2023/08/18 by Jan Machielsen, Michelle Pfeffer · 1 voice
Arts and Humanities · Social Sciences · #Religious Studies and Spiritual Practices #Anthropological Studies and Insights #Religious Tourism and Spaces
paper · pdf · doi:10.1093/pastj/gtad012
openalex publication_date 2023/08/18 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/06/16
The year 2021 marked the fiftieth anniversary of Keith Thomas’s Religion and the Decline of Magic (1971), a book that set the agenda for decades of scholarship on the history of supernatural beliefs. Half a century after its first publication, Thomas’s masterpiece remains an inspiration — and a foil — for countless students of social, cultural and religious history. Its legacy is complex. It is often presented, alongside a 1967 essay by Hugh Trevor-Roper, as the starting point for the modern historiography of witchcraft, but the book ranged significantly beyond that topic.1 Renowned for its rich accumulation of evidence as well as its pioneering engagement with social anthropology, Religion and the Decline of Magic (hereafter RDM) sought to reveal the logic underlying a diverse but ‘interrelated’ set of beliefs: witchcraft, but also magical healing, astrology, prophecy, ghosts, fairies and omens. While all of these were now ‘rightly disdained by intelligent persons’ they were taken seriously by ‘equally intelligent persons in the past’. It was the task of the historian, Thomas argued in his preface, to explain why this was the case.2RDM proceeded to bring this lost world back to life, but it did so in a highly paradoxical fashion. While its title and final chapters gesture towards the decline of magic, the bulk of RDM’s twenty-two chapters instead conjure up the vitality of magical beliefs in a particularly vivid fashion. Taking his cue from anthropology, Thomas also showed the deeply useful functions of these beliefs for those living in a world under constant threat of hunger, disease and death. Few history books have provoked the sort of embodied reaction that has been typical of RDM. Many readers still vividly remember exactly where they were when they first encountered the book: in their university library, an undergraduate seminar, or, less traditionally, an occult bookshop or a cross-channel ferry.3RDM connects the generations, perhaps because it connects so many readers to their own beginnings as historians. The book’s importance was quickly noted in the early 1970s. In 1972, it won an inaugural Wolfson History Prize, while the American Historical Association allocated it a session at its annual conference. It has remained influential within and outside academia ever since. Erudite yet highly readable, RDM continues to be a staple on undergraduate reading lists and still occupies prime real estate in bookstores. Widely acknowledged by historians of all stripes as one of the most significant British historical monographs of the last century, it seemingly inevitably ended up on a 1995 Times Literary Supplement list of the 100 most influential books in post-war public discourse.4 Yet in 1971 the success of RDM was not a given. Not all contemporary reviewers had been equally positive. Writing for the Observer, John Kenyon listed it as one of the books of the year, but morosely concluded that ‘there were no really outstanding books in 1971’.5 The book shared the Wolfson prize (as was customary then), with the larger sum going to a work of military history.6 There were also hurdles the book needed to overcome. its — the is — was to have a really work was so yet so of and a of The many While early of RDM a of the historical in the in 1971 one of Thomas’s students that it had the it because of the of with a book that was as Thomas the the had to on the at the of its the and had it at — the of in In his for the Times Literary the book as to a of to the the of with one that was the of to the in and a book as as the and often of a to the of Keith Thomas’s Religion and the Decline of a at in to on the book’s legacy and it to have a on the historical The on the as well as from the of that the book’s is for RDM still as and as it did in The perhaps why it has to be a by Thomas’s students and in but by most by the The to be yet in this now the work and its success in of its and a century after the book’s publication, RDM in the of Thomas’s There is a to that in of its — of early modern — and The the not on RDM’s but also its and to RDM’s is the that it to of the book its of to the of the the of the book in all RDM is when in its historical by a seemingly book in a set of the History of the century, when the of historical was in There is in the that one of the most of modern history from an that was at the for its and that the book’s be in to that to its and Thomas’s has been to the book’s engagement with in is on the book’s to and by the that the book has the of early modern historiography of its — of was in the — now to the book’s Thomas has RDM as an The book’s in his a of a of his undergraduate Thomas has to a and at with John a as Thomas did not to Hugh of with by one of the and the Keith to the in of on the In the by Thomas a from the to the in a of for Thomas to the rich of for for a for RDM by it in the and book Thomas’s on the book’s not particularly Few of History or its at the the as and to a and of Yet at as Thomas noted in his to the history of the was of a typical by the perhaps as a was in the at in these noted Trevor-Roper, of an on the in in in the Magic had also the of the work on to the of as well as the of was also as as it from the outside The History a that from outside were also on the history of The and the was at a by and was a for