Passing the Torch: Witch Accusations in Early Modern Germany

Father Leupold, 23 September 1629.

It is autumn in Hexenstadt. The year is 1629 and it looks like another witch hunt may be starting. There is a sense of foreboding that is starting to circulate among the residents of the town. It started with crops dying and farm yields dwindling (Durrant 27). Many of my flock are having trouble getting by and I fear some may turn once again to foul means. This is how it started last time and it is why people are quickly becoming afraid once again. There were some women lured in last time with the manipulations of the devil himself and many may find their way down that dark path that the unrighteous follow (Durrant 26). Communities have become distant and cut off from each other because of wars and witch hunts in the passing years (Roper 15). It will be difficult to get by without outside help, but, with God’s good grace, we shall see things through until the end. I fear that even though we have gone through this before, our community will once again turn to distrust. Still, I must resolve to lead my flock through these dark times and we must continue the fight against Satan’s agents (Roper 16). These Protestants resent the Pope’s divine leadership and their spite makes them easy prey for the devil’s manipulations. I wonder if it is their presence that attracts witches or if the witches attract the Protestants? We may never know, but ridding ourselves of both would be a holy endeavor indeed.

Girdrud, 24 September 1629

I fear the powers of the Devil as much as the next person, but I hope I will not have to report someone close to me (Roper 15). Having someone close to me secretly become a witch would be disturbing. I shudder to remember what a witch can be instructed to do by the devil. Last time we were unknowingly living with cannibalistic, death-dealing storm sorceresses who met in secret at the sabbath (Roper 18). There were rumours of even worse offences being done at other cities, but I dearly hope they were not true. The bitter memories of ridding our town from the menace of witches are slowly being conjured up with every new bad harvest or strange occurrence. Maybe it is just a coincidence that it feels like last time or maybe history will repeat itself. I thought that the last witch’s skull being impaled on a spike overlooking the town may have made future hunts unnecessary, but maybe witches just do not think like a normal person (Roper 29). Either way, I hope another panic does not set in. I do not know if I could handle another witch hunt.

There is a lot of words and rumours spreading around town about that old woman Agnise. I always thought of her as rather friendly. She was always willing and able to help with the children (Rowlands 54). I suspected she simply had too much time on her hands since her husband passed away (Rowlands 62). The bad crops seem to have affected her too. She is often out asking for favours and extra food now (Rowlands 65). When Gregor turned her away, for he too has had a bad crop yield, he said she cursed him with bitter words that were hard to catch. Ever since then others have had bad dealings with Agnise (Rowlands 56). I think everyone has been keeping a closer eye on Agnise just in case she does turn out to be a witch (Rowlands 80). Now if Agnise tries to help with the children I usually find an excuse to turn her away (Rowlands 54). This has started to make Agnise more and more upset each time. I do not know if she is a witch, but if she did turn out to be one, I would be afraid for the lives of the children if Agnise was alone with them for any amount of time. Best to err on the side of caution just in case.

This is especially true since some of the neighbourhood’s children have started to talk about someone they call “the seamstress” (Roper 124). It might just be all the invigorated rumours of witches but they started to talk about an old woman who is a witch that wants to lead them away (Roper 124). Children can pick this kind of talk up anywhere though. Still, I have noticed Agnise trying to be a lot friendlier lately. She always says how beautiful the children are. It is almost like she is envious of them (Roper 124). I would hate for this to be the start of a witch’s curse or the beginnings of disappearances. I am going to start discouraging talk of witches in the house and hopefully the children will remain clean in this matter (Roper 129). If that does not work then I will tell Agnise to stay away for good and maybe then I will be free of this witchy business.

