Demonology and Demonologists - Scholastics and Inquisitors - Foundations of the Witch Trials

Summary

In this episode of 'Esoterica,' Dr. Justin Sledge delves into the origins of demonological literature and its impact on the witch trials of early modern Europe. He traces the evolution of Christian theology and jurisprudence that led to the persecution of thousands, primarily women, between 1450 and 1650. Beginning with Augustine's views on magic and heresy, the series explores seminal texts like the 'Directorium Inquisitorum' and the 'Malleus Maleficarum,' examining how they shaped the concept of witches as heretics. The episode also touches on the role of the Dominicans and the influence of misogyny in the development of witchcraft accusations.

Takeaways

• 📚 The speaker's interest in esotericism was sparked by reading Edgar Allan Poe's 'The Fall of the House of Usher' and its references to occult texts.
• 🔮 The 'Directorium Inquisitorum' by Emeric de Gironne is highlighted as a particularly influential text that blurred the lines between sanity and blasphemy.
• 🏛️ The series aims to explore the history and development of demonological literature, focusing on the interplay between humans and metaphysical evil.
• 📉 The witch trials in early modern Europe, which led to the deaths of 40,000 to 60,000 people, were not spontaneous but resulted from theological and legal developments.
• ✝️ Early Christianity viewed itself as engaged in a struggle against satanic evil, with Jesus often associated with exorcisms.
• 📖 The 'Decretum' of Gratian, a foundational text of canon law, influenced the approach to magic and heresy in the medieval church.
• 🧙‍♂️ The trial of Dame Alice Kittle in 1324 in Ireland is noted as an early case that foreshadowed later witch trials and the blending of secular and sacred law.
• 📜 The 'Directorium Inquisitorum' by Nicholas Eymeric introduced the idea that practicing magic could be considered heresy, leading to inquisition and potential execution.
• 🏫 The condemnation of necromancy at the University of Paris in 1398 reflects the church's stance against learned occult practices.
• 📝 The 'Formicarius' by Johannes Nider is identified as a key text that helped shape the concept of a demonic conspiracy against Christianity.

Q & A

What sparked the initial interest in esotericism for the speaker?

The speaker's interest in esotericism was sparked by various factors, including television shows about mysterious topics, a sense of the surreal oddness of the world, and a specific memory of reading Edgar Allan Poe's 'The Fall of the House of Usher' in middle school.

What is the 'Directorium Inquisitorum' mentioned in the script?

The 'Directorium Inquisitorum' is a historical text mentioned in Poe's story, which the speaker recalls as having a profound impact on their interest in esotericism. It is a manual used by the inquisition to root out and destroy heresy.

How did the concept of the witch evolve in Christian theology?

The concept of the witch evolved in Christian theology through centuries of theological and juridical developments, influenced by texts like the 'Decretum' of Gratian and the 'Directorium Inquisitorum', which linked the practice of magic with heresy.

What is the significance of the 'Canon Episcopy' in the context of early Christian attitudes towards magic?

The 'Canon Episcopy' is significant as it predates the 'Decretum' and reflects attitudes towards magic and pagan practices during the early years of the Holy Roman Empire. It urged bishops to eradicate magic and divination practices through expulsion and admonition rather than torture or killing.

What is the connection between the 'Canon Episcopy' and the development of the witch trials?

The 'Canon Episcopy' dismissed the idea of actual physical travel during witchcraft practices, considering it a demonic delusion. This stance would later be challenged by demonologists who insisted on the reality of the flight to the sabbath, which became a key element in the witch trials.

How did Saint Thomas Aquinas contribute to the theological understanding of magic?

Saint Thomas Aquinas contributed by attempting to logically deduce that demons alone could be responsible for the magic of sorcerers. He argued that incantations could not have direct effects on nature and that demons served as the efficient cause in magical acts.

What was the significance of the 1324 trial of Dame Alice Kittle in the history of witch trials?

The trial of Dame Alice Kittle was significant as it set a precedent in the relationship between secular and sacred law, making future prosecutions easier. It also foreshadowed the mass murder of working-class and peasant women that would unfold in the centuries that followed.

What is the 'Pratica Inquisitiones Hereticae Pravitatis' and its role in the development of witch trials?

The 'Pratica Inquisitiones Hereticae Pravitatis', written by Bernard Gui, is one of the earliest texts linking ritual magic with heresy. It provided vivid depictions of necromantic practices and connected folk magic with clerical necromancy, which had substantial ramifications for the development of witch trials.

What is the 'Formicarius' and its importance in the context of the witch trials?

The 'Formicarius', written by Johannes Nider, is a significant pre-'Malleus Maleficarum' text that recounts instances of witchcraft and affirms rumors of a new heretical sect in Europe using magical powers acquired via a pact with the devil, thus contributing to the development of the witch trials.