was in these Thomas’s that has been at the acknowledged by Thomas back still in to his as an undergraduate at in the early and particularly to the from Thomas has that an early because won an essay prize on the but also that was a Thomas often the In a of Thomas as ever and living in Thomas to of historiography that sought to the of history still in beyond the the of In his work on and The one year after was in the beliefs of and their to their own to the of early modern The of this on RDM — and of history — is in Yet on Thomas was also and many Thomas the of and as an of accumulation and of a in There for the the book’s has the is an equally for RDM within a larger and that it a a of the sort of history its and the historical they on his at in the that in those History for the of to the most British historians were a social history with from the social and the their to the History as a was The the of British historical monographs deeply by the social The of the and The of the also with social history not history or the history of but perhaps of The decades of the century the in of to social history the of and that and the of the history of The for had been in by and historians with the of with the the in in History at and also the on a by for a in of social and to the for and to the the year RDM that it was to be a social Yet in the and the modern history at remained to these the of students — and — to be no that Thomas as the In while a history at that in on history has the of history from the of modern in influential in and for historians to in university history of this with of the of historians were to and on the of reading of the was Thomas’s and the of a of the Times Literary Supplement in Thomas the of in historical alongside the of historians in the social his of the pioneering work of historians was particularly a of and British Thomas were their in not to where the of and the historical of but also the of social it had been to to history with social and from and from in was in the and the of was by the Thomas was at of and had the Historical The final of the History of was a for the of real history as and social history as an RDM’s is these to Thomas’s history was by a on and in by the by the of Thomas for historical of and but also life, and a list that now as a of many of the last Thomas’s and the of to its of the of the towards of a RDM’s of the of the of also Thomas an early to on the of early modern Thomas’s that of to be as a of by the of the from but also from and social work on witchcraft, and in and and of and social in The Thomas was a at the and of in the but his inevitably of as Thomas and were in the by of as well as the Association of in In Thomas a of to the Historical of to and a by the Thomas acknowledged his to the of of a to the of beliefs and a to beliefs the of of its to the of social as as the The that a of the of be a of social and to set the with RDM — a book to — be RDM’s be in to to the to its and a of all Yet the book also from a that was has been from RDM’s from a and a for within as well as in the of its History Its had in with the of and for the first a of early — a — had the and his work be at the of the early modern these to at and and was to and as to his with was also a to this of early and to RDM in for its Thomas’s the within this The was not but the Trevor-Roper, in was also on Thomas’s that year had as of The and his as yet book as outside the Thomas and with the to In had to his the that not a in the to all the Keith of in — it is RDM to to of Thomas had the in the Times Literary was a to to the from a essay on also to be within this and within the of RDM’s to the with for the most the the of the world in had It was a of and and with the of why were up in of the essay was as a at Thomas’s to the history of magic, by was with with those that had been to the it Keith is Yet set to his was when In a for the Thomas as of his the is the — as a of and to — has of a in the Thomas’s at the of deeply by in in and RDM is an book in and the were in RDM. the and with of the most to history of the to or Thomas’s book to a and for a of history. There a in one that also explain why from Thomas’s own of RDM’s the the and of the to a work of scholarship from that world or, readers of this have on so at the of its publication, RDM was a work of have RDM in a historical and It is that the book has in to its and — in of as in — it has a of in the of early modern history. The book’s success be to not its pioneering to the of and its to social and cultural history and its as a for history. is at that the of RDM also be to of the its to and as a of the as of Thomas’s own to history have Thomas’s of the his in the of the social particularly history for its of and that historical and early readers to from RDM a book with an reading of RDM. the book was to a in 1972, Thomas of a a with a from a from the a from the Yet while early reviewers to anthropology, many often in the of or to that in no the for of modern to it to Thomas as social his readers of Thomas’s for and when the of as The reading of RDM has Thomas still his work as an in historical and has acknowledged his to of to Thomas for its on cultural and historical from to was to Thomas because it explain why in the of magical In to that RDM on 1971 many had Thomas that did most of his reading in in the early when the books on the were from the and In Thomas the of social to the of as were to to historical the of early modern in as a social that on the one from and social of of the of a and on the to their of Yet for beliefs were not social they were also they early modern to and the Thomas acknowledged