religions, Jewish and Pagan, to the Kingdom of Satan, this is shown through the illustration of Satan, a
new creation as there was no standard image of the Devil in medieval art. Many of the features newly
assigned to the Devil were originally those of pagan Gods, for example; the goatee, the cloven feet, the horns, and the wrinkled skin 4.
This connection between the perceived increase in Satan’s power and the first witchcraft trials in the 15th Century indicates the influence of religion on the witch-craze in Early Modern Europe. The Devil was represented as the anti-type of God the Father and the source and object of false religion. This was supported in the Ten Commandments, the first one being the prohibition of the worshipping of false Gods. John Bossy has argued that the promotion of this new moral system, which all Catholics and Protestants would eventually adopt that the time of the Reformation, contributed to the transformation of the crime of witchcraft from that of maleficium to that of Devil Worship5.
The Reformation has been labelled as a catalyst for the witch-craze. This clash between institutional Catholicism and emergent Protestantism contributed to the collapse of a stable world view, which eventually led to panic and hyper-suspiciousness on both sides, it was a return not only to the unforgettable century of the apostles but also to the unedifying centuries of the Hebrew King 6. This could explain why those countries in which the Catholic Church was weakest experienced the highest rate of witch trials. During the age of the Reformation, Europeans increased their awareness of the Devil’s presence in the world and became more determined to wage war against him7. It appears that despite the split between Catholicism and Protestants they both showed a preoccupation with demonic power in the 16th and 17th Centuries. To many Catholic reformers the Devil became increasingly frightening, it was claimed by Catholics that the rise of Protestantism itself was the work of Satan, this made them more aware of his capacity for bringing evil of all types into the world 8.
A second effect of the Reformation on witchcraft arose from the emphasis on personal piety and sanctity from both Protestant and Catholic reformers. As a result of this pursuit of salvation there was a huge psychological effect which bought with it a deep sense of sin. When people experienced this type of guilt they naturally sought to relieve it in any way possible, and one of the methods frequently used was to transfer it to another person 9. This can clearly be seen in the social structures of rural and urban life, witch accusations were frequently made against neighbours, friends and even family members.
Throughout the witch-craze in Early Modern Europe there were huge economic transformations. The Black Death, the wars of the 15th Century and the arrival of syphilis at the end of the 15th Century had huge economic implications and have shown to be a catalyst for witch trials. The idea that witches could cause disease was fuelled by the outbreak of syphilis at the end of the 15th Century. The major epidemics of syphilis in Europe coincided largely with the witch-craze during the 16th and 17th centuries; Stanislav Anreski claimed that the disease itself was largely responsible for the persecution of witches; he even suggested that syphilis, in its advanced form, could cause the physical characteristics of the witch image 10. This argument is supported by evidence showing that witch hunting coincided geographically as well as chronologically with the syphilis epidemics.
The Black Death and the wars of the 15th Century killed more men than women. There were visibly more women than men. Such demographic transformations led to changes within the family structure creating many more unattached women, namely spinsters and widows who were not under the control of fathers of husbands 11. There is reason to believe that this single status contributed at least indirectly to their plight. In a patriarchal society, the existence of women who were subject to neither father nor husband was an increasing source of concern, if not fear and it is not unreasonable to assume that both the neighbours who accused such women and the authorities who prosecuted them were responding to such fears 12.
The Renaissance was another important economic transformation that influenced the witch-craze in Early Modern Europe. Initially it threatened the learned concept of witchcraft, it encourages a general contempt for medieval learning, especially scholasticism and since witch beliefs were a part of this they became highly vulnerable to criticism. The most important challenge to witchcraft was the suggestion that man could perform magic himself by exploiting natural forces in the universe; in theory this should
have counteracted the idea that witches were deviants from the social norm. However, the Renaissance
ultimately failed to end the witch craze as it did not succeed in achieving a dominant position in European intellectual circles and was never able to change the mind-set generation circles of lawyers
and clerics. It also failed to deny the existence of the Devil and the efficacy of magic13.
The production of Malleus Maleficarum climaxed a sustained investigation into witchcraft during the 15th Century. There were at least a dozen treatises composed on the subject, they all concluded that witchcraft was “the vilest, most evil, and worst” of all mysterious arts14. According to Ben-Yehuda, “It was to become the most influential and widely used handbook on witchcraft. ... Its enormous influence was practically guaranteed, owing not only to its authoritative appearance but also to its extremely wide distribution. It was one of the first books to be printed on the recently invented printing press and appeared in no fewer than 20 editions. ... The moral backing had been provided for a horrible, endless march of suffering, torture, and human disgrace inflicted on thousands of victims” 15.
The acceptance of the idea of witchcraft was sustained by many factors, the most significant being a firm conviction that the Devil had gained extraordinary powers, without this belief witches would never have been regarded as anything more than superstitious peasants. However, the question that remains is why did the men who formulated and then dismissed learned witch-beliefs come to the conclusion that Satan’s power was so pervasive and so frightening? There are many factors that help to answer this question, some have been discussed above. However one factor remains; the fear of rebellion, sedition and disorder that beset members of the upper classes during these years16. It is no coincidence that the earliest descriptions of the witches appeared when Europe was experiencing a wave of social rebellions in the late 14th Century, nor is it any coincidence that the learned belief in organised witchcraft spread through Europe during a period of profound instability and chronic rebellion. The years surrounding the witch-craze were frequented by popular rebellion throughout Europe. These disturbances terrified members of the ruling classes throughout Europe and these fears were reflected in the imagery of witches17.
In conclusion it appears that on all sides the myth was built up and sustained. Within this there were local differences, as well as differences of time, jurisdiction and procedure. A strong central government would have been able to control the craze while popular liberty let it run wild. The centralised Inquisition in Spain or Italy kept down its production by monopolising persecution, while north of the Alps the free competition of bishops bought on by the Reformation kept the panic alive.
During the 16th Century it appeared that the myth was contained, however it remained at the bottom of society and as long as the social and intellectual structure of which it was a part of remained intact, any future social fear was likely to revive it. In order for the witch-craze to disintegrate the whole intellectual and social structure surrounding it had to be broken, this was done in the 17th Century, however, society would always create new stereotypes and scapegoats.
Word Count: 1852
Sources Used:
Ben-Yehuda, N, The European Witch-Craze of the 16th and 17th Centuries in ‘Moral Panics’ 114-184 (1994)
Bossy, J. ‘Moral Arithmetic: Seven Sins into Ten Commandments’, in Conscience and Casuistry in Early Modern Europe. (Cambridge, 1988).
Kors, A.C. Witchcraft in Europe 1100 – 1700 (London: Dent 1973)
Levack, B. The Witch-hunt in Early Modern Europe (London: Longman 1987)
Monter, E.W. European Witchcraft (New York: Wiley 1969)
Quaife, G.R. Godly Zeal & Furious Rage (London: Croom & Helm 1987)
Rosen, B. Witchcraft in England 1558-1618 (New York : Taplinger, 1972)
Trevor-Roper, H.R. The European Witch Craze of the 16th and 17th Centuries (Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1969)
Sharpe, J.A. Witchcraft in Early Modern England. (Harlow: Longman 2001)
Waite, G.K. Heresy, Magic and Witchcraft in Early Modern Europe (Basingstoke : Palgrave Macmillan, 2003)