The Witches of Warboys

The Witches of Warboys

From Dark Histories by Ben Cutmore

March 17, 2026 · 1h 4m · Season 10 · Episode 5

About this episode

This episode explores the witchcraft accusations in the village of Warboys during the late 16th century.

In the late 16th century, in the small village of Warboys, just outside Cambridge, everyday life was unsettled by growing fear and uncertainty, when family members of the local gentry began suffering from strange illnesses. Suspicion of witchcraft quickly spread amongst the community, and one neighbouring family found themselves accused by a local population that was searching for explanations in an environment of fear and superstition, forcing ordinary, everyday events to become evidence of something much darker.SOURCES Man, Thomas & Winnington, John (1593) The Most Strange and Admirable Discovery of the Three Witches of Warboys. Widow Orwin, London, UK. Almond, Philip C. (2008) The Witches of Warboys. I. B. Taurus, London, UK. ------ For almost anything, head over to the podcasts hub at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠darkhistories.com ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Support the show by visiting our Patreon for bonus episodes and Early Access: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.patreon.com/darkhistories⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ The Dark Histories books are available to buy here: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠http://author.to/darkhistories⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Dark Histories merch is available here: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bit.ly/3GChjk9⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Connect with us on Facebook…

People in this episode

Host: Ben Cutmore

Topics covered

  • witchcraft
  • historical events
  • superstition
  • 16th century
  • accusations
  • community fear

Keywords

  • witchcraft
  • Warboys
  • Cambridge
  • 16th century
  • superstition
  • accusations
  • fear

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: I. B. Taurus, darkhistories.com, Patreon, Dark Histories, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Discord

Books & works: The Most Strange and Admirable Discovery of the Three Witches of Warboys, The Witches of Warboys

Places: Warboys, Cambridge

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