In the history of the West, the 15th and 17th centuries are their highlight period, a period from obscurantism to wisdom. The Enlightenment, the Renaissance, the Reformation, and other great events have all appeared in these centuries. It can be said that this was a critical period for them to move from feudalism to civilization, but the catalyst that led them to civilization was also particularly cruel.
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Two of the most famous catalysts were the "Black Death" caused by the plague and the "witch hunt". In fact, these two things cannot be completely separated. The outbreak of the Black Death caused Europe to lose nearly two-fifths of their population within three centuries, but they had no idea why the outbreak was.
Therefore, some people blame the cause of the disease on the mysterious forces, and the wizards happen to be their catharsis. The Black Death is believed to have been brought about by wizards cursing the human world, and the black cat they conceive of as the wizard's standard is also considered to be satan's messenger, hunted and killed in a frenzy. Unbeknownst to them, they killed the real savior.
Of course, witch hunts were not just brought about by the Black Death. The witch trial actually began in Roman times, and hunting continued. However, there has been no large-scale hunting and killing, but it has occasionally occurred in the folk.
It was not until the time of Charlemagne in the 8th century that the popular panic about witchcraft was rekindled. During this period, large numbers of innocent people were tried and killed on trumped-up charges of "witchcraft." However, this is also a spontaneous act of the people, and the official, including the Holy See, has stopped such behavior.
Even in 785 AD, the Paderborn Council of the Kingdom of Charlemagne emphasized the prohibition of witch hunting and enacted laws. Anyone who calls themselves "witch hunters" should be put to death. And their king, Charlemagne, also openly spoke about witches, saying:
"Only a pagan would burn a man he considered a night witch, if he did... He will also be executed. ”
Officially, in the 8th century, the problem of witches was treated without acknowledging the existence of witches, nor was witchcraft recognized. Even in 1140 AD, The Western Pope Gregory VII amended the Canon law, which confirmed the nothingness of witchcraft and witchcraft. Later, in 1258 AD, pope Alexander IV also issued an edict prohibiting witch trials.
However, in various places, there are still many small-scale witch hunts. Whaley once said in his History of Germany and the Holy Roman Empire:
"Many lords simply ignored the church's commands, or did not convey them at all."
We can see that folklore grew so strong that church officials had to "obey the will of the people" and formally recognized the existence of witchcraft in 1480. But their attitude is also to prohibit the so-called "witch hunt", only occasionally a "witch trial".
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="135" > ii. Birth of The Witch's Hammer</h1>
Thus, before the 15th century, the so-called "witch hunts" were actually only sporadic. After all, on the surface, such behavior is prohibited. But things changed in 1485, when a common inquisition was held in Innsbruck Town Hall.
The person on trial was local resident Lenna Shuberlin, who was suspected of "witchcraft." The judges were experts in canon law and local parish assistants, the last of whom was the Pope-appointed Archdisctor of Religion.
The magistrate, perhaps mentally ill, kept silent during interrogation of the crimes involved in the suspects. Instead, he constantly asked Lenner about her virginity and her sex life, because he decided that witches were all lascivious people, and that as long as the suspect's chastity was problematic, she must be a witch.
Of course, such dementia would not be condoned in a noble court, and religious law experts at the time commented on the magistrate Reimer's law enforcement trial, accusing him of preconceived notions of violating the judicial process. Finally, the court decided to take the opinion of the religious law experts and acquitted the defendant, Leonard.
But the unwilling magistrate Clamer. After this trial, a book called The Witch's Hammer was written privately. The general content of the book is that all the troubles such as plagues and famines come from witches.
There are also some idiotic remarks about how to identify witches, how to eliminate witches, and so on. But it is such a book that can be called illogical, but it is unexpectedly widely circulated. From the first printing in 1486 until 1500, eight editions were published.
The book is undoubtedly Cramer's work of outrage, so its content is extremely inflammatory. As a literary work, the imagination and expressiveness of this book are very commendable. But the most damning thing is that the book was later believed to be true because it was widely circulated.
Even in 1532, the criminal law "Constitutio Criminalis Carolina" promulgated by Shinra really used the "Witch's Hammer" as a reference. The book also paved the way for later large-scale witch hunts, as it was first confirmed that witchcraft should be burned, and that the courts could torture prisoners to extract confessions.
Therefore, when the Black Death broke out later, the European people, who were already familiar with the Witch's Hammer, naturally blamed the source of the disease on the so-called witches. And because the law agrees to torture confessions, they have used all kinds of means to persecute innocent people.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="136" > conclusion</h1>
Of course, in fact, the core of the so-called witch trial has always been in the church. We can find that the period when the Church acknowledged the existence of witchcraft and witchcraft was in the 15th century, which was the period of the Reformation in Europe. The monopoly of religion by one church was often broken, and various religious currents began to rob believers.
Therefore, all parties can "hunt witches" as a means to proclaim their authority over that anomalous power, but also to assert their sovereignty over supernatural forces. In this way, more believers are attracted to the religion that trusts them, and the more serious the religious competition that emerges, the more the ideology of the witch hunt movement surges. At the end of the day, it's just a bunch of cults looking for sacrifices in order to win over their followers.