About the author
Gerald Brosseau Gardner (13 June 1884 – 12 February 1964), also known by the craft name Scire, was an English Wiccan, author, and amateur anthropologist and archaeologist. He was instrumental in bringing the modern pagan religion of Wicca to public attention, writing some of its definitive religious texts and founding the tradition of Gardnerian Wicca. Born into an upper-middle-class family in Blundellsands, Lancashire, Gardner spent much of his childhood abroad in Madeira. In 1900, he moved to colonial Ceylon. In 1911, he relocated to Malaya, where he worked as a civil servant. Independently, he developed an interest in the native peoples, writing papers, and even a book about their magical practices. After his retirement in 1936, he travelled to Cyprus and penned the novel A Goddess Arrives before returning to England. Settling down near the New Forest, he joined an occult group, the Rosicrucian Order Crotona Fellowship. Through this group, he encountered the New Forest coven into which he was initiated in 1939. Gardner portrayed the coven as a survival of the theoretical "witch-cult" discussed in the works of Margaret Murray—a theory that is now discredited.
📖 Where to start with Gerald B Gardner
💬 What our editors say about Gerald B Gardner's books
“While this work is indispensable for understanding the genesis of modern Wicca, it may not suit readers seeking purely instructional grimoires or those uninterested in historical narrative. The text focuses heavily on Gardner’s…”
Esoterica Books editorial team, Occult literature desk · on Witchcraft Today
“Gardner’s volume is undeniably historic, establishing the tenets of a movement that reshaped occult literature. However, it may not suit readers seeking purely academic, detached historical analysis, as the narrative is deeply…”
Esoterica Books editorial team, Occult literature desk · on Witchcraft Today
“Gardner’s 1959 publication remains a vital historical document for its bold challenge to misconceptions about witchcraft. However, readers expecting practical ritual instructions or modern theological debates may find it lacking…”
Esoterica Books editorial team, Occult literature desk · on The Meaning of Witchcraft Gardner, Gerald B
📋 Editions by Gerald B Gardner in the catalog
| Edition | Year | Publisher | Pages | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Witchcraft Today | 2022 | Book Tree | 180 | 9781585094325 |
| Witchcraft Today | 2004 | Kensington Publishing Corp | 197 | 9780806525938 |
| The Meaning of Witchcraft Gardner, Gerald B | 2022 | Weiser Books | 336 | 9781578637898 |
