The History of Witchcraft

Explore the dramatic witch trials of 1597 in Scotland, where societal fears led to the execution of innocent individuals like Catherine Ferries and Margaret Aitken. Delve into the judicial manipulation that marked Aitken's downfall and King James's intensifying influence on these trials. Discover how the intertwining of political power and witch hunts reflected the era's anxieties, fueled by religion and superstition. This captivating narrative unravels the complexities of a community haunted by whispers of witchcraft.

The North Berwick Witch Hunt | The Exile of Earl Bothwell | Newes from Scotland Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The bloodsoaked early years of James VI's reign Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

James VI of Scotland had one hell of a tough time getting married... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Many of the witch hunters at the head of the worst trials were convinced of the existence of the Witches' Sabbat, a blasphemous gathering of sorcerers that met with the Devil, took part in demonic orgies, and planned their terrible crimes. Suspected witches were tortured into admitting they attended these sabbats, and then were tortured into naming the people they had seen there. The idea of the sabbat gave inquisitors a reason to expect that their witches knew each other, and their torture confirmed it.But the fact is the Witches' Sabbat did not exist. The events described at the sabbat were identical to claims levelled at Muslims, heretics, and the Jews, and in many cases the term 'Synagogue of Satan' was used to link the crimes of the Jews to the crimes of the witches.We also take a look at two methods, other than torture, of discovering whether someone was truly guilty of witchcraft; the trial by water, and the pricking.This episode primarily made use of the following texts, among others:Ankerloo, Bengt and Clark, Stuart (eds.) Witchcraft and Magic in Europe: The Period of the Witch Trials, Philadelphia, 2002Oldridge, Darren, (ed.) The Witchcraft Reader, London, 2002Erik Midelfort, H. C. Witch Hunting in Southwestern Germany 1562-1684, Stanford, 1972MacFarlane, Alan, Witchcraft in Tudor and Stuart England, London, 1970 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The deadliest trials of the Early Modern Period were also the ones with the greatest number of young victims. Children as young as seven are recorded as being tortured and executed for the crime of witchcraft. Fleeing the city was not enough; extradition was actively sought for those suspected of the crime, and it was often granted. Prince-Bishop Phillip Adolf von Ehrenberg, the 'Iron Bishop', led the charge, not even sparing his young nephew from the stake. Truly, Würzburg epitomises the worst with the witch panics of this period. This episode primarily made use of the following texts, among others:Constitutio Criminalis Carolina (1530)Del Rio, Martin, Disquisitiones Magicae, (1599)Weyer, Johann, De Praestigiis Daemonum (1563)Spee, Friedrich, Cautio Criminalis (1531)Remy, Nicholas, Demonolatry (1595)Oldridge, Darren, (ed.) The Witchcraft Reader, London, 2002Midelfort, H. C. Erik, Witch Hunting in South-Western Germany, 1972Barry, Jonathan and Davies, Owen, Palgrave Advances in Witchcraft Historiography, 2007 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode, we examine two of the more brutal and violent witch panics in all of European history; Fulda between 1602 and 1606, and Bamberg, between 1626 and 1632. Both ruled by Catholic clergy-lords, one a Prince-Abbot and the other a Prince-Bishop, they reigned over substantial territories, and their word was law. So when they began trials against suspected witches, they rapidly escalated to every part of society. No one was safe.This episode primarily made use of the following texts, among others:Constitutio Criminalis Carolina (1530)Del Rio, Martin, Disquisitiones Magicae, (1599)Weyer, Johann, De Praestigiis Daemonum (1563)Spee, Friedrich, Cautio Criminalis (1531)Remy, Nicholas, Demonolatry (1595)Oldridge, Darren, (ed.) The Witchcraft Reader, London, 2002Midelfort, H. C. Erik, Witch Hunting in South-Western Germany, 1972Barry, Jonathan and Davies, Owen, Palgrave Advances in Witchcraft Historiography, 2007 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Here we begin with the events themselves. Today we look at a case of slander in Rothenburg ob de Tauber, which ended relatively peacefully and no one was burnt as a witch, and then contrast it with the Trier Witch Trials, which were not at all peaceful and involved hundreds of people being burnt as witches. I do love a good contrast! This episode primarily made use of the following texts, among others:Constitutio Criminalis Carolina (1530)Del Rio, Martin, Disquisitiones Magicae, (1599)Weyer, Johann, De Praestigiis Daemonum (1563)Spee, Friedrich, Cautio Criminalis (1531)Remy, Nicholas, Demonolatry (1595)Oldridge, Darren, (ed.) The Witchcraft Reader, London, 2002Midelfort, H. C. Erik, Witch Hunting in South-Western Germany, 1972Barry, Jonathan and Davies, Owen, Palgrave Advances in Witchcraft Historiography, 2007 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The witch trials of the 16th and 17th centuries are, by far, the reason for many of the stereotypes of witchcraft. The belief in witch cults was rife throughout the educated classes of Christendom, and when combined with the desperate anger of starving peasants and townsfolk these beliefs spread fire and destruction on an unprecedented scale. This is the Century of Fire, when innumerable men, women, and children were burnt at the stake, bishops celebrated their newly-enforced orthodoxy, and executioners profited.This episode will explain the background of these events, and covers what I have found to be the most convincing explanations for why these trials happened. This episode primarily made use of the following texts, among others:Constitutio Criminalis Carolina (1530)Del Rio, Martin, Disquisitiones Magicae, (1599)Weyer, Johann, De Praestigiis Daemonum (1563)Spee, Friedrich, Cautio Criminalis (1531)Remy, Nicholas, Demonolatry (1595)Oldridge, Darren, (ed.) The Witchcraft Reader, London, 2002Midelfort, H. C. Erik, Witch Hunting in South-Western Germany, 1972Barry, Jonathan and Davies, Owen, Palgrave Advances in Witchcraft Historiography, 2007 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Malleus Maleficarum, the 'Hammer of the Witches', was the lifes work of Papal Inquisitor Henricus Institoris, who held a particular hatred of witchcraft and those who practiced it. For him, witchcraft was the fruit of female sexuality and the corrupting influence of the Devil, only occasionally finding men guilty of the crime. His work was either a seminal work on witchcraft theory, or a fabricated mess worth barely any mention, depending on who you ask. This episode primarily made use of the following texts, among others: Henricus Institoris and Jacob Sprenger, Malleus Maleficarum, (1487) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices