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Historian Explores Centuries-Old City Tale in Halloween Talk on Belief in the Devil. A University of Worcester lecturer will explore the tale of a supposed spooky encounter in a Worcester wood more than 350 years ago as part of a talk on Halloween night.

Professor of Early Modern History, Darren Oldridge's free talk Diabolical Old Books, at The Hive on 31 October at 7pm focuses on the Devil's representation in historic books from the 17th and early 18th century. One featured book, A True and Faithful Narrative of Oliver Cromwell's Compact with the Devil, is a 1720 pamphlet recounting the tale of Cromwell allegedly meeting the Devil in Perry Wood on the eve of the Battle of Worcester in 1651, accepting a deal for seven years of good fortune in exchange for his soul. Professor Oldridge thinks it probably originated as anti-Cromwellian propaganda after the Restoration of the monarchy.

Professor Oldridge will also look at three other books - by Richard Baxter and Thomas Beard, both major religious writers of the period and the puritan lawyer William Prynne. These rare books are held in the archives at The Hive and attendees will get to hold the books and turn their pages. Professor Oldridge said "Halloween is a good time to look at spooky books and I think the idea of the Devil, and the fear that people once had of him, is brought to life when you hold books that were published 300 years ago, written by people for whom he was frighteningly real."

The books reflect two key ideas about the Devil: as a physical being, which Professor Oldridge calls "the Devil in the wood" and as a mental influence, both of which he will explore in the talk.

Professor Oldridge, who specialises in 16th and 17th Century religious history, with a particular interest in witchcraft and the Devil, said "These are two different ways of thinking about the Devil in Tudor and Stuart England." The 'Devil in the mind' was far more important, but the 'Devil the the wood' never went away - and the tale of the alledged incident involving Cromwell is a lovely entertaining example of that. 

"We don't know what ordinary people believed, to be honest," he said. "They left fewer sources than the theologians and other writers of the day, but most English Protestants were far more worried about the Devil in the mind. These books give us an insight into their remarkable way of thinking"

Tickets are free but must be booked in advance.  today to avoid disappointment.