Non-fiction: Lives of the Necromancers; or, An Account of the Most Eminent Persons in Every Age and Country Who Have Undertaken to Investigate the Secrets of the Invisible World

Overview

William Godwin surveys the history of magic, witchcraft and occult practice from antiquity through the modern age, tracing how societies have conceived of and sought to manipulate the invisible world. He assembles biographical sketches of legendary and historical figures commonly labeled "necromancers, " combining anecdote, citation and philosophical reflection. The narrative moves between classical legend, medieval lore, Renaissance esotericism and contemporary charlatanism to show a continuous human fascination with secret knowledge and supernatural power.
Godwin writes from a skeptical, Enlightenment-minded perspective that nevertheless respects the cultural force of belief. He treats many celebrated episodes as products of imagination, error or deliberate fraud while probing why such stories persist and what they reveal about human desires, fears and institutions. The result is both a catalogue of curious lives and a sustained inquiry into credulity and authority.

Scope and method

The work blends biography, historical summary and moral commentary. Godwin collects a wide range of sources, ancient historians, medieval chronicles, Renaissance memoirs and contemporary reports, often quoting or paraphrasing colorful passages and then subjecting them to critical examination. He is attentive to coincidences of biography and legend, to the rhetorical function of miracle stories, and to the ways political and religious agendas amplify or suppress occult narratives.
Rather than offering a chronological treatise of occult doctrines, Godwin privileges vivid portraits and memorable episodes that illustrate recurring patterns: the magician who promises forbidden knowledge, the crowd that longs for marvels, and the institutions that reward or punish displays of occult power. He frequently contrasts well-documented frauds with the genuine mystery of human psychology and social circumstance.

Representative figures and episodes

Godwin ranges widely: classical figures such as Simon Magus and Apollonius of Tyana sit beside medieval prophets and the legendary Merlin, while Renaissance magi and natural philosophers such as Agrippa, Paracelsus and John Dee receive close attention. He moves forward to discuss more recent practitioners and pretenders, fortune-tellers, mesmerists and exotic self-styled adepts like Cagliostro, showing how new languages of science, religion and publicity shaped the market for marvels.
Rather than treating names as uniformly admirable or contemptible, Godwin teases out complexities. Some figures are seen as earnest experimenters caught in an age with imperfect instruments and vocabulary; others are clearly opportunists exploiting credulous patrons. Many accounts mix genuine intellectual curiosity with theatrical showmanship, illustrating the porous boundary between inquiry and deceit.

Themes and arguments

Central themes include the persistence of superstition despite growing scientific explanation, the social utility of wonder, and the moral costs of credulity. Godwin argues that fear, vanity and the desire for control over mortality drive belief in necromancy and related arts. He links supernatural claims to political and religious power, noting how rulers and clergy either encouraged marvels to legitimize authority or condemned them when inconvenient.
Another running argument is that appearances of magic often mask natural causes or psychological dynamics. Godwin is interested in how testimony, rumour and theatricality conspire to manufacture reputation. He is also concerned with the ethical dimension: how deception harms individuals and communities, and how the hunger for hidden knowledge can be both an engine of progress and a route to exploitation.

Style and reception

Godwin writes with wit, literary flair and a didactic edge. His prose alternates brisk sceptical commentary with evocative retellings of strange events, making the narrative engaging for readers attracted to both anecdote and philosophy. Contemporary readers found the book entertaining and provocative; later critics have noted its historical value as a compendium of occult lore filtered through a rationalist sensibility.
The work endures as a lively cultural history of superstition and as a reflective meditation on why mystery retains such sway over human imagination, even as empirical knowledge expands.