Popular Culture and the Witchcraze Flashcards
Population increase of Europe from 1500-1600
110 million
When were drypoint engravings/printing press invented and by who?
Around 1440s by Johannes Gutenberg
Literacy increase in Europe
1/3 of Europeans were literate by 1700 in urban areas but priests in the rural areas were usually the only literate person. Improved slowly in southern Europe and women
Support that a print revolution happened
More people became literate, affected Church as texts of scientific were forbidden to be read by clergy, print became entertainment, able to spread messages easily - helped protestantism spread. Made books more affordable.
Support against the idea of a print revolution
Printing did not undermine the hierarchy and served to preserve the control of the Church, some believe that there was a communications revolution instead due to developed transport and handcopied texts flourished until the late 17th century.
Popular culture - Geographically
South - restrictions on women’s freedom, outdoor emphasis
North - indoor emphasis
Rural and urban, mountainous or pastoral region, agricultural and industrial differences
West more economically advanced than east.
Popular culture - Elites
Difference between nobles and learned elites - different life styles, privileges, religion
Shared culture between lower classes included festivals and bear/bull-baiting
Popular culture - Middling classes
Made up of merchants, professionals and substantial farmers who shared culture with neither the elite or poor
Popular culture - Urban
Centres of sophistication, had literacy and diversity, hierarchy still preserved in cities. Split into public and private culture. Increased population due to peasants moving hoping to improve financially.
Popular culture - Common
9/10 lived in rural areas, change from serfdom (apart from eastern europe), low literacy, separated by religion; youth culture and gender, taverns centres of entertainment, many holy days
Popular Culture - Gender
Affected every aspect of life, women seen as inferior and vulnerable to passions, excluded from education; politics and profession, gathered for socialisation at washing stations, shaped society via gossiping networks
Popular Culture - Hardships
No changes in energy sources, dependent on harvest, epidemics devastating and intensified with urbanisation and caused people to find scapegoats, plague and childbirth dangerous regardless of class.
Four classes of people
Gentlemen - nobility who own land which they don’t work
Yeoman - owns enough land to be fully dependent
Husbandman - had house, possessed less land which was leased
Citizens/Labourers - freemen in towns and cities who worked for others
Why was enclosure a problem?
Arable lands were used up and were inaccessible to the public. Converted to pastured lands which needed less labour increasing unemployment. Enclosed fields without consent. Enclosed coastal areas became vulnerable to invasion.
Who was against carnivals and the feast of fools and why?
Educated elite believed it was pagan and unchristian and tried to abolish festivals. Believed it caused a breakdown of order. Their beliefs were further fueled by May Day Riots in 1517 and in the 1520s-30s there were 20 carnivals in Germany turned into anti-Catholic protests. Council of Trent (protestant) set up to stop celebrations of saints but only partly successful.
Carnival
Usually in Jan/Feb celebrated through south and central Europe. Celebrated activities before giving it up for Lent. Theme of ‘world turned upside down’ with classes, allowed poor to express their resentment of authority to prevent further action from the poor. Acted as a safety valve.
Feast of Fools
Dec-Jan popular across Europe but less in southern Europe. Lord of misrule elected to command people. Mocked priests and danced and drank in church. Young clergy organised festival. 15th century: became frowned upon, died out 17th century. Acted as a safety valve.
Punishment of women
Women perceived as a threat to the patriarchy punished including reciting their crimes in a public market or via rough music. In England and France they had ‘skimmingtons’ and ‘charivari’ to publicly shame domineering women
Reasons for a ‘crisis of order’
Rapid population growth, vagrancy, war, plague
Calvinists
Wants locally translated Bibles which increased literacy, psalms sung instead of hymns, emphasised discipline. Attacked Christmas and midsummer festivals in 1570s Scotland.
Puritans
Came to power 1646-1660 in Britain. Banned public amusements. Festivals of misrule and May games banned under Oliver Cromwell. Philip Stubbs (puritan) made list of activities that should be abolished including dancing which included ‘unclean handling’
Martin Luther
Critiqued indulgences (paying to shorten time in purgatory before going to heaven) with 95 theses in 1517 which increased his popularity. Wrote books against Catholicism. Comdemned by the Pope and the Holy Roman Emperor. Translated the Bible into German. Believed the Pope is the enemy of God.
German Peasant’s War
1524-5 Radicalised Luther’s message however Luther disagreed with their violence. War inspired Anabaptist movement (main radical belief was that adults should choose to be baptised). Condemned by both Protestants and Catholics.
