Derfel Cadarn Posted April 1, 2011 England was at war with itself, a nervous tension gripped the people as King fought Parliament. As so often happens in these hard times, popular hysteria produced a figurehead. In this case, it was an unsuccessful lawyer from the small town of Manningtree, Matthew Hopkins, the self titled 'Witchfinder General'. The number of supposed witches put to death by Hopkins will never be know for certain, but it was probably in the region of 400 - more than a third of the total number executed in two centuries of English witch-hunting. He had 68 people put to death in the town of Bury St Edmunds alone, and 19 hanged at Chelmsford in one day. The name of the Witchfinder General is still remembered with horror, yet he did carry it out with the active co-operation of the local people. Very little is known of his early life, and his reign of terror only lasted 2 years. He was in his twenties when he carried out these acts, and a smart man, as he did everything within the law. The tortures usually consisting of 'running', 'swimming' and 'pricking'. If you ran a 70 year old woman up and down a street for a day they would confess to anything. Unlike popular belief, only one witch was burned, as it was death by hanging that was the main punishment. None of the supposed witches probably ever dabbled in witchcraft, but he would torture confessions from them, have them hanged, then collect the money and move to the next town. He claimed that he held 'the Devil's list of all English witches'. His popularity waned within a few years and he retired back to his home town. In a final twist to his story, he himself was accused of witchcraft and sentenced to be tortured and hanged, but he died in his sleep the night before from tuberculosis. A last reminder of his reign of terror was discovered in 1921. Two female skeletons were found, pinned into unmarked graves, and with iron rivits driven through their joints. Hopkins had made sure that these victims would not return from the grave. There's me thinking I was going to have a break from medieval type builds, then I get an offer asking weather I'd like to display a moc at my local town hall for an exhibition about witchcraft. Couldn't say no could I! Sorry for all the written work, here's the moc Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lightningtiger Posted April 1, 2011 AWESOME 'Derfel Cardarn', love those Tudor style buildings....but that poor girl - aw, another one falls prey of The Hammer Of Witches or the Malleus Maleficarum (only watching a show on Nat Geo today about it.....aw, omen ! ) Lovely greenery and pond, but if I may ask the two storey building with someone racking corn or something - what is that building ? In any case another fantastic creation of yours.....please don't stop and keep on hunting those witches 'Derfel Cardarn' ! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sirens-of-Titan Posted April 1, 2011 (edited) Derfel this is an excellent build! The buildings are incredibly detailed and the angled one adds to the feel of a dynamic medival city. I really love the water effects as well; you've really managed to give it a swampy/creek feeling. I really like the hay in the wagon and the guy with the pitchfork transferring it! Great use of the musketeer hat; that figure looks very intimidating indeed. The SNOT doors are very well done as well! Over all it's outstanding! :thumbup: Edited April 1, 2011 by Sirens-Of-Titan Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pedro Posted April 1, 2011 What an emotional scene Derfel - I really feel for those poor girls about to be hanged! The backdrop is superb; you use so many great techniques to construct your buildings, there's definately lots to inspire other builders (like me). I think your written introduction is great by the way, it really helps set the scene. Cheers for sharing this with us. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BrickClimber Posted April 1, 2011 Great work! I like your style in building these medieval houses. Also the swampy creek delighted me. The use of the dark green leafes is great. The only thing I'm missing were some frogs Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Scorpiox Posted April 1, 2011 The buildings are well designed and I like the gallows. You taught me something today Derfel Cardarn, a nice idea for a MOC! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Brickdoctor Posted April 1, 2011 Love the buildings. It's a Derfel Cadarn castle MOC, what else is there to say? 'Course, the landscaping and 'figs are great as well. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fuzzylegobricks Posted April 1, 2011 Really well done! Reminds me of the small towns in the show "The Tudors". Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Pandora Posted April 1, 2011 Yet another incredible MOC from you. It, like your others, is so detailed and beautifully designed, with this time a hint of the macabre and your now trademark wonderful Tudor buildings. The introduction, I found fascinating and informative, and a great way to set the scene. I always enjoy looking at your creations. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tazmaniac Posted April 1, 2011 I allways enjoy seeing your work, and this is no exception ! the fore story was well written and set the mood for the MOC below. I feel I'll forever be chasing the quality DC desplays in his builds. Top stuff again mate! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Admiral Croissant Posted April 1, 2011 Sorry for all the written work, here's the moc Sorry? Your MOC's are one of the few ones that are so good that I take the time to read the full story You keep your good reputation with this MOC. Actually I think this is one of the more interesting stories. Well done. And a wise choice not to show the faces of the dead wiches on the pictures (I believe there are no good dead faces, except for skulls). Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
