Witch hunts in the 1600's to 1800's

Witch hunts in the 1600's to the 1800's

Beginning of the 1600's

English 11

Numbers of Witches condemned!

Many Europeans believed that witches , as well as performing harmful magic, also worshiped the devil. Many believed that they made face-to-face pacts where made with the devil. Witches who did make pacts with the devil came together to do obscene rituals.

In Wurtzburg they had 1900 lives within a 5 year span. Benedict Carpzov claimed to have had sentenced 20,000 devil worshippers. But most of the records of how many people killed in Europe were lost. Over 200 people were killed in the US including Salem and many of the bordering towns, 19 hanged in Salem and 17 died in the jail waiting trial.

Before everyone knew about Witches

Until there was a lot of with hunts going on everyone didn't understand why successful healers where considered evil people. Many people who people who considered themselves healers said that they are doing a good deed to man kind and to beast, and they said that God taught them how to heal. Churchmen considered successful women healers were the most evil of all the witches. The greek and latin word for medicine both mean magic and drugs which is probably where they got the superstition that medicine is linked to witches. Just having possesions of herbs they whould accuse you of being a witch.

Witch Hunts

Witch hunts were an eruption of the Orthodox church vilification of women which stated that they were the weaker vessel. Because the female sex is more concerned with the things of the flesh than men. Women are also said to be imperfect women because they were formed from the rib of a man. Witch hunts also demonstrated the great fear of the female sexuality. In a book to understand persecuting witches it said that they collect male organs and put them in a birds nest.

Christians and Witches

Many things known about witchcraft was invented by the christians but most of what we know was combined with older tradition of witchcraft. Witchcraft was also believed to be linked with divination which means not only telling the future but also the knowledge of by of supernatural power. Christians believed that witchcraft had to do with the Devil because God was no longer to be involved with physical world. The word witch comes from the old english words of wicce and wicca meaning male and female participation of the old traditions.

photo credit Nasa / Goddard Space Flight Center / Reto Stöckli

Witch executions!

Every Sunday a witch would be executed during the 14th century. It took the church a long time to get everyone to believe that women were susceptible to evil witchcraft and devil worship. there were many things to tell you if someone was a witch such as warts, freckles, and birthmarks. If a witch did not die during torture they were taken to the stake, and so they don't talk to the crowd, since they were in the middle a public place, they were gagged or even had their tongue cut out. A witch would be burnt upon first conviction. Since everyone was getting to know what witches are they were blamed for everything