Reformed Protestant
Stresses wickedness of idolatry more than Lutheranism. Against celibacy of clergy. Against mass’ objectivity and sees it as a metaphor while Luther upholds mass. Agrees that the Pope is the enemy of God.
How were serious crimes punished?
Death, orchestrated to be a public spectacle and acted as entertainment.
Hermetica
16th century of treatises on philosophy, astrology, magic and occult arts. Made magic a source of inspiration for scientists and suggested how to use minerals and plants and motivated them to discover substance’s properties
Counter-reformation
Ideas of Council of Trent continued by Jesuits who weaponised their ideas. Partly successful in recovering Catholicism. Recovered Poland, Germany, France, Hungary but not North Europe. Able to spread Catholicism to overseas colonies especially across central and south America. Burke argues that it mainly affected the educated and cut off Catholic elite from popular culture.
Challenges to the Protestant Reformation besides the Counter-Reformation
Secularism (free from religious qualities and promoted science), individualism (stresses human independence), religious tolerance
Burke’s argument
Believes between 1500-1800, people became more politically aware and interested. Supported by increased rebellions and violence against tax officials.
Percentage of women accused of witchcraft compared to men
Over 75% in most regions
Why were women seen as weaker
Story of Adam and Eve showed women as likely to succumb to diabolical temptation. Malleus Maleficarum said women were more gullible, lustful and prone to infidelity.
Where were male witches common and why
In Iceland, Estonia and Finland. Hunts sometimes got out of control and confessing witches were forced to name accomplices.
Transition of magic from positive to negative view
Magic common belief early modern society, well established place for cunning men and wise women who did white magic in society before witchhunts. Idea of diabolical pact emerged 1420s and by 16th century witches associated with maleficium, sabbats and devil
Difference between possession and witchcraft
Possession was when a demonic spirit invaded the body, altered movements and personality. Distinguished from witchcraft by their responsibility of actions. In England, the connection between the two became synonymous. Witches often persecuted for causing possession of other people.
Papal bull about witchcraft
1484 Pope Innocent VIII declared witchcraft an exceptional crime, allowing torture
Societal structure that made rise of witchhunts possible
Belief of witches emerged late fifteenth and early sixteenth century. Furthermore, communities needed scapegoats to maintain social cohesion. View of women. Hallucinogenic drugs commonplace in markets, bread often contaminated by plants when harvest failed and starvation resulted in hallucations
Factors which encouraged likelihood of witchhunts
Lack of religious homogenity, translated Bible meant more people read that witches should be sentenced to death. Elites wanted to impose conformity and preserve hierarchy. Witches often in rural communities and accusers often knew accused, masking disputes. Legal professionals gaining from witch trials. Catastrophe e.g. war (English Civil War and Thirty Years War), drought, harvest failures
When was the reformation?
1520-1650
Inquisitorial system in Scotland
Before 1590, witches tried in judicial courts. After 1590, witch trials approved by privy council or parliament. Wanted to strengthen central control but did not have judicial capacity.
Inquisitorial system in England
Central justice over capital crimes, strict central procedures = low conviction rate
Torture prohibited and controlled by privy council
Rules relaxed during Civil War -> Hopkins unsupervised.
Inquisitorial system in France
Parliament of Paris most centralised gov in France, handled most witchcraft cases, required that capital sentences of witches had to appeal to them - dismissed 36% cases and confirmed 24% cases.
Inquisitorial system in Germany
No central control, 2000 territories with own courts, Imperial Reichstag passed laws, half of all prosecutions of witches took place in Germany
Torture
Used to gain info/confessions. People were aware that it could be unreliable. Rules that were usually in place (e.g. establishing commitment of crime before torture, testimonies under torture not used) were relaxed for witchcraft. Torture often implicated others and accomplices named, starting chain-reaction hunts. Areas with torture - up to 95% conviction. Areas without torture - below 40% conviction. People preferred to confess and be executed than be tortured.
Secular Courts
Started participating in witch-hunting after 1560 as many countries had laws on witch-craft. Intensified witch-hunts. Allowed to execute where ecclesiastical courts couldn’t
Ecclesiastical courts
Prosecuted heretics but could not inflict bodily harm, referring them to secular courts. Weakened by late 16th century, reform led to decline in papacy’s control except in Spain and Italy where witchcraft persecutions were kept relatively low