ABSTRACT
In the previous chapter, it was seen that one step in the procedure towards prosecuting a suspected witch was the consultation of a cunning man, witch-finder, or witch-doctor.1 Analysis of the activities of cunning folk is therefore necessary before we can understand the pressures behind accusations at the Essex courts. Furthermore, cunning folk were themselves prosecuted as ‘witches’, especially at the ecclesiastical courts. Indeed, it is arguable that it was primarily against cunning folk that the visitation articles were directed.