XimenaPaulina Posted April 2, 2011 Wow another excellent creation Derfel! As always, looking at every inch of your highly-detailed build is very enjoyable. Outstanding work once again! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
maydayartist Posted April 2, 2011 Uhh that´s hard for the women, but the scenery and the houses are fantastic. They were exact what I need for my landscape ..... NEED!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CptMugwash Posted April 2, 2011 *Whipes drool from mouth* That...is...amazing! All of your work is fantastic and this is another great one So much detail, I love the little nooses and the story, awesome job! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
blueandwhite Posted April 3, 2011 Great work. One of the things that really draws me to your MOCs is the excellent back story you give to each one. Your buildings are once again perfect, and the scene itself is just fantastic. I like that you continue to use a rich assortment of earth tones in your work. While I'm not overly fond of the dark-green grass, it's nice to see some variety in this regard. Perhaps sand-green grass would be worth a try? Still, it's very hard to find real fault in a MOC such as this. Thank you again for sharing your work. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
flashfire Posted April 3, 2011 Your buildings are CRAZY good! I draw so much inspiration from your work. From the trees to the water details, it sows that every brick has a purpose in your overall plan. This scene in LEGO actually got me to feel bad for minifigs. If that doesn't let you know how well you captured a moment, I don't know what does. Congrats again on an expert level build. I'll be awaitng your next build, regardless of what theme it is in. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lalror Posted April 4, 2011 That is a darn good moc. You have really mastered the art of making beautiful scenes out of Lego. They are not only fun to look at, but the amount of detail keeps me staring for minutes on end. Great job, hope to see more! ~Lalror Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Derfel Cadarn Posted April 4, 2011 Thankyou for all your great comments everyone! Sorry? Your MOC's are one of the few ones that are so good that I take the time to read the full story You keep your good reputation with this MOC. Actually I think this is one of the more interesting stories. Well done. And a wise choice not to show the faces of the dead wiches on the pictures (I believe there are no good dead faces, except for skulls). I'm glad you picked up on the faces, that was my thought too. I was original going to have them faceless, but instead opted to turn them away from the camera. Great work. One of the things that really draws me to your MOCs is the excellent back story you give to each one. Your buildings are once again perfect, and the scene itself is just fantastic. I like that you continue to use a rich assortment of earth tones in your work. While I'm not overly fond of the dark-green grass, it's nice to see some variety in this regard. Perhaps sand-green grass would be worth a try? Still, it's very hard to find real fault in a MOC such as this. Thank you again for sharing your work. The choice of grass colour was mainly because this moc will be on display for a while and i didn't want to use many pieces that I regularly use. Plus i figured dark green isn't hardly used much for grass, so it would make a change an give the scene a darker tone. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
streifen Posted April 5, 2011 the tudor houses you have done up are just amazing! i did not read your story because i was busy admiring the houses!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cpt. Dan Posted April 6, 2011 Another incredible MOC. I really like how you use the studs to build structures, it gives them an excellent time appropriate feel. I love looking at all of these MOC's of yours, so much detail! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
henryhotspurs Posted April 12, 2011 A stunning depiction of a very dark time. You managed to elicit the emotion of that awful time in a simple yet informative manner. Breathtaking! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hoboman Posted April 28, 2011 I just want to echo what others have said. I think you did a good job in capturing both the moment and the times in this MOC. I also thought you did a good job in not allowing it to get to cartoonish for such a dark subject. You kept it clean and to the point. Your build was good as well, not to let it be overshadowed by the wonderful intro/subject exicution. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
