Preview

The Role Of Witchcraft In The Late Middle Ages

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
408 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
The Role Of Witchcraft In The Late Middle Ages
Witchcraft through pagan beliefs has been around for centuries, pre-dating Christianity and many mainstream religions. The most common concept, however, comes around when the Western world describes it as acts against God and therefore evil, associating it with the Devil and Devil worshipping. Witchcraft is feared and resorted to when events are unexplainable. In the Late Middle Ages, three main texts arose that laid a foundation for the extermination of witches, known as the Witchcraft Documents. This fear instilled in the documents started a flurry of witch hunts and unreasonable trials to eradicate witches and to keep the world pure, starting in the medieval Protestant Europe, the ever popular Salem witch trials in the late 1600s, and until they died down mid-1700s (Scarre & Callow 2001) and only happened sporadically. The wrongful persecution of Wiccans, other pagans, and even non-practicing innocent people occurred mainly because of the affiliation to Satanism, and contemporary witchcraft is still stigmatized to modern day. …show more content…
The treatise talks about the three elements of witchcraft, “the evil intentions of the witch, the help of the Devil, and the Permission of God.” (Russell 1972) The Malleus Maleficarium is prefaced with the Papal Bull of 1484 written by Innocent VIII, encouraging witch hunting because it was their duty as Christians. The third section of the book includes the details on detection of witches, how to conduct a step-by-step witch trial, and how to torture and execute
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Malleus Maleficarum Book Review
    • 1112 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Malleus Maleficarum Book Review

    Malleus Maleficarum Latin for “The Hammer of Witches” – Hexenhammer in German. A witch-hunt manual in 1486 was written by Heinrich Kramer. He was one of the (inquisitor of the Catholic Church) along with Jacob Sprenger. Sprenger is also often attributed as an author basically saying that witchcraft did exist. It was submitted to the University on May 9, 1487 for endorsement. In 1490 this book was banned by Pope Paul IV.…

    • 1112 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Salem Possessed: the Social Origins of Witchcraft
    • 472 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Salem Possessed: the Social Origins of Witchcraft

    The purpose of this book was to examine the history and social life of Salem Village to try to figure out what was the cause of the events that occurred there. I believe that the authors achieved their objective at least they did to me. Boyer and Nissenbaum's explanation for the outbreak of witchcraft accusations in Salem hinges on an understanding of the economic,…

    • 472 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    How Witches Were Misunderstood During the Elizabethan Era Essay Example
    • 1192 Words
    • 5 Pages

    How Witches Were Misunderstood During the Elizabethan Era Essay Example

    For hundreds of years, the word “witch” has been associated with innumerable negative images. Witches were considered devil worshipers who committed scores of evil deeds toward society. By the 14th Century, a law was passed outlawing any practice of witchcraft or sorcery; anyone in Europe accused of witchcraft was subject to the torture and execution. In the 1450’s there was a breakout of violent persecutions against people accused of being witches. “During this time more than 100,000 people (mostly woman) were killed for allegedly practicing witchcraft” (Kallen 33) . Witches were viewed by the public as dangerous and uncontrollable menaces to society. They were believed to have relationships with the devil, this relationship was developed because of the church demonizing the witches in the 1450’s. During this time, people lacked medical knowledge about sickness and disease. When the witches were healthy during many of these wide spread diseases, the people believed they were the ones that cursed everyone with it. The people believed that witches could curse people that they did not like. In the city, It was common for old beggars to be on the side of the street asking for change but when people refused to give the beggars coins, they would angrily curse at the passersby. If the people that the…

    • 1192 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Malleus Maleficarum: The Relation Between Witchcraft And Religion
    • 621 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The Malleus Maleficarum: The Relation Between Witchcraft And Religion

    During on a time when the Church was in control of everything with Europe and where people are a superstitious cowardly lot, the idea of magic and witchcraft was something the Church have condemned as the influential work of the devil. During the 15th century, accusation of witchcraft started to rise and some within or related to the Church were jumping on the chance to prosecute any accused witches. One of these early prosecutors was Heinrich Kramer, an inquisitor who as expelled due to his senile actions. He would later be joined by German bishop Jacob Sprenger to prosecute those in question of dealing in witchcraft. And in 1487, Kramer wrote a treatise called the Malleus Maleficarum which was about his belief in witchcraft and how to refute any claims against its existence. While many sections of the Bible and other written work are featured, many of these sections are missing key parts or were manipulated to generate more evidence in favor of the…

    • 621 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Salem Witch Trail Research Paper
    • 965 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Salem Witch Trail Research Paper

    Witchcraft is understood by being a religion that includes reverences for nature, and belief in rights of others and includes own spirituality. People that practice witch craft now focus on doing good things and helping others. They also refuse to be connected to the devil. Their beliefs go back to ancient times, long time before the advent of Christianity. In current culture witches have been confused with the belief they have black pointy hats, green faces with broom sticks. This is often how witches are portrayed in movies and…

    • 965 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The Three Puritan Children In 1692
    • 87 Words
    • 1 Page

    The Three Puritan Children In 1692

    When the three Puritan children in 1692 accused the neighborhood women of being witches and Salem got worried. The three girls got scared of telling the truth so the three girls started accusing the neighborhood woman. They went to court with fear. The women were so scared it was hard for them to confess. People started to realize that witches aren't real. Theirs was no proof that they are witches. People get hanged because of their fear. The whole thing started when the three girls weird behavior.…

