No other monarch has had the impact on English literature of King James VI of Scotland, and later James I of England. His version of the bible is still widely available, and praised for its poetic imagery. In this earlier book (first published in 1597), James took on the task of proving witches were real, and dangerous.


Around this time other authors (such as Reginald Scott) were arguing that the fear of witchcraft was irrational and unfounded, and that any proof available was the result of panic, prejudice and sleight of hand. James however, who had prosecuted witches personally, believed that they were all too real, and servants of Satan besides. He would inspire later witch hunters, and also Shakespeare, who used the book as the basis for the witches in Macbeth.