CASE OF ROYAL BLACKMAIL

Covering Elizabethan, 18th century, Victorian and 20th London and looking at witches, witchcraft, Nicholas Hawksmoor, secret societies and more, the book describes practitioners of the occult and their unorthodox beliefs. London more than any other city has a secret history concealed from view, a city of esoteric traditions, obscure institutions and forgotten locations. The book rediscovers this history, from the Elizabethan magic of Dr Dee and Simon Forman to the occult designs of Wren and Hawksmoor, from the Victorian London of Spring-Heeled Jack to the fin de siècle heyday of Madame Blavatsky and Aleister Crowley. A gazetteer maps the sites of the most resonant occult locations. 224pp, paperback.