Father Leupold, 27 September 1629

A strange event has started to occur in Hexenstadt. After Sunday mass, some of the parents have begun to question me about their children’s safety. They are concerned by stories told to them by their children that seem so fantastical, but past events make them more believable. The families that are bringing me the worrying news are usually well to do families with a trade, not the lower-class types that might have become mixed up in such things (Roper 115). Parents have brought their children’s strange antics to my attention. Gregor told me that he caught his children in the middle of a blood brotherhood ritual in which they cut each others fingers to exchange blood (Roper 115). Sophie later told me that she had caught one of her children putting powders in her and her husband’s bed that were red, black, and grey (Roper 116). When asked what the powders were, the child simply replied, “Bones,” (Roper 116). Sophie said that she and her husband have been unable to make love since the incident with the powders occurred (Roper 117). Lastly, Cecilia told me her child produced a plague of lice and mice in her household (Roper 116). The child released a mouse into the house and there has been more and more of the vermin ever since. The children have also not been able to get rid of their lice since this incident.

This next happening is strange, not because of its incredulity but because of its normality among the children. Many parents tell me that their children claim to have flown to a witches’ sabbath despite their parents seeing them in bed during the night (Roper 131). The fact that multiple parents all tell me this is worrying. All these tales combined make me, and the parents, fear that there may be a witch in our town. Some of the parents have wished for me, or the city council members, to take in their children until the witch is captured and brought in (Roper 118). Some also wish this to help quarantine the potentially targeted child away from the other children of their household (Roper 115). I know that they are just afraid but we simply do not know if there is a witch among us at this time. I shall request that a formal investigation take place at this time. With God’s good will this situation will be seen through with the guilty parties dealt with. This town has gone through a witch hunt once and survived and it can do so again.

Father Leupold, 28 September 1629

I have personally taken in the townsfolk’s children one at a time to ask them some questions. I figure that if all the talk in the town is nothing but nonsense then I need not inquire about a formal witch hunt. If there is some truth to this then perhaps there is a need to bring this to light. Sophie’s son Lukas told me that an old woman liked to bring children out when it was dark out. He said that this woman would tell the children that she had wonderful things to show them out in the woods. Lukas said that they flew off to a witch’s sabbath with this old woman when the moon was out in full view to the edge of the nearby woods (Roper 131, Roper 109). When I inquired who this old woman was, Lukas said that she was very old, had very bumpy wrinkled skin, and had a severe hunch. She also did not have any family as she said she lived alone and needed the company from children (Rowlands 62). This old woman often helped his family with the younger children (Roper 124). He and the other children who had had experiences with her called this woman “the seamstress” (Roper 124). This was most strange that none of the parents had brought this information up at all. Although, in the current climate, many were encouraging their children to not speak of anything that may be related to witches or witchcraft for fear of other children spreading these fantasies (Roper 129).

Many other children had varying levels of interactions with “the seamstress”. Some had simply heard about her from the other children. Others had told me that they had seen her skulking around the streets of Hexenstadt. And some, like Lukas, told me that she had taken them away at night. From the information given to me, I believe that Agnise fits this description. She Often helps out with the children of younger families and she is often seen roving around the town, begging for food and money. There was one story told to me by Gregor’s daughter that did not involve “the seamstress”. Gregor’s daughter Elze told me some very interesting things about her mother Girdrud. Her story was similar to the other children in that she was flown to a witch’s sabbath, but instead of being brought there by Agnise, she was brought there by her own mother (Rowlands 49). Elze explained to me in vivid detail how she was awoken in the night and brought to the witch’s sabbath where she watched her mother enact foul rituals such as dancing to cause storms, exhuming the dead bodies of buried infants, and denouncing the lord our God (Durrant 19). I must let the proper authorities know of these heresies at once. Many have identified a woman similar to Agnise, but this newfound business with Girdrud needs further investigation. I believe that proper questioning is in order and I will start a new witch hunt to cleanse the city of these heretics. There could be many as of yet unmasked witches that remain anonymous in our great town. This will not get out of control as it did last time.

