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Welcome

 

 

George Knowles

(Man in Black)

A brief biography

I was born in Oldham, Lancashire, on the 24th July 1954.  Raised in a number of state childcare facilities, I was deprived of a parental upbringing due to the instability of the family unit.  As such from the age of three, I spent most of my early years being shunted around from one facility to another.  However my teen years were more settled, I was sent to a foster home in Blackpool (the famous holiday resort on the northwest coast of England), and there I thrived and thoroughly enjoyed myself.  Blackpool I consider my hometown and is where I frequently return. 

I was educated in standard Secondary Modern State Schools and had a particular propensity for Music, Art and History.  I left school as soon as I could sadly passing (against the advise of teachers) the opportunity of further collage education.  My main concern at the time was independence and freedom from the clutches of state control (see Photo Gallery).  

After leaving school I spent a few years educating myself in manly pursuits (Photo Gallery), before settling for a career in the Army aged 20.  I spent the next 11 years in the armed forces working as a musician playing Cornet, Trumpet and Euphonium (Photo Gallery).  As a civilian, I have worked mainly as a Licensee and Manager of Pubs, Clubs and Hotels (Photo Gallery).  In 1989, I set up my own business as a Driving Instructor and operated my own Driving School, before returning to the License Trade due to the recession in 1993.

Fed up with the fickle nature of the general public, I quit the license trade some years ago and moved into security industry, which allowed me the solitude and time to concentrate on my new interests, "Writing and Witchcraft".  My interest in writing started after buying my first computer, and soon after while researching an article for this website I became fascinated in the subjects of Paganism and Witchcraft.  I don’t follow any particular craft or tradition, but work quietly from home (called Pagan Place), as an Eclectic Solitary practitioner.  My craft name is Man in Black.

My dog "Ben"

"Ben" has been with me since 1989, my humble friend and companion.  In all that time we have never been apart.  Though he has just passed twelve, he is still full of life and mischief.  He has a peculiar "sticky-up-ear" which enhances his character and personality.

Sadly I have to report that at 0400 am two days after Christmas 2001, I let Ben out into my garden and despite searches by myself, neighbours, police and dog wardens, he has not been seen since.  After 13 years in my company he is sorely missed and in my thoughts often, though strangely whatever happened or wherever he be, I feel sure he is well and being looked after.  In the meantime life goes on, and would you believe my home has since been adopted by a green eyed black cat with a single white spot on her chest called 'Jenny'.  As with most felines  :-)  she was a little bossy and vocal initially, but since I put my foot down (and out) we now seem to be living in harmony, hehehe.  

 

Have a nice Day.

 

Site Contents - Links to all Pages

Home Page

A Universal Message

"Let there be peace in the world"

Where have all the flowers gone?

Personal Pages:

My Personal Page /  My Personal Photo Gallery  

 

Wicca & Witchcraft

Wicca/Witchcraft /  What is Wicca /  What is Magick

Traditional Wicca Writings:

Wiccan Rede /  Charge of the Goddess /  Charge of the God  /  The Three-Fold Law (includes The Law of Power and The Four Powers of the Magus) /  The Witches Chant /  The Witches Creed /  Descent of the Goddess /  Drawing Down the Moon /  The Great Rite Invocation /  Invocation of the Horned God /  The 13 Principles of Wiccan Belief

Correspondence Tables:  

Incense /  Candles /  Colours /  Magickal Days /  Stones and Gems /  Tools of a Witch  /  Elements and Elementals

Other Things of Interest:

Traditions Part 1  -  Alexandrian Wicca /  Aquarian Tabernacle Church (ATC) /  Ár Ndraíocht Féin (ADF) /  Blue Star Wicca /  British Traditional (Druidic Witchcraft) /  Celtic Wicca /  Ceremonial Magic /  Chaos Magic /  Church and School of Wicca /  Circle Sanctuary /  Covenant of the Goddess (COG) /  Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans (CUUPS) /  Cyber Wicca /  Dianic Wicca /  Eclectic Wicca /  Feri Wicca /

Traditions Part 2  -  Gardnerian Wicca /  Georgian Tradition /  Hereditary Witchcraft /  Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn (H.O.G.D.) /  Kitchen Witch (Hedge Witch) /  Minoan Brotherhood and Minoan Sisterhood Tradition /  Nordic Paganism /  Pagan Federation /  Pectic-Wita /  Seax-Wica /  Shamanism /  Solitary /  Strega /  Sylvan Tradition /  Vodoun or Voodoo /  Witches League of Public Awareness (WLPA) /

Gods and Goddesses (Greek Mythology) /  Other Gods & Deities /  Festivals (Sabbats & Full Moons) /  The Mythology of the Sabbats /  Free Web Graphics /  Links to Personal Friends & Resources /  Wicca/Witchcraft Resources /  What's a spell? /  Elements and Elementals /  My Personal Library /  Circle Casting and Sacred Space /  Pentagram - Pentacle /  Marks of a Witch /  The Witches Power /  The Witches Hat /  An esoteric guide to visiting London /  Satanism /  Pow-wow /  The Unitarian Universalist Association /  Numerology:  Part 1  /  Part 2  /  Part 3

Pagan Conferences and Witchy Events UK

Animals in Witchcraft (The Witches Familiar) /  Owl /  Fox /  Frog and Toads /  Serpent /  Pig /  Raven /  Stag /  Goat /  Wolf /  Horse /  Bat /  Mouse /  Cat / Spider /  Crow

In Worship of Trees - Myths and Lore,  For descriptions and correspondences of the thirteen sacred trees of Wicca/Witchcraft see the following trees:  Birch /  Rowan / Ash /  Alder /  Willow /  Hawthorn /  Oak /  Holly /  Hazel /  Vine /  Ivy /  Reed /  Elder.  Also see:  The Willow Tree (Folk Music).

