Among the first associations when mentioning good old England and magic are Merlin, Morgana, and Harry Potter with company. If you do not pay attention to the raid of the last centuries, you can see that the whole island is saturated with mysticism - dusty, foggy, lost on bog bumps and hidden at the bottom of dark lake waters. This magic is kept by otherworldly entities, which have thousands of names and faces: one of these characters over the centuries has become a witch. At the mention of fog and swamps, the word "witch" in the imagination of an old, crooked hag with a huge wart on his nose, something in between Gingema and Bastinda from the famous fairy tale. But there are others - for example, the elegant Minerva McGonagall from the popular series about the boy who survived, and several more personalities, which will be discussed in the article.
A witch can do her craft, but she should not harm people through witchcraft.
It was believed among many peoples that the largest number of “transparent” places is concentrated on the territory of England, through which entities from other worlds can enter our world. The belief that the Gateway to the Other, parallel to our world, is located precisely in Britain, creeps into some old local legends. However, if you wish, this can be found in every country. But far from everywhere gray-haired druids walked along the roads, sweeping the dusty path with their long beards: I believe that I will not be greatly mistaken if I draw a parallel between the druids and our magi. Those in the know shared their wisdom with those who were looking for it, or even voluntarily entered into a desperate battle with the dark forces that were trying to seize the throne. A great example is the support that the legendary King Arthur received from Merlin. As a friend and mentor of the ruler,the wizard, according to legends, more than once rescued the king from trouble.
It is believed that the druids gathered all their knowledge together, split it into many parts and hid it throughout the kingdom. The legacy of all-powerful magicians cannot be found by ordinary people, it is available only to their successors - those who know, the witches. It was they who received a piece of ancient skill - and found themselves under the auspices of the goddess Hecate.
Bulgakovsky Woland would say now - how fancifully the deck is shuffled! Indeed, at first glance, there is no connection between the ancient Greek chthonic goddess and the English witches, but, according to legend, it still exists - and rather strong. The ancient Greeks honored Hecate as the goddess of moonlight, hell, everything mysterious, magic and witchcraft. She, the embodiment of the horror of the night, was asked for the help of a witch, she patronized poisonous plants and countless witchcraft attributes, without which even a simple ritual was impossible. So, the legend says that in the era of the Roman conquests on British soil, the ancient statue of the night deity was removed from its homeland in Greece and installed somewhere in England. The artifact possessed remarkable magical power: it was hidden on the island,to keep from spreading Christianity. By the way, I admit that a similar scenario worked for many ancient relics - who knows, maybe the statue of Hecate was a collective image? But in the legend it is she who is indicated, and, according to the logic of the legend, it is Hecate that the heirs of the Druids owe their strength, since the goddess, grateful for the salvation of the statue, with a generous hand distributed magical abilities to those who asked for them.
Legends are legends, but Britain is not on the list of countries that have shown particular zeal in the witch hunt. By no means, there was a rather loyal attitude towards the ladies who were suspected of possessing supernatural powers. They were revered, they were asked for help in a variety of situations. In the English witches, the layman saw healers and veterinarians, weather forecasters and “family psychologists”, capable of correcting the weather with one spell, and returning a husband to the family with a couple of drops of the necessary potion. No witchcraft was forbidden - but only as long as it did not harm other people. In the Wicca tradition, for example, its Covenant is still strong: "Do what you want, if it does not harm anyone."
The most famous keeper
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Fairy Morgana, a sorceress with the gift of healing, is a very controversial character in English legends. Either she takes revenge on King Arthur, then, being, according to legend, his sister (older or younger - depending on the version of the story), she is madly in love with the sovereign and saves him from trouble. The only thing that absolutely all the storytellers agree on is the participation of the sorceress in the “transportation” of the mortally wounded Arthur to the mystical island of Avalon. According to the plan of the fairy and the priestesses accompanying her, knowledgeable in magical affairs, the king was saved from death, but put into a state of deep, eternal sleep. He will wake up when the danger of complete destruction looms over his kingdom again, and until then, being under the vigilant supervision of Morgana and her sorceresses, he will be on Avalon.
This island was called a fertile land: the ancient Celts believed that all the great kings and magicians of the past found their last refuge here, and, in fact, Avalon over time turned into a concentrate of magical power. Morgana rules everything here: the sorceress is responsible for the safety of knowledge that at different times came to Avalon, and she herself decides with whom to share this treasure. Usually such an honor is awarded to a capable woman who will be able to find a mythical land among the modern bustle.
The fate of the witch
Witchcraft became a "good cause" for deciding the fate of Anne Boleyn, the second wife of Henry VIII Tudor. Several pregnancies of his wife, which ended in miscarriages, convinced the king that Anna would not give him an heir - without thinking twice, he said that he was forced to marry against his will and in general he was under the influence of witchcraft. Subsequently, Anna was tried - they dragged in and adultery, and treason to the crown, and also the devil is not the point. In 1536 the woman was beheaded, and in 1542 the king, supporting the legend of enemy intrigues with the help of witchcraft, sharply “tightens the screws” in this regard: from that time on, magic is illegal and is considered a criminal offense. And then - pure football, everything in the English style: his son, Edward VI, canceled this law, but the successor of the young king, the eldest daughter of Henry VIII, famous,as Mary I the Bloody, lit the bonfires of inquisitors throughout England. An ardent Catholic, she executed many objectionable Protestants, and those who prevented her from ascending to the throne, or threatened her rule. More than 300 people were burned - the Bloody Queen did not spare even those who, before the fire, renounced Protestantism and were ready to accept the Catholic faith. True, they say that the heiresses of Morgana did not sit idly by, and Mary Tudor responded much stronger than she expected: the most terrible epidemic of the 16th century, called "fever", claimed the life of the queen herself and many of her associates.who, before the fire, renounced Protestantism and was ready to accept the Catholic faith. True, they say that the heiresses of Morgana did not sit idly by, and Mary Tudor responded much stronger than she expected: the most terrible epidemic of the 16th century, called "fever", claimed the life of the queen herself and many of her associates.who, before the fire, renounced Protestantism and was ready to accept the Catholic faith. True, they say that the heiresses of Morgana did not sit idly by, and Mary Tudor responded much stronger than she expected: the most terrible epidemic of the 16th century, called "fever", claimed the life of the queen herself and many of her associates.
Elizabeth I, the half-sister of Mary, ascended the throne. The persecution of witches during her reign gradually subsided, and after the war between Spain and England, and completely disappeared. This is due to interesting rumors: they say, when the Spaniards put up their Invincible Armada against the British Isles, which the British really could not defeat, the Queen, through her messengers, made a personal request to every witch of the country, who was hiding from the authorities for the time being. She asked for help - and the sorceresses did not refuse. When the fleet approached the islands, a violent storm arose, leaving from the armada only its pitiful likeness, which Francis Drake finished off a little later. Is this a coincidence? Or did the witches actually perform the ritual at a prearranged time to save the country?
Anyway, after the war, witches were not touched. It is possible that even now the descendants of those ancient sorceresses keep the knowledge from Avalon, bequeathed to them by the fairy Morgana.