The White Witch, a historical novel brings to life the times of Charles I and the English Civil Wars of the 1640s. The history is accurate regarding the conflict between the Cavaliers and the Roundheads and Ms Goudge makes the period come alive.
It is the struggle between the evil and good of a dark witch and a white witch in old England. These witches are really almost ordinary women caught in the times they live in where the dark witch is old and filled with the dark thoughts that life can bring while the white witch looks towards the light. There is a struggle between their forces which one can see as how life is without understanding and reaching out between people. Elizabeth Goudge wrote with that wonderful sense that gives you the taste, touch, feel, and vision of how things must have been.
"The White Witch" is like an onion; there are so many levels to the story. The uppermost involves the English civil war between Charles II and the newly developed Puritans, Catholics and Protestants and how the new religion affects one particular family. Robert Haselwood turns to the Protestants due to his relationship with one of the leaders - this causes conflict in his family, who enjoyed the lavishness of living under the rule of Charles II.
One member of the his family has a background in the gypsies and this is a different "skin" - Froniga tries to live her life suspended between the two cultures. Her gypsy background is at "war" with her gorgio background and this affects her dealings with members of both families. Two men, both working for the king, drift in and out of the lives of the Haselwoods and Froniga, and each other.
England