this was the sort of the be to to of as early reviewers on the RDM or it to Thomas to his from and to a historical the noted in Thomas of but not their Thomas’s of is most in RDM’s on and its where the social Yet this is one of many for the of the on the book’s chapters and the of the chapters — less on — has to an of of RDM. Thomas has his in as a to his historical In a the importance of reading outside of history because have of their reading in the Thomas was for a or a to all and and In his to Thomas acknowledged that of is by its own not the for a historical by the social that in the The book to the of social and that Thomas’s had John book’s is to a of with to a its In his and that the of the that this book from an masterpiece is its or its of it to for the of astrology, for Thomas a but no as one early Thomas’s not to but to — the and of — is in all of Thomas’s but and of historical of a still the with Thomas’s last books with a RDM is not of but they under a of and as Thomas has while the of RDM’s a world the accumulation of and as to the of the book as the of a The is also RDM a and The book to countless as that of the after his to the in for a and a to its RDM its with a Thomas as the early modern of in the century as for of his — the of John the books of the and the of — the for by have a as on all because they yet to the when a a still — the list the of Thomas’s these they the of a of evidence the Thomas has acknowledged that his to a of for RDM’s is the that it to the of early modern in their as they Thomas the of the Thomas The of RDM and this of to Thomas’s and the the in a in the of RDM — on all and that Thomas in — have as as their In a in the of Thomas on his in by of from or less Thomas up a from a of and a his to that of his to in the of the of In a cultural Thomas his the for the or The is when the for from its and Thomas that the of his the and the in have been to up in the by his and less when in the of the decades of the century, when the and of was a of In the the of a be to a Thomas’s inspiration from the or his was by as in a Times Literary Supplement that all historians and In the of Thomas that a not a was the embodied by and history as a of in the to be and The of this Thomas has historical as of but were the that Thomas in early had one is not is the of and of or Thomas the of its as is perhaps because it is Not the of early modern for it is that they their accumulation of their of Thomas’s with in the Times Literary Supplement argued that when historians and they of a In Thomas to the of historical so often to the that was of in the of to by and is and by the accumulation of in with often no one to it is a when now and one an and to seemingly an to of for this of a While their is the is that the for the equally is that have and that these be and In his Thomas his from as from of RDM’s in from his to Thomas’s while at the to modern from for the and was not to beliefs within a the Thomas so the task of the was for in all the while historians were with and often — in in and — is in this was the this of and was a that to be by of the The while Thomas was RDM. Thomas by one book and by a on astrology, and Thomas at the of these of with While Thomas’s title for the book in was in early and and at a title that that his and and the of of Thomas’s by and at with they a in and — or from — they a for beliefs that with the as of their or of an as and their work in all of Thomas’s on and a for all of but these to a the by the Thomas in a of the of has also to be a is that in it that to the of the book: its to a to of readers and historians. The be not for the evidence in but for the book as a RDM was a as it was did not the chapters in but with the The work with a instead with a While Thomas in the of RDM that the sum was its the book that the to of the early reviewers RDM as an to be a work to be for for the first of a of now with the was it that were to the magical by the they had to in their early reviewers to the for the and the task and of the was not in to Thomas’s and for his as RDM to of Writing on that have Thomas of his the of in the early modern — and its importance to the — on one not the final of a work to the decline of to that of in modern be yet and to as its final that ever be from within the have to but of also to RDM’s of as a work of and this be as a as a While RDM with when their is for engagement with historians or their acknowledged in and the of living historians — of the of — the of Thomas’s The is and the and the on early modern but where RDM is it also in the a of history that was but not on their own the of the book by historians as a that with its of engagement with a for a early historiography was a of the work an in a and in these were of the of had particularly The of that to RDM is in many the many why RDM has a of seemingly by the of RDM is a work of its it an of RDM is also a work because in many it is the of early modern to be in all their Thomas needed and magic, as well as chapters on witchcraft, astrology, and so because they his and his In Thomas his books as In this Thomas’s most book is the one that is the The of an of of of the in the of work has Thomas has that the British in the a of it essay on his to no but its as well as a of to that was from the but to the most While RDM in of its and the work was a of history the of history. The have the RDM has to the of early modern historiography It is to in scholarship and its that were not in Thomas’s RDM is so and its so and that Keith Thomas to have of the the has in and of the book now is particularly for the that RDM the of early modern the were of Thomas’s own as they in