00:00 // Introduction
02:04 // Origins in Enlightenment Thought
06:34 // Building the Witch Religion
09:35 // Gerald Gardner’s Role
11:07 // Gardner’s Influences and Invention
17:00 // Formation of Wiccan Ritual
20:11 // Unique Beliefs
26:54 // Ritual Practice and Gardner’s Preferences
30:18 // Cultural Relevance
35:14 // Later Leaders and Legacy
39:50 // Modern Acceptance and Revision
42:43 // Conclusion
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/c2DRdMqywWM
Pagan witchcraft, especially in its first publicly apparent form of Wicca, is the most influential and most notorious form of modern Paganism. It is a counter-cultural religion of astonishing boldness, being based on feminism, love of nature, personal growth and the redemption of the traditional figure of the witch. This final lecture looks at its origins and its success across the Western world. It also discusses what modern Pagan witches actually do, and why they do it.
This lecture was recorded by Ronald Hutton on 14th May 2025 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.
Ronald is the Gresham Professor of Divinity.
He is also Professor of History at the University of Bristol and a Fellow of the British Academy, the Royal Historical Society, the Society of Antiquaries and the Learned Society of Wales.
The transcript of the lecture is available from the Gresham College website: https://www.gresham.ac.uk/watch-now/modern-pagan-witchcraft
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