How did the perception of the witch change from being a sinner to a heretic in Christian theology?

The perception of the witch changed through theological and juridical developments, such as those in the 'Directorium Inquisitorum', which introduced the idea that practicing magic and making sacrifices to demons violated the first commandment, thus transforming the sin of magic into the crime of heresy.

What were the differences in the treatment of accused witches in regions with a strong inquisition presence versus those without?

In regions with a strong inquisition presence, such as Spain, accusations were more carefully adjudicated, resulting in fewer executions of so-called witches. In contrast, regions without a robust judicial layer, especially at the appellate level, saw a higher number of executions for witchcraft.

Outlines

00:00

📚 The Origins of Esoteric Interests

The speaker discusses the genesis of their fascination with esotericism, citing various influences from childhood, such as television shows and a sense of the world's oddness. A pivotal moment was reading Edgar Allan Poe's 'The Fall of the House of Usher,' which introduced them to the concept of literature reflecting a character's deteriorating mental state. The speaker recounts their curiosity about the 'Directorium Inquisitoriorum' mentioned in the story, sparking an enduring interest in the history and development of demonological literature, particularly its role in early modern Europe's witch trials. The series aims to explore the theoretical underpinnings of these trials, which led to the deaths of 40,000 to 60,000 people, predominantly women, between 1450 and 1650.

05:11

🔮 Christianity's Historical Struggle with Evil

This paragraph delves into Christianity's historical view of itself as engaged in a cosmic battle against satanic evil, with Jesus' exorcisms being a notable miracle. The New Testament culminates in the battle of Armageddon, symbolizing the ultimate defeat of evil. Early Christians saw evil as an imminent threat, and figures like Augustine drew clear lines between orthodox believers and heretics. Augustine believed any interaction with beings other than God through the Church was a rejection of divine sovereignty, including magic, which he claimed was performed by demons to deceive practitioners. The speaker also mentions the development of Christian theology and canon law, highlighting the 'Decretum' of Gratian and the 'Canon Episcopy,' which addressed the practice of magic and divination among newly converted populations.

10:12

🌙 The Evolution of the Witch Legend

The speaker explores the evolution of the witch legend, discussing the 'Canon Episcopy' and its assertion that the journey to worship Diana was a demonic delusion rather than physical travel. The text also condemns shape-shifting, reflecting pagan beliefs and shamanic practices. As Christianity spread, the issue of shape-shifting faded, but the idea of women magically traveling to nocturnal meetings became central to the witch legend. The speaker notes the difficulty later demonologists would face in arguing for the reality of the flight to the sabbath against the established canon law. The influence of Saint Thomas Aquinas on the logic behind magic and the role of demons is also discussed, as well as the trial of Dame Alice Kittle, which foreshadowed the witch trials and highlighted the intertwining of secular and sacred law.

15:13

🔍 The Emergence of Witchcraft as Heresy

This paragraph examines the transformation of witchcraft from a sin to a heresy, largely due to the work of Emeric of Spain and his 'Directorium Inquisitorum.' Emeric argued that summoning and sacrificing to demons was a violation of the First Commandment, thus making the practitioner a heretic and a target for the Inquisition. This shift was crucial for the development of witchcraft prosecutions, as it allowed for the sin of magic to be treated as a crime, leading to the persecution of witches as part of an organized heresy against Christendom. The speaker also discusses the irony of the Inquisition's careful bureaucracy leading to fewer executions compared to rural courts in Germany.

20:15

🧙‍♂️ The Intersection of Magic and Heresy in the 14th Century

The speaker describes the condemnation of necromancers at the University of Paris in 1398, highlighting the link between magic, blasphemy, and heresy. The document from this period provides insight into the practices of learned necromancy and the growing association of magic with heresy. The speaker notes the lack of prosecutions for these university necromancers, suggesting political motivations played a role when they did occur. The paragraph also touches on the broader context of the witch trials, where learned occultists continued to publish texts on hermetic philosophy and magic, often without facing the same consequences as the thousands of peasant women executed for witchcraft.

25:16

🏛️ The Theological and Juridical Framework of Witch Trials

This paragraph discusses the development of the theological and juridical framework that led to the witch trials, focusing on the works of Johannes Nider and his 'Formicarius.' Nider's text recounts early 15th-century witchcraft prosecutions and affirms rumors of a new heretical sect in Europe using magic to destroy Christendom. The speaker highlights the introduction of misogyny into the discourse, with the suggestion that women were more susceptible to the temptations of witchcraft. The paragraph also discusses the importance of the Dominican Order in shaping the Latin polemical tradition and the early witch trials.

