AQA A Level: NEA Component 3: Witchcraft c.1560-1660, Depth Content - Lessons 11-18 bundle

These resources are for A Level AQA students studying the NEA (Non-Examined Assessment) Component 3. The coursework that I have designed for my students centres on witchcraft in Europe from 1560-1660. The course looks at the different causes of witch-hunting across Europe, mainly in England, Scotland and Germany. The notes will build up over the course to which students will answer a coursework question focusing on the causes of witch-hunting between 1560 and 1660. This year my students completed the question:

“Within the context of the years 1560-1660, to what extent were socio-economic factors the main reason for the growth in witch-hunting persecutions in Europe?”

This second section of the course is the depth study. Students will learn various depth case studies as to why witchcraft was caused in each instance. These case studies include the trial of Agnes Waterhouse, 1566; North Berwick witch hunts, 1590s; Pendle witch trials, 1612; Bamberg, Germany 16203 and 1630s; East Anglian witch-hunts, 1640s.

The Hodder Education textbook by Alan Farmer called “Access to History: The Witchcraze of the 16th and 17th centuries” will be an essential textbook reference for these lessons.