Arnold the Scribe, Investigation Notes, 30 September 1629

Agnise and Girdrud were both brought in shortly after the priest Leupold told us of concerns raised by both parents and children alike. It is not surprising that these women were taken in by the Devil. They are, by their very nature, more susceptible to his deceits (Durrant 46). This is how it started last time as well. Agnise was brought in first to be questioned. She was asked questions of the faith which were all answered well (Durrant 53). When asked if she was a witch, Agnise was certain she was not one. It was at this point that we tied her to the rack and let her hang for around half an hour (Roper 44). After awhile she began to scream that she wanted to talk. When Agnise was questioned again, she said that she did lead many neighbourhood children to the witch’s sabbath (Rowlands 52). When asked how she became a witch, Agnise said that a man in black told her to renounce God or he would break her neck so, fearing for her mortal life, she did so (Burr). Later that week, a black dog came to her house at night and bade she mount him like a horse (Burr). It was this talking dog that bore her to her first witch’s sabbath and it was here that she learned despicable dark arts (Burr). When asked who else was there, Agnise hesitated and said she could not see anyone clearly. During a bout with the thumbscrews, she said that she saw Girdrud there as well as members of Girdrud’s family (Durrant 61). When asked if the witch’s sabbath took place by the woods as Lukas had said, she confirmed that this was indeed where it had taken place (Roper 109).  It was at this time that Agnise was brought down from the rack to a clean room to confirm her confession (Roper 48). We had our first confirmed witch in some years in the town of Hexenstadt. Agnise’s confession would make the start of this witch hunt go by much faster. We now had names of her accomplices and the townsfolk would be further encouraged to keep an eye out for strange activity now that we had a proper witch locked in the dungeons.

Arnold the Scribe, Investigation Notes, 30-31 September 1629

Girdrud had clearly heard the screams of Agnise, but she also had a much stronger resolve than that frail old witch. After the initial questioning, during which she held to her statement that she was not a witch, she was left to simmer for awhile. After a bout with the rack that lasted around half an hour, Girdrud was brought down and asked again if she was a witch. She responded with a resounding no. After this the torturer was told to put her back up, but was also told that this time she was to be left up there for a few hours (Roper 44). The torturer was also instructed to attach heavier weights to Girdrud’s ankles (Roper 44). By the end of the night Girdrud was screaming too, but when brought down she still would not confess. The next day the torture was started again. The thumbscrews were brought out but, unlike Agnise, Girdrud did not confess to being a witch after the questioning with these devices. After this torture she was not fit for more questioning and was let alone for the rest of the day.

Arnold the Scribe, Investigation Notes, 1 October 1629

That night, the torturer prepared a bench for the next day. Girdrud was tied down to the bench and whipped until she started to talk (Roper 48). She said that she was indeed a witch and that she had been to several witch’s sabbaths before. At the sabbath she recognized Agnise and some of the children that were there as well but could not clearly see anyone else. It was at this point that Girdrud was brought back to be whipped again until she could remember who else was there and when she did remember, the torture was yet again halted (Roper 50). She said that she confessed to seeing her friend Osanna there as well (Durrant 68). When asked about Agnise’s confession about seeing members of the community at the witches’ sabbath, Girdrud said this was not true. It was at this point that the leg screws were used (Roper 48). After the leg screws were attached to Girdrud’s lower legs and the pain was eventually too much for her to handle. She confessed that her husband was also a witch and that she enchanted him to come with her and her daughter Elze to the witches’ sabbath. It seems that the mother Girdrud, who was most easily convinced to serve the devil, eventually corrupted many members of her family (Rowlands 77). Gregor should have safeguarded against such an eventuality, but how could one man stand up to the wickedness of the Devil (Rowlands 66)? Perhaps after she corrupted him, they sold their daughter into the service of the Devil (Rowlands 74). Perhaps all of their children may have been corrupted if not for the quick actions of people like the priest Leupold, who reported the rumours that started off this witch hunt. Gregor and his family will need to be questioned.