30:16

🌐 The Global Impact of the Witch Trials

The final paragraph addresses the widespread impact of the witch trials, which affected people across Europe and beyond, from the New World to Iceland and Russia. The speaker notes the gender disparity in the trials, with women being the primary victims, and the persistence of pagan practices in regions with late Christian conversion. The paragraph concludes with an overview of the upcoming episodes, which will explore the demonologists of the witch trial period, the 'Malleus Maleficarum,' and the skeptical reactions from various fields in the 16th and 17th centuries. The speaker also recommends resources for further study on the topic.

Keywords

💡Esotericism

Esotericism refers to the study of mystical, secretive, or hidden knowledge that is generally contrasted with exoteric teachings accessible to the public. In the video, the speaker's interest in esotericism is sparked by reading about the peculiar literary tastes of a character in a short story, which introduces them to the world of hidden and arcane knowledge. This concept is central to the video's theme of exploring the history and literature of demonology.

💡Directorium Inquisitoriorum

The 'Directorium Inquisitoriorum' is a historical text mentioned in the script, an actual manual used by the inquisition to identify and combat heresy. It is significant in the video as it represents a foundational text in the development of demonological literature and the understanding of the relationship between humans and metaphysical evil, particularly through the lens of the Christian inquisition.

💡Witch Trials

Witch trials refer to the legal trials of people accused of witchcraft and heresy, which took place primarily in early modern Europe. The video discusses the theoretical developments that led to these trials, where tens of thousands of people, mostly women, were executed based on beliefs in their pact with the devil and use of metaphysical evil.

💡Demonology

Demonology is the study of demons and their influence on human affairs. The video focuses on the development of Christian demonological literature, which deals with the interplay between humans and metaphysical evil, especially fallen angels or demons. This concept is integral to understanding the historical context of the witch trials and the beliefs that fueled them.

💡Canon Law

Canon Law is the body of laws and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. The video mentions the development of canon law, particularly the 'Decretum' of Gratian, as foundational in the Christian theological and legal framework that contributed to the conceptualization of witchcraft and heresy.

💡Inquisition

The Inquisition was a group of institutions within the judicial system of the medieval Catholic Church. The video discusses the role of the Inquisition in identifying and prosecuting heresy, which included the practice of magic and witchcraft, and how this contributed to the development of witch trials.

💡Sabbath

In the context of the video, 'Sabbath' refers to the gatherings or meetings of witches, often associated with the worship of the devil or demonic forces. The concept of the Sabbath is central to the witchcraft mythos and is tied to the idea of a collective, organized heresy against Christianity.

💡Heresy

Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or norms, especially in religion. In the video, the concept of heresy is crucial as it shifts the understanding of witchcraft from a sin to a crime against the church and society, leading to the prosecution and execution of those accused.

💡Necromancy

Necromancy is a form of magic that involves the use of spells or rituals to communicate with or resurrect the dead. The video discusses the practice of necromancy, particularly in the context of learned magic at medieval universities, and its connection to the development of demonological literature and the perception of witchcraft.

💡Malleus Maleficarum

The 'Malleus Maleficarum', also known as the 'Hammer of Witches', is a notorious treatise on the prosecution of witches. The video mentions this text as a significant work in the history of demonology and witch trials, as it provided a framework for identifying and dealing with witchcraft.

💡Canon Episcopi

Canon Episcopi is a canon law text that the video cites as an early attempt to address the belief in witches' night flights and their gatherings. It is significant because it initially dismissed the idea of physical travel to these gatherings as a delusion imposed by demons, a stance that later demonologists would have to challenge.

Highlights

The speaker's interest in esotericism was sparked by reading Edgar Allan Poe's 'The Fall of the House of Usher' and its references to occult literature.

The 'Directorium Inquisitoriorum' by Emeric de Girón is identified as a pivotal text that inspired the speaker's fascination with demonology.

The series aims to explore the history and development of demonological literature, particularly its influence on early modern Europe's witch trials.

Christianity's view of itself as engaged in a struggle between divine goodness and satanic evil is traced back to early documents and the miracles of Jesus.

St. Augustine's sharp delineation between orthodox Christian belief and heresy, and his views on magic being performed by demons, are discussed.

The development of canon law, particularly at the University of Bologna, laid the groundwork for the church's legal system and influenced later secular legal systems.

The 'canon episcopi' is highlighted as an early text urging bishops to eradicate magic and divination, reflecting attitudes after the conversion of the Franks.

The idea of women believing they ride with Diana for collective worship is one of the earliest mentions of the witch's sabbath, though the text dismisses physical travel.

St. Thomas Aquinas's logical deduction that demons are the efficient cause behind the magic of sorcerers is noted, though he was not influential in this regard.