    • 87 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Ap Euro Witchcraft Dbq
    • 1133 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Ap Euro Witchcraft Dbq

    (Many of the people who were persecuted as witches from the fifteenth to seventeenth centuries were those of a seemingly inferior mindset, those who are blamed for problems in the community and those who were social outcasts.) This time period occurred throughout the Protestant, Catholic and Scientific revolutions. The victims of the witch trials were usually persecuted in Europe as a whole however focused on areas like South Western Europe.…

    • 1133 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Salem Witch Trials Facts
    • 588 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Salem Witch Trials Facts

    The idea of witchcraft has been a controversial topic since the begging of time however, witchcraft became better known in 1692, with the begging of the Salem witch trials. Many stories have been written about the Salem witch trials. Some are found in journals, other stories are exaggerated from those journals. The comparison of historical facts and the play the Crucible are the perfect example of an exaggerated actual event.…

    • 588 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Role Of Vengeance In The Crucible By Arthur Miller
    • 530 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The Role Of Vengeance In The Crucible By Arthur Miller

    The salem witch trials took place in 1692, back then people believed almost everything they were told. When a well known reverend discovered his daughter, niece, slave, and a couple of girls from town dancing and singing in the woods, his first instinct was to rush over and confront the girls. When he got there the girls faked fainting to try and avoid getting in trouble, by doing so they made the reverend thing witchcraft was among them. He eminently falsely accused his salve for the girls odd behavior, he also summoned reverend Hale who was an “expert” in the field of witchcraft. By doing this reverend parris sealed many of the villagers fait with know, but only time would tell.…

    • 530 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Witch Hunt Research Paper
    • 270 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Witch Hunt Research Paper

    A Witch-Hunt, a search for persons labelled “Witches” or evidence of a witch, often involving moral panic or mass hysteria. Many witch hunts occurred before the “Salem’s witch hunts” in March 01, 1692; according to the website www.history.com. About eighty people throughout England’s Massachusetts Bay Colony were accused of practicing witchcraft; thirteen women and two men were executed in a witch-hunt that occurred throughout New England and lasted from 1645-1663. In the Ancient Near East, punishment for malevolent sorcery is addressed in the earliest law codes which were preserved; in both ancient Egypt and Babylonia, where it played a conspicuous part. In the classical period of witch hunts in early modern europe and colonial North America…

    • 270 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Witches Were Pag Witchcraft In The Middle Ages
    • 375 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Witches Were Pag Witchcraft In The Middle Ages

    This is the biggest misunderstanding about witchcraft in the Middle Ages. A lot of people who were persecuted as witches were devout Christians, but superstitions against their professions were what got them in trouble. Most often among these professions, midwives got into a lot of trouble. Before people gave birth at hospitals, you went to a midwife when you were pregnant. You can still visit midwives, but for women in the profession during the Middle Ages, a stillbirth could mean downfall. The myth that witches were pagan women who lived in the woods is a gross exaggeration. After all, Christian views and pagan views were very linked in faith until about the late Middle Ages when people were scared of being—well—burned…

    • 375 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Essay On Renaissance Witchcraft
    • 735 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Essay On Renaissance Witchcraft

    Witchcraft during the Renaissance opened new cognitive ideas about the supernatural for the people of that time. The printing press, one of the tools responsible for learning back then, was invented by a witch of the Renaissance; Johannes Gutenberg. With this new invention, books and bibles containing religion were printed. Because of this, it led to the witch trials of the 15th and 16th centuries. With the curiosity of the renaissance, astrology, alchemy, and magic became widely discussed and furthered these trials. To prevent witchcraft during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, the 1562 Elizabethan Witchcraft Act was passed.…

    • 735 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Wiccan Witchcraft
    • 1600 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Wiccan Witchcraft

    Witchcraft has most likely been around since the beginning of time as changed drastically since its creation and has molded into many new forms. The modern form of the controversial witchcraft is the neopagan religion, Wicca. Over the years, Wicca has spread and become popular all over the world. It is a neopagan religion and is a part of the New Religious Movement. It was founded by Gerald Gardner, and its followers, known as either Wiccans or witches, believe in a god/goddess pair,and the powers of nature and magic. It is often broken down into three forms or schools of Wicca; Gardnerian, Alexanderian and Farrarian Wicca. Occasionally crystals or other mystical objects may be used by Wiccans to receive magic. Wiccans cast spells and perform…

    • 1600 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Witch Dbq
    • 1092 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The Witch Dbq

    The witch craze in Europe lasted from the fifteenth century through the seventeenth century. Women were targets to persecution. Witchcraft had already been considered evil but religious conflicts from the Reformation started another uprising. People, women in particular, were being persecuted as witches for suspicious behavior, fear of the unknown and religious beliefs along with ignorance. People being suspicious and accusing of others was a main source for persecution.…

    • 1092 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Salem Witch Trial
    • 759 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Salem Witch Trial

    Throughout history there have been endless occurrences that involved the suspicion of witches. Perhaps the most notorious occurrence happened back in 17th century colonial Massachusetts, where the village of Salem was torn apart by the accusations of witchcraft. Many innocent women and men were accused, tried, and executed during the Salem Witch Trials based on the false beliefs surrounding such tests as the touch test, pressing, devil’s marks and other absurd methods of examination.…

    • 759 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More

Related Topics