 

Mystical Sacred Sites  -  Stonehenge /  Glastonbury Tor /  Malta - The Hypogeum of Hal Saflieni /  Avebury /  Cerne Abbas - The Chalk Giant /  Ireland - Newgrange /

 

A history of the Malleus Maleficarum:  includes:  Pope Innocent VIII  /  The papal Bull  /   The Malleus Maleficarum  /  An extract from the Malleus Maleficarum  /  The letter of approbation  /  Johann Nider’s Formicarius  /  Jacob Sprenger  /  Heinrich Kramer  /  Stefano Infessura  /  Montague Summers  /  The Waldenses  /  The Albigenses  /  The Hussites.

 

Contributing Author:

The Magic of Rocks and Stones  -  by Patricia Jean Martin

Stones - History, Myths and Lore /  Amethyst /  Aquamarine /  Aragonite /  Aventurine /  Black Tourmaline /  Bloodstone /  Carnelian /  Celestite /  Citrine /  Fluorite /  Hematite /  Labradorite /  Lapis Lazuli /  Malachite /  Moonstone /  Pyrite /  Quartz (Rock Crystal) /  Rose Quartz /  Selenite /  Seraphinite  / Smoky Quartz /  Sodalite

 

Wisdom:  

Knowledge vs Wisdom by Ardriana Cahill /  I Talk to the Trees /  The things I have learned  / Qoute's and things to ponder /  Awakening /  The Witch in You

Articles and Stories about Witchcraft:   

Murder by Witchcraft /  The Fairy Witch of Clonmel /  A Battleship, U-boat, and a Witch /  The Troll-Tear (A story for Children) /  Goody Hawkins - The Wise Goodwife /  The Story of Jack-O-Lantern /  The Murder of the Hammersmith Ghost /  Josephine Gray (The Infamous Black Widow) /  The Two Brothers - Light and Dark

Biographies

Witches, Pagans and other associated people.

Who are they and what did they do???

Abramelin the Mage /  Agrippa /  Albertus Magnus “Albert the Great” /  Aleister Crowley “The Great Beast” /  Alex Sanders "the King of the Witches” /  Alison Harlow /  Anodea Judith /  Anton Szandor LaVey  / Arnold Crowther /  Arthur Edward Waite /  Austin Osman Spare /  Biddy Early /  Bridget Cleary /  Carl Llewellyn Weschcke /  Cecil Hugh Williamson /  Charles Godfrey Leland /  Charles Walton /  Dion Fortune /  Doreen Valiente /  Edward Fitch /  Eleanor Ray Bone “Matriarch of British Witchcraft” /  Dr. John Dee and Edward Kelly /  Dr. Leo Louis Martello /  Eliphas Levi /  Fiona Horne /  Friedrich von Spee /  Francis Barrett /  Gerald B. Gardner /  Gavin and Yvonne Frost and the School and Church of Wicca /  Gwydion Pendderwen /  Helen Duncan /  Herman Slater "Horrible Herman" /  Israel Regardie /  James "Cunning" Murrell /  Janet Farrar & Gavin Bone /  Jessie Wicker Bell “Lady Sheba” /  John George Hohman /  John Gerard /  John Score /  Johannes Junius the Burgomaster of Bamberg /  Karl von Eckartshausen /  Laurie Cabot "the Official Witch of Salem" /  Margaret Alice Murray /  Margot Adler /  Marie Laveau the " Voodoo Queen of New Orleans" /  Matthew Hopkins “The Witch-Finder General” /  Monique Wilson the “Queen of the Witches” /  Montague Summers /  Nicholas Culpeper /  Nicholas Remy /  Old Dorothy Clutterbuck /  Old George Pickingill /   Pamela Colman-Smith /  Paracelsus /  Patricia Crowther /  Philip Emmons Isaac Bonewits /  Raymond Buckland /  Reginald Scot /  Robert Cochrane /  Robert ‘von Ranke’ Graves and "The White Goddess" /  Rosaleen Norton “The Witch of Kings Cross” /  Ross Nichols and The Order of Bards, Ovates & Druids /  Scott Cunningham /  Sir Francis Dashwood /  Sir James George Frazer /  S.L. MacGregor Mathers and the “Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn” /  Stewart Farrar /  Sybil Leek /  Ted Andrews /  The Mather Family - includes: Richard Mather, Increase Mather, Cotton Mather /  Thomas Ady /  Victor Henry Anderson /  Vivianne Crowley /  Walter Brown Gibson /  William Butler Yeats /  Zell-Ravenheart, Oberon & Morning Glory / Zsuzsanna Budapest

Old Masters of Academia

Pliny the Elder /  Hesiod /  Pythagoras 

Email_Witches

My online email discussion group:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Email_Witches

 

Dove of Peace

Help send a message of peace around the world!  The Dove of Peace flies from site to site, through as many countries as possible.  It does not belong to ANY belief system.  Please help make a line around the globe by taking it with you to your site, by giving it to someone for their site, by passing it on to another continent or to the conflict areas of the world.  May trouble and strife be vanquished in it's path.

 

 

 

 

 

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mailto:George@controverscial.com