The 1324 trial of Dame Alice Kittle, involving allegations of sorcery and poisoning, set a precedent for the relationship between secular and sacred law in witch trials.

The 'Pratica Inquisitiones Hereticae Pravitatis' by Bernard Gui is mentioned for linking ritual magic with heresy and its influence on future witch trials.

The 'Directorium Inquisitorum' by Nicholas Eymeric introduces the idea that practicing magic can be converted into the crime of heresy, a key development in witchcraft prosecutions.

The condemnation of 1277 at the University of Paris targeted radical theological ideas and was a hotbed of controversy, including necromancy.

The 'Formicarius' by Johannes Nider is highlighted as a crucial pre-'Malleus Maleficarum' text that discusses early witch trials and introduces misogynistic elements.

The speaker will explore the demonologists of the witch trial period and the skeptical reaction to their work in subsequent episodes.

For further study, the speaker recommends 'The Witchcraft Sourcebook' and 'Documentary History of Witchcraft' for reliable translations and commentaries.

Transcripts

one of the more frequent questions i

get is how did you become interested in

the field of esotericism

of course there are actually lots of

ways i could answer that question

from television shows about mysterious

topics growing up

to a general sense of the surreal

oddness of the world

to just the accident of whatever makes

people interested in anything ultimately

however a few decisive memories do stand

out

one of those was reading edgar allan

poe's 1839

short story the fall of the house of

usher in

middle school specifically reading one

passage about the habits of robert usher

and his reading

there we learn how the rapidly declining

mental

physical and spiritual health of usher

is reflected in his odd literary tastes

the volumes are connected with

otherworldly voyages

the realms of the angelic and especially

the demonic

subterranean spirituality barely

recalled

importantly we learned that quote one

favorite volume

was a small octavo edition of the

directorium inquisitiorum

by the dominican emeric de geron

i recall the latin titles and hints of

obscure metaphysics

simultaneously inspired in me a sense of

wonder

dread and overwhelming fascination

what were these books what kind of

knowledge did they contain

could they really induce or reflect the

conditions

suffered by usher could texts really

exist at the limits of

sanity and blasphemy

that one volume directorium inquisitorum

was especially disquieting

even as a young person i had a vague but

horrible idea about the inquisition

black robed

torturers jibbering latin in the bowels

of some medieval dungeon

it was part d and d and part hammer

house horror films and

part heavy metal record covers but not

much actual history

over the years i still kept the dnd and

the heavy metal but have since

added a little bit more actual history

to that image

and it's text like the directorium

inquisitorum

that i want to turn in this series on

the history and development of

demonological literature

now i know this term is a bit confusing

i'm referring to the christian

literature that deals specifically with

the interplay of human beings

and the forces of metaphysical evil

typically those are fallen angels or

demons

led by satan in that specific form of

the mythology

more specifically this series will trace

the theoretical developments that

underwrote the witch trials of early

modern europe

now as you can imagine the outbreak of

mass murder killing between

40 and 60 thousand people mostly women

of course

and this period between roughly 1450 and

1650

didn't happen spontaneously rather it

was a result of

many forces some of which were

developments in the theological

and juridical understandings of the

relationship between

human beings and the forces of evil in

this world this series explores

some though not all of these

developments

in this first episode i'm going to

explore the period

prior to the publication of the

monumental 1486 malayasmalifikaram or

the hammer of witches

the second episode will cover that text

and

similar subsequent and actually more

influential volumes

and the third episode will cover the

skeptical

reaction to the work of all these

demonologists

if you're interested in the history of

magic demonology or the occult

more generally make sure to subscribe

here to esoterica

and check out my other content on just

these topics

also you might consider supporting my

work of making

scholarly accessible and free content

on these topics on youtube by becoming a

supporter on patreon

or with a one-time donation you can find

those

links below in the description

so i hope you'll join me as i explore

some of the foundational demonological

texts

of the middle ages i'm dr justin sledge

and welcome to esoterica where we

explore the arcane

in history philosophy and religion

[Music]