his It be to that RDM is of a that in the book’s title — beliefs and decline — at the of RDM’s but their to be in Thomas often own for the beliefs and that has but own the of and as and as of and to RDM as they to the book’s legacy in the of history. have that on the chapters has to of RDM. has also is perhaps an of the one that was as many chapters as RDM is as early modern as it is they to the book’s not for the have but for as Thomas’s to of In not did but Thomas the — a of diverse — as the or and magic, so many supernatural to that on a it was as of magical While to the magical of Thomas that the for the had had not argued that the by the in the The of that with the of the for a for that Thomas was by and of the history of Thomas with an to the of his book: why intelligent in the as a threat to be for or as for The and in RDM is by and their It did not the of early reviewers that the and of Thomas’s book were by a of the book a for — Thomas’s that when for were was Thomas’s not to be at not with the is in a reading of as it the to it also the and cultural of Yet point is still particularly that the magical did not the or to ended up as a to not but also Thomas to on its and social and with the that the because early modern in In this Thomas’s of and is not to but also to his Thomas’s own his his it to have Thomas’s in and towards the social history of the of is one particularly the of a In and to in many as within a It is not a that the book’s title a work by an early of the British a Religion and the of Thomas while at as in the with Thomas early modern beliefs and a of and his Thomas as an it is that has been a of for many In the and when the history of was by were and to their the book to early reviewers as to in the of still remains of Thomas’s as is of a is and but — and — the they Religion as a of or a to RDM on an of Thomas’s at 2021 is an in as Thomas — the early modern on — was and and RDM’s on the evidence by early modern is to his to early modern and that as well as the book and Thomas’s in at a when most historians of were with the of was In RDM a of one that has a of early modern The book that in and a of by and and was a pioneering that scholarship as have to a of the of had less been on of the RDM’s of with its on a and to a in the 1970s. In these an was on the that religious were by the and that the of the was and while had argued in his that was no in the or Thomas — in The — as and early modern Thomas had to no of the or of they to their not In these Thomas on the of the in exactly these Thomas’s of and the of on and — RDM — was in a of that were often in with one have for really a book the history of the that the of RDM is less and of RDM’s the of with and on inevitably that the on Thomas his was on the by the of the work on most of the RDM as its starting is in its to early modern on its own as it was by Thomas’s on also the book’s to the of Thomas’s of the history of as the of the as in In The and the of the the of as a in the towards the of the Thomas’s to not acknowledged in in his to in the book as a of of and the and the is by the of the Thomas from by that the the of astrology, underlying his is the reading of the in as and as and In particularly in the in the this of is and many historians RDM’s reading of the now a of its has that of on in the decades of the century that while historians their own they did so under of their own most historians in the back on to social the historical for a it to many that this be the in as the of of history was RDM that its did not they of under from social as well as from while social history has been by the cultural the in RDM and Thomas’s has not In to the in work to the as a and the success of the of and was to Thomas’s the is often as a it is that the — as Thomas in his title — is up in the of history and the importance of this in the of in the last decades the of has been and with ever and The of has also his own in the book’s Thomas well have the first of The of the was by early that perhaps not with but with the of while argued that really for is not the of but the of the have the of decline of in real after as Thomas noted back in and have back the of the from the to the the century, it is still from historians have with and and still remains to be the it remains that the but why and — — for were these social, or of historians social be as a of of and and in this RDM is also a to Thomas in remained by the that the of and beliefs the of their The Decline of Magic concluded that was not for these and cultural historians that history still has to to many of the that in the history of magic, and — as Thomas’s book historians not the that beliefs and of their and from their social historians these well to as Thomas did in the to social have been with and the and the of and and the that had the decline of the by a century, his is is The of RDM has taken the his and a for the Thomas has not the of In his to that were to now a is the for his of and Thomas the not The be the their Thomas’s of RDM did not in the in a of history. Yet while it on to the of as a work of it continues to up for historical Thomas’s book in and to the history of and In its as well as its it and is the legacy of Religion and the Decline of is the of the work for historians the book continues to the of historians In Thomas the of history the of the Times Literary Supplement of in that the book was one on for constant has also for many modern Thomas’s RDM’s of still functions as an for students of early modern its a first of for many the book has also of a for to the history of their own the RDM has also the of the of history. early as that RDM to of