Arnold the Scribe, Investigation Notes, 2 October 1629

Gregor was brought in for questioning today. It did not take him very long to break after he heard what his wife Girdrud had said. After awhile on the rack, he confessed to being a witch as well. When asked if his wife was the witch that enchanted him, he said yes (Durrant 59). When asked if Agnise was a witch he said yes. When asked if Girdrud’s friend Osanna was a witch he said yes. When asked if his daughter was a witch he said no because she was not yet old enough. When asked if there were any other witches that he knew about Gregor stated that the priest Leupold was a witch as well. This was preposterous. There was no way a man of his Catholic piety, especially one who had just initiated this witch hunt, could be a witch (Durrant 64). This was taken as a test by the Devil to murder one of God’s most holy men on earth. Gregor was tortured some more after this and admitted that this was a trick. It seems he was not present at witches’ sabbaths for nearly as long as the others and does not know as much as the other witches we have so far apprehended. He did mention some unholy acts that were perversions of our Catholic practices. They engaged in diabolic baptisms from the devil and instead of the kiss of peace, they kissed the devil’s anus (Roper 113, 115). This information is harrowing but at least we have one new name to investigate, Osanna. She will be brought in tomorrow to face justice. The priest Leupold has volunteered to take in the children of Gregor and Girdrud. This way he can keep a close eye on them and perhaps save their souls from the Devil (Rowlands 78). Maybe these children will be able to have a promising future, if they work hard to undo their parents’ bad reputations (Rowlands 60).

Arnold the Scribe, Investigation Notes, 3-5 October 1629

Osanna was apprehended and taken in for questioning. She refused to admit anything outright so she was questioned with the rack, but again yielded no information and maintained her innocence. On the second day she had an even longer stay on the rack and still she maintained her silence. The third day the thumb screws were used on her but, despite screaming in pain and crying out, there was still no confession.

Osanna, The Night of 5 October 1629

The investigators finally left me in peace from their insane questions. The evidence of their skill at questioning was clear from the aching of my hands from the thumbscrews and the pain in my shoulders from the rack. It was then that I heard a quiet voice from my cell door. It was Nikkel the jailor. He begged me to confess to the crimes that they accused me of (Burr). When I said that I was not guilty, Nikkel said that I would have to simply make up a story because the torture will not stop otherwise (Burr). Nikkel told me what Agnise and Girdrud had said about the witches’ sabbath and of their various crimes (Roper 49). Nikkel hoped that I would not be tortured as badly as Girdrud had to be before she confessed. Her husband Gregor had taken his advice and had been tortured relatively little in comparison to the others. It was with these words that Nikkel left me alone in my cell. The only problem with Nikkel’s advice is that I was not a witch. Perhaps my resolve could see me through until the end. If I could just last long enough for the truth to be seen, I would be able to live out the rest of my days with everyone knowing that I am an innocent woman.

Arnold the Scribe, Investigation Notes, 6-9 October 1629

Osanna was left in the rack for hours the next day, but still she refused to confess to being a witch. The next day she had the leg screws used on her, which left her legs mangled and broken. The day after that she was whipped on the bench until she passed out from the pain. After a silent night, Osanna was found dead in her cell in the morning by Nikkel (Roper 49). It seems as though the torturers were overzealous in their want of a confession. She will still be disposed of as if she was a confessed witch since we have two eyewitnesses that identified her at a witches’ sabbath. This is good enough evidence that would have had any suspected witch burned at the stake anyways. The biggest regret is that the trail is now cold. Unless the community finds someone’s behaviour to be suspicious, I fear that the many witches that are yet unaccounted for may get away with their sins for now. We have gotten all the information that we can from Agnise, Girdrud, and Gregor. Getting a straight story can be very difficult and inconsistencies in their stories may prove problematic if we use their information alone and without anything to corroborate it (Rowlands 69). Besides, we still need to organize the execution of the confessed witches before anything like an escape happens. It is not good to keep witches cooped up for too long. They might get the Devil involved.

Father Leupold, 12 October 1629

I was summoned to perform final rites with the witches in the privacy of the dungeon. Despite being the servants of the Devil, I still needed to give them the chance to repent (Roper 64). Gregor and Girdrud were counselled together since they were husband and wife and they both wanted the lord God’s forgiveness for their misdeeds. This was granted for them and they were set more at peace with this arrangement. Agnise had a few questions after having requested forgiveness as well. Agnise asked what will happen to Osanna since she did not confess. I replied that her body will be burned as a witch since there was plenty of evidence against her (Roper 49). Agnise then asked me to thank the torturer for getting a confession out of her (Roper 61). She said if it was not for them then she may have done further sins under the Devil’s influence and that she was glad to be forgiven by God. It was then that I left.