from his earliest documents christianity

has understood itself to be engaged in a

titanic struggle between the forces of

divine goodness

and those of satanic evil the most

consistent miracle attributed to jesus

was that of exorcisms or the driving out

of evil spirits

and the new testament itself reaches its

crescendo

in the final battle of armageddon where

the forces of evil

are finally defeated forever

for early christianity the forces of

evil were

powerful ever-present and intensely

threatening

from the spiritual battles of the desert

fathers in egypt

to the juridical nightmare of the early

modern witch trials

christianity has long understood itself

as the great

fulcrum in the war between good and evil

augustine perhaps more than any other

early christian

drew those battle lines the sharpest for

him

there was to be a clear line between

pagan and

christian orthodox believer and heretic

since god was taken to be the sole and

effective sovereign power in the

universe

any attempt by human beings to interact

with beings aside from god

via the church was an implicit rejection

of divine sovereignty this of course

would include

any form of magic which for augustine

was

actually effectuated by demons in order

to trick the magician so as to basically

jeopardize their very soul

the magician thinking that they were

wielding magical powers

was actually always already just a

helpless pawn

importantly augustine also condemned

good magic or

theory whereby one invokes beneficent

angels are the divine itself

here augustine claims that demons simply

transformed themselves into angels of

light

this is of course paraphrasing the

apostle paul

thereby fooling the theorist perhaps

even more sorely

than the necromancer in this line of

thinking salvific and miraculous power

were the exclusive

prerogative of god of course as mediated

by the church

and any deviation veered inevitably into

the clutches of satan

now there is also a parallel discussion

we could be having about the

relationship of christianity to magic

more generally i've actually done an

episode on

both the practice of christian magic in

ancient coptic egypt

and on the development of scholarly

attitudes about magic by learned

christians

mostly through the middle ages you can

find

both those episodes in the cards above

of course it took centuries for

christianity to work out and then

systematize its incredibly complex

theology

and by extension its internal legal

system a process that's actually still

going on

today europe's longest continuously

functioning university

the university of bologna founded the

11th century was

instrumental in the development of the

canon law that governed the church

but also set the groundwork for later

secular legal systems as well

among the earliest systematic texts of

canon law

is the incredibly important decretum of

gration compiled and written in the mid

12th century

for this study the most important

section of that

rather massive text is the so-called

canon episcopy founded at

causa 26 question 5 canon 12.

