In 1597, King James I of England (when he was still James VI of Scotland) published a compendium on witchcraft lore called &quot;D&aelig;monologie&quot;. It was also published in England in 1603 when James acceded to the English throne.<br /><br />The book asserts James&rsquo;s full belief in magic and witchcraft, and aims to both prove the existence of such forces and to lay down what sort of trial and punishment these practices merit &ndash; in James&rsquo;s view, death. &quot;D&aelig;monologie&quot; takes the form of a dialogue (popular for didactic works) and is divided into three sections: the first on magic and necromancy (the prediction of the future by communicating with the dead), the second on witchcraft and sorcery and the third on spirits and spectres.