The Witch Hunters

The witch hunting mania that swept through Western Europe during the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries may not have revealed the existence of supernatural demons, but it did generate an extraordinary array of human monsters.... the witch hunters! These were a righteous brotherhood that devoted itself to ferreting out suspected handmaidens of the devil. The bible of these macabre killers was the infamous Malleus Maleficarum or the Hammer of Witches. This was a book written by two fanatical Dominican priests and published in 1486. For the authors of this book no deceit was too devious, no torture too extreme to be used in pursuit of confessions. Neither was there any room for skepticism or moderation. The motto of the book was "Not to believe in Witchcraft is the greatest of heresies".

One of the most famous of the disciples of the Malleus was the French lawyer-philosopher Jean Bodin. Bodin was possibly the first to come up with a legal definition of Witchcraft "someone who, knowing Gods laws, tries to bring about some act through an agreement with the devil". He was hideously efficient in his prosecution of suspected witches. He personally tortured young children and invalids in the effort to extract confessions, and proclaimed that burning witches was far too quick a death (it took less than half an hour). In 1580 he wrote a book of his own called Demonomanie. This book was harsher and much more circumstantial than the Malleus, and was well received and widely read.

The most lethal of the witch hunters was Peter Binsfeld bishop of Trier Germany in 16th century. It is thought that he was responsible for the deaths of about 6,500 men, women and children. Very few voices were raised in opposition to the bloody business of witch hunting. One person, a Dutch scholar called Cornelius Loos, was so horrified by the enormity of Binsfeld's judicially sanctioned murders, that he protested in the name of humanity but was arrested and made to recant publicly.

Many of those condemned as witches really weren’t witches at all. If you were found to have a collection of herbs (mainly used for cooking) you would be accused of witchcraft. It would only take one person to accuse you of witchcraft and before you knew it you were being tired in a court of law where all those with something against you could have you condemned. In Salem Susanna Martin was accused and charged with bewitching her neighbor's oxen after a quarrel. Within only 7 months, 7 men and 13 women were executed, many on the testimony of ghosts and specters. Only those who refused to confess were killed.... those whom confessed to the charges against them were spared!

 Although there are still many misconceptions about witchcraft today, we do not run the risk of being burned at the stakes and tortured half to death. Aren’t we lucky?! Just spare a thought for all those poor people who unlike us were less fortunate.