this text predates to decretum by

centuries in fact it's

first attested around 906 of the common

era

and it probably reflects the attitudes

of the period

just after the conversion of the franks

from paganism

in the very early years of the holy

roman empire

thus it's an important window onto the

pagan pre-christian world

of that time the text urges local

bishops to

eradicate the practice of magic and

divination

from the recently converted population

however

this is to be accomplished not by

well torturing or killing people but

by expelling those people from their

parishes

and it is only after repeated

admonitions against such practices that

a person can actually be deemed a

heretic and thus

expelled that designation of heretic is

going to prove

incredibly important later on so hold on

to it

this text also discusses the idea that

certain women believe that they

ride beasts with diana to join in

collective worship of this pagan goddess

of course this is one of the earliest

mentions of

something like the flight to the witch's

sabbath

though notice here that neither is

flight mentioned they ride upon beasts

nor is the devil they're traveling with

the goddess diana or a similar local

pagan deity

further and this is really crucial the

canon episcopy makes it clear

that the journey to worship diana is a

quote phantasm

imposed upon the mind by demonic forces

and that the women do not in fact

physically travel

anywhere the travel upon the beasts and

the collective worship of diana

is a demonic delusion and not actual

geographic

travel further in this text there's also

a condemnation of

shape-shifting this is perhaps

reflecting a pagan belief

of transforming into animals or perhaps

other shamanic practices of this period

indeed we read that the person that

believes in such

shape shifting practices is quote procl

dubio infidelis et pagano de teriore

they're beyond doubt and infidel and

worse

than a pagan this intense condemnation

reflects two concerns

the first is philosophical god has made

the various

metaphysical categories of the world in

attempting to

cross those barriers is a violation of

both physical

and metaphysical law second

such shape-shifting was also likely a

key feature of pre-christian religion

and thus had to be so forcefully

condemned by the church at this time

while the issue of shape-shifting

largely fades into the background as

christianity gains hegemony the question

of women

magically traveling to nocturnal

meetings is going to

it's going to take on a life of its own

it's going to become the backbone of the

witch legend

however the canon's dismissal of the

idea of actual travel

is going to prove to be a difficult

hurdle for later demonologists to cross

of course they're going to have to

insist on the reality of the flight to

the sabbath

and given that the cannon episcopy would

have been considered canon law

settled law at that time we're going to

have to see just how they argued against

this position

they're gonna have to overturn the canon

episcopy and that won't be easy

in this discussion saint thomas aquinas

doesn't really prove to be

terribly influential which is surprising

given that he's

utterly influential in every other

regard vis-a-vis the catholic church

what is perhaps most interesting is his

attempt to logically deduce that demonic

intelligences alone

can be responsible for the magic of the

sorcerers in summa contra

gentiles 3 section 2. for thomas the

incantations of the sorcerers

can't have direct effects upon nature

because

nature lacks the very intellectual

capacity to respond to speech

thus there must be another efficient

cause to short the circuit between the

sorcerer

and the nature that was to be

manipulated of course

the efficient cause here the middleman

or

middle demon are just those they're

invisible demons

thomas extends this entire form of

thinking to amulets

magical symbols and other things it's

only through the intelligences of the

demons that magic is actually

effectuated

not much is really added here thomas

basically provides an aristotelian

argument for the position

pretty much offered up in augustine

however

this will prove grist for the mill of

many

later demonologists and thomas's

condemnation of magic along these

logical lines

is actually quoted several times in the

infamous malayas maleficarum

perhaps the most famous of all

demonological texts

among the earliest signs of what was to

come was the 1324

trial of dame alice kittler by an

ecclesiastical court

in ireland now this case is rather

complex and summarizing it is pretty

difficult

however hitler was a wealthy woman whose

reputation was tarnished by

allegations of having murdered a

previous husband

or two or three or four and made worse

by the fact that she engaged in the

ever popular hobby of money lending

now it's worth pointing out at this

point that virtually

all sorcery trials of this period prior

to around 1450

were made against relatively high

ranking people

often with political motivations unlike

the later trials which are aimed

largely at lower class peasant women

well after her fourth husband fell ill

and then expressed that he was being

poisoned by hitler and then

died the children of the previous four

dead husbands accused her of well they

accused her of sorcery

now the link between poisoning and

witchcraft or

maleficenum was long established with

even the greek translations of the

hebrew bible rendering

mahashayfa or female evil magic doer

this is a word well attested as such in

languages like

acadian as pharmacus or poisoner

in a general trend that's kind of

rationalizing throughout the entire

septuagint

they even translate a hebrew word for

necromancer

baal ove as ventriloquist or literally

belly talker at any rate hitler is

eventually accused of a range

of diabolical crimes including rejecting

christianity

of course sacrificing animals to demons

at a crossroads

holding nocturnal meetings to perform

black magic and

well destroy christianity using sorcery

to manipulate

other christians having a specific demon

helper an incubus lover

named robin son of art and of course

killing her husbands

what's surprising about this case

perhaps is that the local bishop

because of the unsettled relationship

between sacred and secular law

and hitler's position in high society

had a pretty difficult

time even having her arrested in fact

he was even arrested at one point in the

whole affair even the negotiations for

her surrender

eventually allowed her the chance to

escape and she basically vanishes out of

history i don't blame her

sadly however kittler's maidservant

petronia demeth was actually arrested

tortured and confessed to a wide range

of crimes

she was eventually flogged and burned to

death on the 3rd of november

1324 and this of course foreshadows the

mass murder of working class and peasant

women

to unfold in the centuries that followed

