Witch Trials in English History — A Distinct Legal Tradition

England's witch trials followed a markedly different pattern from those on the European continent. English common law prohibited judicial torture in most circumstances, which meant that the cascading confessions that produced mass panics in Germany and France were less common in England. English witch trials were typically smaller in scale, focused on 'maleficium' (harmful magic causing damage to neighbors, livestock, or crops) rather than the elaborate Satanic conspiracy theories of continental demonology. The Witchcraft Acts of 1542, 1563, and 1604 defined witchcraft as a secular felony punishable by hanging rather than burning. The most significant English witch trial was the Pendle witch trial of 1612, which resulted in ten executions. The largest mass trial was the East Anglian witch hunt of 1645-47, led by the self-appointed Witchfinder General Matthew Hopkins, who was responsible for the execution of perhaps 300 people — more than had been executed in the previous century. England's witch trials ended earlier than those on the continent, with the last execution occurring in 1716 and the Witchcraft Act being repealed in 1736.