was a common concern. The witch could use the poison of toads to others, so the poor toad became entangled in this idea of harm. Stories of toads joining the Witches Sabbath or being compared to the Devil did not help, and terrified everyday folk, adding to their belief that toads were awful creatures connected to death and filth.

The familiar of the Second Witch in Shakespeare’s Macbeth is a toad known as Paddock. He has the witches throw another toad into their cauldron. It is possible that Shakespeare may have read Discovery of Witchcraft (1584) by Reginald Scot, where the word familiar is first seen in print.

It was thought that toads had a “toadstool” in their heads, a sort of magickal gemstone that acted as an antidote for poison. Amulets containing dried frogs were abundant; and cunningfolk may have used toads in their medicine and remedies, keeping them for this reason, and subsequently bolstering the idea of a witch’s familiar.

Bufagin, a toxin produced from the glands on the top of a toad’s head, may have been linked to flying rituals and ointments, but it is a steroid not an alkaloid, and as such produces an anaesthetic effect rather than a psychoactive one. However butofenin, a toad toxin and alkaloid may be a good ingredient for a flying potion.

NEXT - Fabulous Folklore: Hag Stones 

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Fabulous Folklore: Yorkshire Witchcraft

York was a Viking capital in the 10th century, known as Jórvík. The first castle to be built in York was built in 1068 following the Norman conquest. It was destroyed by rebels and a Viking army in 1069 and was rebuilt - a fortified complex of castles, prisons, churches, law courts and other buildings. The medieval keep (pictured) is known as Clifford’s Tower. York Castle fell into disrepair in the 15th and 16th centuries, but much of the infrastructure still remains and you can walk around the city’s walls today.

Belief in Witchcraft was widespread in medieval Yorkshire, and feelings were mixed. Some were happy to seek help and healing from cunning folk, but others saw these types of people as evil wrongdoers. Later on in the 19th century, Witch Crosses were a popular type of protective magick used in the countryside. They were hung on the outside of barns and buildings to protect the people and animals inside.

Many local women were accused of being witches. Jennet Preston, one of the Pendle (Lancashire) Witches of 1612, was tried at York. It is thought that the outbreaks of “Witchcraft” in the Pendle area suggests that quite a few people were making a living as traditional healers, and that the two families involved ~ that went on to make accusations against each other ~ might have been in competition.

Mary Bateman was a spiritualist, petty thief and later murderer who was named The Yorkshire Witch. She gained this moniker through her claims she had supernatural powers. Born in North Yorkshire she became a con artist after being sacked from her employment for stealing. She told people they had become cursed or placed under harmful spells, prescribing them with charms and feeding one couple puddings in exchange for money. Unfortunately the puddings were laced with poison, but as only the wife ate the pudding and died, the husband reported her to the police. She was tried and executed in York.

In the 17th century, a man named Edward Fairfax believed that six women had bewitched his daughters. They were also tried at York Assizes but were thankfully cleared.

NEXT - Fabulous Folklore: The Witches of Warboys

Fabulous Folklore: Witch Balls

This is a recreation of a room in the home of a Moorland woman, circa 1850. It can be found in the York Castle Museum, along with an excerpt from her diary.

The passage from her diary reads:

“Life on the moors is hard work. Me, John and three little ones are all in one room with the rest of our cottage needed for the livestock. I suppose I can’t complain, we’ve got everything we need which is more than some can say. Our bed is good and solid. It’s been in my family for years, and we were lucky that it was passed down to me, skiing with some other bits of furniture. I’ve brought a few ornaments and some pictures. They’re nothing fancy but I think they brighten up the place.

It can be lonely here, but having the witch ball at the window to ward off any evil makes me feel better. I must remember to check how much peat we have left. If we don’t keep the fire lit we won’t have any hot food or water which doesn’t bear thinking about. My John says that half the country’s population now live in cities and our way of life probably won’t exist for much longer. I wonder if he’s right.”

Notice the witch ball in the window?

Traditionally, but not always, they were blue or green in colour and made from glass, but some were made from other materials. They were hung in cottage windows in England during the 17th and 18th century to ward off witches, spells and evil spirits.

There were several theories behind them. Some thought that the witch balls diverted the evil eye, others believed that the bright colours would entice evil energies which were then trapped inside. Others thought that the balls prevented witches from entering the room because witches did not have a reflection or could not bear seeing their own.

NEXT - Fabulous Folklore: Witches' Homes

Personal Magick: What My Craft Means To Me

I was asked yesterday what my craft means to me. Quite simply, it is who I am, the way I live, and how I express myself. It is not lost on me how lucky I am to be living in a time where I can be myself.

The Great Scottish Witch Hunt of 1597 saw 400 people on trial; about 200 were executed. There were to be more Scottish witch hunts during 1628-1631, 1649-1650, and 1661-1662.

Between 1644 and 1646 English ‘witch finder’ Matthew Hopkins was responsible for the execution of 300 alleged witches. The Salem Witch Trials (starting 1st March 1692) saw more than 200 men and women accused. Nineteen were hanged, one pressed to death, and at least four more died in the unbearable conditions of the jail, before being thrown into shallow graves.

I leave the names of the Salem Witch Trial victims here, and ask you to spare a thought for these poor people:

Bridget Bishop - Rebecca Nurse - Sarah Good - Susannah Martin - Elizabeth Howe - Sarah Wildes - George Burroughs - Martha Carrier - John Willard - George Jacobs Snr. - John Proctor - Martha Corey - Mary Eastey - Ann Pudeator - Alice Parker - Mary Parker - Wilmott Red - Margaret Scott - Samuel Wardwell - Giles Corey - Lydia Dustin - Ann Foster - Sarah Osborne - Roger Toothaker.

NEXT - Personal Magick: Stone