I was invited to partake in the revelries of the executioner and his men after but I felt too tired after performing the last rites. Burgomaster Dippelt had paid for this festive meal for them as part of a payment for executing the witches tomorrow (Roper 64). Many of the town officials had joined in including the burgomaster Dippelt, the scribe Arnold, and some of the town fathers (Roper 64). I knew that some of this cost had been offset with the confiscation of the witches’ possessions after their confessions were signed (Roper 62). Tomorrow was going to be a sullen day for some and a day of joy for others. At least it would mark the end of this witch hunt. Maybe there were still witches around or even living in Hexenstadt. It would be hard to say. Other witches could have fled to other towns or even larger cities to hide themselves from receiving justice. At least tomorrow would mark an end to the aura of distrust that had sprung up around the town. People had come together to catch these witches so maybe the community would be healed by the removal of these witches for good.

A watcher of the execution, 13 October 1629

It was morning of execution day. Many of the townsfolk had gotten to the designated site of the execution early. The site was easily seen because it had been marked by four fresh stakes driven into the ground and surrounded by fuel for the fires that would soon be. Before the witches came out, some were passing around pamphlets made up to immortalize the days events (Roper 65). These pamphlets held the names of he accused as well as their crimes and a small drawing of each of them (Roper 65). The witches, including the corpse of Osanna, were tied to the stakes one by one. As each came out and was tied, their crimes were read aloud for all to hear and take warning of (Roper 65). The priest Leupold was standing nearby to hear the exhibitions of penitence and their final confessions (Roper 65). Agnise had come out first, being the first witch to confess and pled that she had seen the error of her ways through God’s good graces. Girdrud and Gregor both came out next and made a final prayer that their children would be accepted by the community and not judged for their misdeeds. Their children, including Elze, were being watched over by Leupold while attending to his duties as priest. Osanna had no final prayers as her corpse hung limply from the stake, having being tied more thoroughly to attain a semblance of standing tall. Despite being caught at different times, the witches were all being executed together as a cost saving measure, as four different executions would require a lot more pay for the executioners (Roper 65). Because of this, Agnise looked very dirty and disheveled, living up to her reputation as a witch even further. Slowly, the stakes were surrounded by fuel and eventually they were lit. The witches screamed as they burned and the black smoke wafting from their pyres was sickly sweet. After some time had passed, the executioner gave a signal and his men proceeded to strange the witches as they burned to quicken their passing after having felt the flame (Roper 65). The fires burned a long time and after some hours time, they were naught but ash.

Bibliography

Burr, George L. “The Witch Persecution at Bamberg.” Essay. In The Witch Persecutions 3, 4th ed., 3:23–28. Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania History Department, 1998.

Durrant, Jonathan B. “THE WITCHES.” In Witchcraft, Gender and Society in Early Modern Germany, 45–86. Brill, 2007. http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1163/j.ctt1w76wh1.8.

Durrant, Jonathan B. “WITCH-HUNTING IN EICHSTÄTT.” In Witchcraft, Gender and Society in Early Modern Germany, 3–44. Brill, 2007. http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1163/j.ctt1w76wh1.7.

Roper, Lyndal. “‘Evil Imaginings and Fantasies’: Child-Witches and the End of the Witch Craze.” Past & Present, no. 167 (2000): 107–39. http://www.jstor.org/stable/651255.

Roper, Lyndal. “The Baroque Landscape.” Essay. In Witch Craze: Terror and Fantasy in Baroque Germany, 15–43. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2006.

Roper, Lyndal. “Interrogation and Torture.” Essay. In Witch Craze: Terror and Fantasy in Baroque Germany, 44-66. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2006.

Rowlands, Alison. “GENDER, UNGODLY PARENTS AND A WITCH FAMILY IN SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY GERMANY.” Past & Present, no. 232 (2016): 45–86. http://www.jstor.org/stable/44015363.

Rowlands, Alison. “Witchcraft and Old Women in Early Modern Germany.” Past & Present, no. 173 (2001): 50–89. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3600840.