The witch craze in early modern Europe was a phenomenon that occurred between the 15th and 18th centuries. During this period, thousands of individuals, mostly women, were accused of practicing witchcraft and were subsequently persecuted and executed. The underlying belief was that witches had made a pact with the Devil and used supernatural powers to harm others. The witch hunts were fueled by various factors, including religious and social unrest, economic instability, and superstition. The Catholic Church played a significant role in spreading the fear of witchcraft, emphasizing the importance of eradicating these alleged practitioners. Accusations of witchcraft often arose from personal grievances or conflicts within communities.
Witches followed a distinct stereotype although we need to be careful not to limit our understanding of what a witch was by following only the stereotype. Witches were, in general, women. They were generally older women. They were more likely to be women without a particularly strong support network of friends or family. They were often women who seemed strange, created tensions or had personality traits that caused them to rub people the wrong way. Most importantly, they were suspected of doing harmful magic, probably over a period of some years. As the historian Christine Larner argued, women were not accused of being witches because they were women; they were accused because they acted like witches. In this way, witchcraft is a sex-related crime, but not a sex-specific crime.
Another step was the establishment of a link between witchcraft and heresy, a link that had not existed before the end of the 15 th century, which emerged thanks to a new theory of diabolical witchcraft that held that the practice of malefice such as using religious objects to curse one s neighbor in fact involved an active pact with the Devil and was therefore a heretical act and not just a ritual performed by misguided country folk. 9 Once he became King of England, he passed the Act of 1604, which made it a capital offense to kill or harm others through witchcraft, consult with evil spirits for any intent or purpose or dig up graves to use the dead bodies in witchcraft.
Accusations of witchcraft often arose from personal grievances or conflicts within communities. Suspicion could be aroused by unusual behavior, physical abnormalities, or simply being a social outcast. The accused would be subjected to various forms of interrogation and torture to extract confessions, often leading to false admissions.
The Witch Craze in Europe: A Talk by Professor Teofilo F. Ruiz
John Cabot University’s Department of History and Humanities welcomed Professor Teofilo F. Ruiz for a talk called The Witch Craze in Late Medieval and Early Modern Europe on November 5, 2019. The talk, moderated by History Professor Fabrizio Conti, traced the origins and nature of the witch craze in Western Europe in the late 15th, 16th and 17th centuries.
Professor Teofilo F. Ruiz – The Witch Craze
Witchcraft in Europe
In the late 15th century in Europe, over 80 thousand people were put to death because they were thought to practice witchcraft. They were predominantly elderly women from small villages, who were targeted, labeled as witches, and killed. The witch craze was not a widely spread phenomenon at the time, and it was mostly characteristic of Northern Europe. Witchcraft was believed to be a mix of malefic acts that aimed at pleasing Satan, and it implied a dualistic separation between God and the devil, and good and evil.
Professor Ruiz explained that the term witchcraft was often used to describe religions or beliefs that were not common, such as pre-Christian agricultural cults. When religious men traveled to rural and isolated areas to spread Christianity, they often encountered various kinds of believers and cults, which were mistaken for devil worshippers. Midwives were among the favorite targets because stillbirths were thought to be their way of sacrificing babies to the devil. Brewers were also often accused of practicing witchcraft, because their product intoxicated men and that was thought to make them more vulnerable to the devil’s work.
Summis Desiderantes, Malleus Maleficarum and Compendium Maleficarum
Numerous works have been written about witchcraft. In 1484, Pope Innocent VIII issued a papal bull called Summis desiderantes affectibus, which recognized the existence of witches, approved their persecution, and threatened those who failed to make the inquisitors’ job easier. This text is considered to have ushered in witch-hunts. In 1486, the Summis desiderantes affectibus was published as part of the preface to Heinrich Kraemer and Jakob Sprenger’s The Malleus Maleficarum, a treatise on witchcraft. An inquisitor and a friar respectively, Kraemer and Sprenger divided the text into 3 main sections that explain how to identify witchcraft, how to protect oneself from it, and how to prosecute the accused.
The witch craze began to spread widely before the Protestant Reformation of the church in the 16th century. Germany was the epicenter of witchcraft because that’s where the Reformation began. In Protestant cities, most of the people accused of witchcraft were Catholic, and in Catholic cities most of the accused were Protestant. The accusers were both male and female, and they were often related to the accused. Among the ways to recognize a witch, according to the beliefs of the time, were physical anomalies such as a third nipple, or marks given by the devil, which usually resembled animals, like bats. These marks were immune to pain and they were mostly found in the accused’s armpits or around their genitals.
