Ronald Hutton is Professor of History at the University of Bristol and is an occasional commentator on British television and radio on his areas of expertise.
Hutton's areas of specialisation include the history of the British Isles in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, especially on the Reformation, Civil Wars, Restoration and Charles II. He has also written on ancient and medieval paganism and magic, and on witchcraft beliefs and shamanism.
In three books, he studied the development of the ritual year in Britain, exploding many myths about the antiquity of festivals and practices. His book Triumph of the Moon: A history of Modern Pagan Witchcraft explored the development of Wicca and the context in which it formed. He shed light on many questionable things about its development and seems to have proved that any connections to longstanding hidden pagan traditions lack evidence. However, he also showed its importance as a genuine new religious movement.
Publications[]
- The Pagan Religions of the Ancient British Isles: Their Nature and Legacy, 1993 - ISBN 0631189467
- The British Republic 1649-1660, 2000 - ISBN 0333913248
- The Rise and Fall of Merry England: The Ritual Year, 1400-1700, 2001 - ISBN 019285447X
- The Stations of the Sun: A History of the Ritual Year in Britain, 2001 - ISBN 0192854488
- The Triumph of the Moon: A History of Modern Pagan Witchcraft, 2001 - ISBN 0192854496
- Witches, Druids and King Arthur, 2003 - ISBN 1852853972
- Debates in Stuart History, 2004 - ISBN 1403935890