a few things are important about this

case the first

is that the relationship between secular

and sacred law was

still being sorted out at this time

indeed

this case would set a substantial

precedent in kind of

ironing out that relationship and making

such future prosecutions easier

secondly much of the which stereotype

appears already in this case

curiously enough the origins of much of

this stereotype are actually based on

earlier tropes about

pagans and jews used by christians

such as lurid orgies or idol worship

and even the term sabbat is basically

part of a long-standing anti-semitic

conspiracy theory like the blood libel

they even stem from anti-christian

legends

from the romans of all people you'll

perhaps remember that the romans accused

the early christians of

gathering by night in tombs to well

consume the

dead again this is a shockingly

ironic situation roman slurs against

christians are being repurposed for

christians to use

against witches talk about a

cycle of violence such tropes would now

be

reconsolidated mixed with developments

in canon law

and then deployed in one unit the notion

of the witch

was now slowly coming into existence by

the early 14th century

the execution of demeth in 1324 was

mirrored by the composition of the

practica inquisitiones heretica

prabitatis or the practice of the

inquisition of the heretical depravity

by bernard gee who actually also appears

as a character in emberto ecco's 1980

novel the name of the rose

though he's come to be known as a rather

cruel inquisitor

i think mostly from the novel the

history is rather mixed in fact

indeed he's one of the really

extraordinary people in the middle ages

for reasons both

good and ill yeah bernardi

i'm talking about that time that you

burned the talmud and toulouse

not cool man not cool regardless

gee is important in our discussion for

some of the earliest

linking of ritual magic with heresy

it's in his text the practica that we

get some of the most

vivid depictions of necromantic practice

from this period

but it's in his depiction of the folk

magic of the region around toulouse

and is connecting of that magic with

clerical necromancy and thus heresy

that's so crucial while gee never

describes the witch trope in any detail

that he links ritual and folk magic

under the rubric of prosecutable heresy

and not just sin that's going to have

substantial ramifications in the time to

come

however it would be another dominican

yes the heavy lifting in

all this is being performed basically by

the dominicans though

the jesuits will get in on the game

later i'm looking at you martin de rio

we'll get to you next time while the

kittler case is important in this story

another theological and juridical

development also proved decisive

and here we return to that text

mentioned by edgar allan poe in the fall

of the house of usher

the 1376 directorium inquisitor

by the spanish inquisitor nicholas

emmerich

as you might gather this text is a

manual to be used by the inquisition to

root out and destroy

heresy of course the primary target of a

text like this

would have been relapsed or false

converts to christianity

especially converse of jews but also the

remains of quasi-paganism or the

so-called albigensians

however it's in his discussion of the

particular sins

of blasphemy and heresy the really fun

ones

that are crucially important development

happens

generally speaking up till this point

the practitioner of magic was simply

guilty of that particular sin

it was a sin among lots of other sins

like lust or gluttony and it wasn't

especially egregious

much less the target of the inquisition

again remember that the task of the

inquisition was to root out heresy

not sin more generally emmerich however

introduces the idea that if a person

were to summon

and make sacrifices to a demon that

person

so violates the first commandment that

they

are in fact a blasphemer and a heretic

and thus a target for the inquisition

in that case they can be turned over to

the secular authorities for

juridical torture and subject to well

capital punishment by burning or

something

this shift in thinking where the sin of

magic can be converted into the

crime of heresy is incredibly

crucial in the development for the

witchcraft prosecutions that are come

later the witch as we'll see later

isn't just a sinner everybody's a sinner

that's no big whoop

it's that the witch is actually part of

an organized heresy

seeking to overthrow christendom by

gaining magical powers

via a pact with the devil really really

gets out of control

it's in fact very much like a conspiracy

theory

emmerich's linking of magic with heresy

is a decisively important development of

that theological and juridical framework

though

there is more irony here

while the inquisition was certainly

brutal it was also a very careful and

very thick bureaucracy

the upshot was that accusations taken up

by the inquisition for instance in spain

were much more carefully adjudicated

than accusations made for instance

in the rural courts of germany thus

resulting in

much fewer execution of so-called

witches during the height of the trial

while initial accusation rates were

basically similar to other regions like

scotland the actual execution rate was

substantially lower in trials held over

by the inquisition

like in many regions there was basically

an inverse relationship

between a robust juridical layer

especially at the appellate level that

really matters

and the absolute number of people

actually executed for witchcraft

like in many regions there was an

inverse relationship between

a robust judicial layer especially when

it came to appellate courts

and the absolute number of people

actually executed for witchcraft

it turns out that critical thinking is

something of an antidote to conspiracy

theories

despite what you may believe early

universities were actually hotbeds of

controversy

especially along theological lines by

the end of the 14th century

it appears that the practice of ritual

or ceremonial magic was

pretty popular at the university of

paris of course

that university had a reputation for le

let's call it avant-garde theology the

condemnation of 1277 had attempted to

root out the radical averroest

folks like seeger of brabant who

may have even rejected the idea of the

existence of individual souls and

affirmed the heretical aristotelian

concept that the world was in fact

eternal

unsurprisingly nestled between the

radical averroest and the

body goliard poets we also find a solid

stock of necromancers

of course magical text in both the

solomonic

and astral traditions such as the pika

tricks would have been

fixtures of this kind of magical

practice

those sorcerers found themselves

they were condemned in a detailed

document of 1398 i mean are you really

surprised they're necromancers at the

university of paris yeah they got

condemned in 1398.