In 1608, Italian priest Francesco Maria Guazzo published the Compendium Maleficarum, a witch-hunter’s manual that gives a detailed description of witches’ powers and practices. According to the Compendium Maleficarum, witches had to sign a blood pact with the devil and place it on a crossroads. They had to abjure and cast away their rosaries and religious objects, pay homage to the devil by changing their name, recruit followers and make sacrifices in the devil’s name. They were believed to take part in witch gatherings called Sabbat, where they ate human flesh, murdered children, and had orgies.
The Decline of Witch Hunts
Professor Ruiz concluded that around the 1660s, magic was beginning to be shunned and put to the side. Witch trials gradually diminished and eventually stopped completely. Some still believe in witchcraft, particularly in Africa and Latin America, but people are no longer persecuted and put to death.
Distinguished Professor & Robert and Dorothy Wellman Chair in Medieval History at the University of California, Los Angeles, Teofilo F. Ruiz has been teaching history for almost four decades. Born in Cuba, Professor Ruiz moved to the United States in 1961, and in 1974 he earned a Ph.D. in History from Princeton University. In 1995, Professor Ruiz was named “Outstanding Master’s Universities and Colleges Professor of the Year” by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, and in 2008 he received UCLA’s Distinguished Teacher Award. In February 2012, President Barack Obama awarded Professor Ruiz a National Humanities Medal. With over thirteen books and numerous articles, Professor Ruiz’s scholarship has been recognized with fellowships from Mellon, Guggenheim, and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH).
The witch craze began to spread widely before the Protestant Reformation of the church in the 16th century. Germany was the epicenter of witchcraft because that’s where the Reformation began. In Protestant cities, most of the people accused of witchcraft were Catholic, and in Catholic cities most of the accused were Protestant. The accusers were both male and female, and they were often related to the accused. Among the ways to recognize a witch, according to the beliefs of the time, were physical anomalies such as a third nipple, or marks given by the devil, which usually resembled animals, like bats. These marks were immune to pain and they were mostly found in the accused’s armpits or around their genitals.
The trials themselves were often biased, relying on hearsay and unsubstantiated evidence. Testimonies of witnesses, often obtained under duress, were taken as factual without question. The use of torture was widespread, leading many innocent individuals to admit to crimes they did not commit. The outcomes of these trials varied across Europe. In some areas, the accused were acquitted or faced minimal punishment, while in others, they were subjected to gruesome executions, such as burning at the stake. The severity of punishment often depended on the significance attributed to witchcraft in the particular location. The witch craze eventually began to decline in the late 17th and early 18th centuries due to a combination of factors. Enlightenment thinkers challenged the superstitious beliefs surrounding witchcraft, and advancements in science and reason began to overshadow the irrational fears associated with witches. Additionally, the state's centralization of power led to stricter regulations on witch trials and a decrease in the autonomy of local communities. The witch craze in early modern Europe left a legacy of fear and persecution. It is estimated that tens of thousands of people, mostly women, were accused and killed during this period. The ordeal served as a reminder of the dangerous consequences of mass hysteria and the potential for innocent lives to be destroyed in the name of religious fervor and societal paranoia..
Reviews for "The Influence of the Witch Craze on Art and Literature"
1. John Smith - 2/5 stars:
"The Witch Craze in Early Modern Europe" failed to provide a comprehensive analysis of the subject matter. While it briefly touched upon the social, religious, and political context of the time, the book lacked depth and coherence. The author seemed more interested in presenting a collection of anecdotes and sensational stories rather than delving into the underlying causes and implications of the witch trials. I was left wanting more substantial research and critical analysis.
2. Sarah Johnson - 1/5 stars:
I found "The Witch Craze in Early Modern Europe" to be highly disappointing. The author's writing style was dry and detached, making it difficult to engage with the material. Furthermore, the book seemed to lack any kind of structure or clear argument. It was simply a compilation of random information and anecdotes, without any real depth or analysis. I would not recommend this book to anyone looking for a comprehensive and scholarly examination of the witch trials.
3. Michael Thompson - 2/5 stars:
"The Witch Craze in Early Modern Europe" failed to live up to my expectations. While the book did provide a general overview of the witch trials, it lacked a critical analysis of the cultural and societal factors that contributed to the mass hysteria. The author relied too heavily on outdated and biased sources, which weakened the overall credibility of the work. Additionally, the lack of a clear argument or thesis made it difficult to follow the author's line of reasoning. Overall, I believe there are better books available on this subject.