Transcript Witches Of Europe in the 1580-1700

Witches Of Europe in the
1580-1700
Merry Huang, Amanda Lai, Michelle
Egger, Kayla Donaldson
Thesis
During the 16th to 18th century a huge spike
and eventual decline in witch hunts and
trials occurred because of lack of education,
economic gain for others, and new religious
awareness; although an inevitable
downward trend emerged due to a new
understanding of the world, enactment of
witchcraft acts, and secularization in
society.
Rise: Lack of Education
Weather, nature forces
Entertainment
Little desire
Spread – books
Social economic conflict
http://www.scrollpublishing.com/store/media/1500s-Europe-01.jpg
Rise: Economic Gain
Peasants, middle class
Witch hunt jobs
Social disruption
Witch craft advantage
http://www.profilehomes.com/images/0496_smallholdings-with-barns-land-for-salecarmarthen-west-wales_00vfu-wpl.jpg
Rise: Religious Awareness
Kings James I –
Daemonologie
Lutheran doctrinal
changes
Martin Del Rio – Jesuit
Suppress popular folk
magic
Confessionalism –
Catholic belief and
movement
http://www.miltonhistory.org/St_Josephs_Catholic_Church.jpg
Quote from The Witch Bull
“…give themselves over to devils male and female, and by their incantations,
charms, and conjurings, and by other abominable superstitions and sortileges,
offences, crimes, and misdeeds, ruin and cause to perish the offspring of
women, the foal of animals, the products of the earth, the grapes of vines, and
the fruits of trees, as well as men and women, cattle and flocks and herds and
animals of every kind, vineyards also and orchards, meadows, pastures,
harvests, grains and other fruits of the earth; that they afflict and torture with
dire pains and anguish, both internal and external, these men, women, cattle,
flocks, herds, and animals, and hinder men from begetting and women from
conceiving, and prevent all consummation of marriage; that, moreover, they
deny with sacrilegious lips the faith they received in holy baptism; and that, at
the instigation of the enemy of mankind, they do not fear to commit and
perpetrate many other abominable offences and crimes, at the risk of their own
souls, to the insult of the divine majesty and to the pernicious example and
scandal of multitudes.”
! Black Mass !
During the mass they act as his servers, chanting in g ruff,
harsh, and tuneless voices. The Devil recites the Mass
from the missal and preaches a sermon in which he says
that they are not openly to acknowledge their belief in any
other god than him, assuring them that it is he who will
save and take them to paradise.
-Salazar Documents
http://books.google.com/books?id=DRWGZKmbwh8C&pg=PA120&lpg=PA120&dq=black+mass+%2B+persecution
+of+witches&source=web&ots=yhwRHgyIw&sig=i3PlgImhL7eD8NnEIssBFAdpOrg&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=3&ct=result#PPA120,M
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Decline: New Understanding of the
World
Schools/universities
Literates
Medical science
Anatomy
Reasonable
explanations
http://www.concierge.com/images/destinations/destinati
onguide/europe/scotland/glasgow/glasgow/glasgow_005
p.jpg
Decline: Acts/Edicts
Kramer’s Hammer of Witches
inaccurately represents
Inquisition
La Suprema issues “Edict of
silence”
Witchcraft act of 1735 – witch
craft no longer legal offence
^ act targets fakes
Austria, France, Poland ends
witch hunts
http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i166/turtlefreak125377/lo
l-18.jpg
Decline: Secularization in
Society
Dedication to state
becomes more important
than religion
Europe’s rulers no longer
need scapegoats to blame
Social institutions are
autonomous and
secularized
Return to old legal
traditions
New image of women no
longer fit witch stereotype
http://www.historyforkids.org/learn/northamerica/before
1500/economy/pictures/farming.jpg
Conclusion
The persecution of others has occurred for thousands of years,
but from 1580 to 1750 a huge spike could be seen in the sheer number
and brutality of the cases, trials, and hunts. Many historians agree that
the rise in witchcraft can be attributed to religious change, the
uninformed nature of the public and the greed of common townsfolk,
while the decline can be credited to a better education in society,
legislation against witchcraft persecution, and secularization in culture.
At the time of the trials most of the public truly believed they were
doing the right thing by exterminating the witches, but now as a
culture looking back, it is a part of the past that most would like to
forget, and all want to prevent from ever happening again in our
modern world.