00:00 Witches and witchcraft have been a constant belief throughout human history, with a shift towards viewing it as heresy and a pact with the devil.

04:52 The shift towards viewing witchcraft as heresy and a pact with the devil occurred in the 14th and 15th centuries, with the church conflating sorcery with heresy and targeting those who had dealings with the devil. This shift was further solidified with the publication of "Malleus Maleficarum" and the acceptance of witchcraft as a crime under law in the 16th century, particularly in areas with a strong Protestant presence. However, there were also trials in Catholic areas, indicating that concerns about faith and the devil were present among both Protestants and Catholics during the Reformation era.

09:41 The peak of the witchcraft craze occurred in the latter half of the 16th century and into the 17th century, coinciding with the intensification of confessional identities among Protestants and Catholics and the religious warfare between them, as both groups believed they were engaged in a cosmic battle between good and evil.

14:27 Witchcraft accusations and killings have occurred in various countries throughout history, including South Africa, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Saudi Arabia, Nepal, Colombia, Indonesia, and Nigeria.

19:12 The witchcraft trials were fueled by socioeconomic conditions, including famine and poverty, which led to people fantasizing about meeting the devil as a means of escaping their hardships.

23:53 The belief that both men and women can be witches existed, but women were more likely to be accused due to the perception that they were weaker and more easily persuaded by the devil.

29:01 Witchcraft accusations could happen to ordinary women, but it took time for a witchcraft reputation to build up and there were instances where people were accused but later acquitted, and not everyone who was accused was executed.

33:48 In the later 17th century and early 18th century, there was a changing idea about who could be convicted of witchcraft, with a focus on the grounds of evidence, leading to a decline in witchcraft trials and executions in England and Scotland.

38:23 Witches were regarded as sinister figures in Roman times, which may have influenced the perception of witches in the 16th century, along with other beliefs about malign figures and the ability to transform into animals.

42:50 The belief in witches and witchcraft will likely always exist due to the human desire to explain and control the uncertain and inexplicable, as well as the tendency to scapegoat and blame others.