this text carefully argued that while

summoning demons and commanding them

was heresy because it employs the

trappings of christian piety

such as fasting prayer the mass

sexual abstinence etc as a means to gain

control over demonic forces

while the sworn enemies of god and the

church

the rituals to summon and bind those

demons are tantamount to worshiping them

according to this document and of course

well that's blasphemy what's really

fascinating about this short document of

about 28 articles

is that we get a laundry list of the

various occult theories

and practices of university necromancy

at the turn of the 14th century it's

like a peek

into their necromantic world it's also

worth mentioning here

that while malifikia the term typically

translated as

witchcraft is mentioned at the start of

this text

the target of the condemnation are

largely the educated

basically all elite male members of the

university

however this document is a really

crucial and important window

into the world of learned necromancy of

this period

and the solidification of the link

between magic blasphemy and most

importantly heresy

during this time period now you might be

asking

why aren't we talking about the

prosecutions of those university

necromancers

well they just didn't seem to happen

that much and when they did

they were often more for politically

motivated reasons than theological

reasons

for instance the astral necromancy

taught by czechoscoli

would eventually get him prosecuted for

heresy but it's

likely that political motivations behind

the scenes actually tipped the scales in

favor of his guilty verdict

and eventually his execution what's

often shocking about this period of the

witch trials

is that while peasant women were being

executed by the thousands

often with confessions extracted by

torture

being basically the only evidence

against them

learned occultist continued publishing

text on hermetic philosophy

alchemy magic etc the period of the

witch trials in the period of

pico facino bruno i mean yeah he did get

burned but that's a whole different

matter

trethemius agrippa john d etc they

all overlap with trials and while

all of these men lived under some

suspicion and danger despite there being

ample evidence of their heterodox belief

and practices

the difference was that they were

perhaps

thought to be sinners but not part of

the so-called

witch cult that sought to destroy all of

christendom

the crime of being a witch during the

period of the trials was a very specific

theological juridical category it was a

criminal acceptum or an exceptional

crime

akin to religious and political treason

and you can see

this concept took centuries to develop

and

unleash the last document i'll explore

in this episode is probably the most

important pre-malayas malifikaram

demonological text

the 1434 formicarius or the

ant-hill of johannes knighter also a

dominican lecturer who was actually

involved in the debates with the

followers of jan house

oh yeah it's another dominican again

basically

all of these guys were dominicans and

all of this actually links up with what

is called the latin polemical tradition

in which dominicans played a really

crucial part

sadly i don't have a ton of time to go

into this right now

but my colleague dan attrell aka the

modern hermeticist is actually working

really closely on this material

he's actually made a video about the

latin polemical tradition that i'll link

in the card above

at any rate the formicarius takes the

form of a dialogue between a teacher and

his lazy student

in book five of this pretty massive tome

neider recounts several recent instances

of witchcraft that have been prosecuted

early in the 15th century

these are specifically those in the sim

valley between

1392 and 1406 indeed

those very prosecutions are now

recognized as the earliest

witch trials in europe while the

accounts are interesting

in themselves i mean we get magic

lizards and the killing of various kinds

of babies both

unborn babies and born babies and the

born babies are sometimes

made into various kinds of potions and

ungents there's of course the secret

sabbath meetings focused on a demon and

human form

you know the rejection of christianity

typical stuff

though note that neither actually

continues a tradition of rejecting

the reality of the night flight as a

delusion

what is crucial in knighter's account is

his affirmation of previous rumors by

people like pope alexander v

and eugenius iv that the early 15th

century saw the appearance of a quote

new heretical sect in europe using

magical powers acquired via pax

with the devil hell-bent on destroying

all of christendom from the inside

this is something like a spiritual fifth

column

after his discussion of joan of arc

knighter also crucially includes a

discussion

that feminine weakness inclines them

more to this specific temptation

and thus introduces a very solidly

misogynistic bent to all this as well

this misogynistic element of course

would be greatly expanded

in texts like the malayas maleficaram

by 1440 alonso tostado and de malifikis

muleribus would be among the first

theologians to argue that the night

flight was in fact

real attempting to counter the

long-established canon episcopy

with the actuality of the night flight

comes the actuality of the sabbath

comes the actuality of the vast satanic

conspiracy

the appearance of this new heretical

sect in the minds of popes and in the

tomes of theologians and jurists

and in the confessions arrived at by

torture

would come together as the witch trials

were to be unleashed upon the people

really the women of the entire european

sphere

from the new world to iceland to the

heartlands of germany

where more than half of the victims of

this mass murder were killed

all the way to the gates of moscow where

like in iceland mostly men would be

prosecuted

why mostly men in those places well

late conversion to christianity probably

meant surviving pagan practices

perhaps shamanic in character which the

trials would

in fact largely suppress though in

places like lithuania conversion was an

even later affair not

officially completed into the early 15th

century

and pagan survival substantially endured

there

in fact christianity in lithuania

sometimes looks

kinda pagan in the next episode in this

series i'll turn to the demonologists of

the witch trial period proper

from the infamous witch hunting manual

the malayas maleficaram

and the encyclopedic discussions of the

occult and the writings of martin del

rio

then i'll turn in the third episode to

the skeptical reaction in the legal

theological scientific and philosophical

world

of the 16th and 17th centuries make sure

to check back

for those episodes as i get them

finished

if you're interested in pursuing these

texts and thinkers in more depth the two

best places to start are

levax the witchcraft source book and the

coors and peter's documentary history of

witchcraft

both of these volumes are superb

really good and contain reliable

translations and commentaries of the

most

important parts of the text mentioned in

this episode

sadly texts like the directorium

inquisitor and the formicarius have not

received english translations or really

even

modern latin editions but this isn't

entirely surprising considering that

both are massive tomes they

easily exceed 800 pages in their

original editions

however if you're curious i have

provided links below in the description

to online scans of the texts in the

original latin

so you can kind of flip through them and

look at the sections on

witchcraft and magic they're typically

pretty easy to find with a little cross

referencing and the latin all things

told isn't all

that difficult until next time i'm dr

justin sledge and you've been watching

esoterica

where we explore the arcane side of

history

philosophy and religion

you