Campaign launched asking for people accused of witchcraft in the past to be pardoned

This is the way witches are often shown in fantasy films

How much do you know about witches? Most of us probably don't think about them very much at all, unless it's Halloween or you're reading Harry Potter, for example.

But a few centuries ago many people were very afraid of the idea of witches. They believed that when bad things happened it was the fault of witches. Many people - mostly women - were accused of witchcraft, often with terrible consequences. These people couldn't possibly have done the things they were accused of.

A campaign called Witches of Scotland is now calling for the Scottish government to issue a public apology to those accused of witchcraft between the 16th and 18th Centuries.

Claire Mitchell and Zoe Venditozzi are both part of the Witches of Scotland campaign

The goal is also to secure a legal pardon for those punished for witchcraft. A pardon is a government decision to take away the punishment or other consequences for a crime.

An estimated 2,500 people, mainly women, were convicted and executed under Scotland's Witchcraft Act, which was in force from 1563 until 1736.

This was much higher than in England, where even though there was a much larger population, only around 500 people were killed because of crimes related to witchcraft.

Witches of Scotland co-founder, Claire Mitchell, says the campaign is looking for an apology for what happened and a national memorial to those who suffered as a result.

Why did witch hunts happen?

Often witches have been associated with making potions with lots of unusual ingredients

In stories witches have often been shown as old woman with magic powers. You've probably seen images of witches in books and TV shows wearing a black cloak and pointed hat, and flying on a broomstick. They are often put into stories to provide a scary character.

But in previous centuries things were very different. Many people thought witches were real, and believed they had made a pact with the Devil in exchange for supernatural powers. This wasn't true, but it had terrible consequences for those accused of witchcraft.

The eleventh season of Doctor Who included an episode set at the time of the witch trials

During the 16th and 17th centuries a "witch craze" in Europe saw more than 100,000 people accused of witchcraft and executed with the support of the government and often also the church.

Many people were very superstitious, and had little understanding of science, so if for example a person or animal fell ill unexpectedly it was easy to say it had been cursed rather than the issue being disease or poor hygiene.

'Witches' could also be blamed for environmental factors - for example if crops failed.

People accused of being witches tended to be older, poor, single women.

They were often accused of being witches because they were different in some way to others or because someone had a grudge against them.

They were forced to undergo terrible trials and many were killed.

How did laws about witchcraft come about?

People from all parts of society believed in witchcraft, including people in important positions and even royalty.

Queen Elizabeth I passed the Witchcraft Act in 1563, which made it legal to kill 'witches' and set out steps against witches who were thought to use spirits to kill people.

King James I even wrote a book on the subject of witches. It's thought that Shakespeare wrote the famous play Macbeth, and set it in Scotland, especially for the king. Three witches are important characters in the play.

The last known execution took place in Devon in 1685, but in 1736 the law in England changed to fines, or imprisonment, for people who claimed to be able to use magical powers.

The last witchcraft related trials in England were held in Leicester in 1717.

This drawing from 1692 shows a young woman accused of witchcraft calling on evil spirits to save her

In Wales, however there were actually very few witch trials with only five Welsh 'witches' being executed for their supposed crimes.

However there were still some cases, including the story of the Llanddona Witches. These were a boatload of men and women, all with Irish accents, who were washed up on the coast of Anglesey and were said to use charms and spells on farms belonging to the people living there.

The last witchcraft trial to take place in Northern Ireland happened in March 1711 and involved eight women in Islandmagee, County Antrim who were were put on trial and found guilty of witchcraft.