Document Type
Book Chapter
Publication Version
Published Version
Publication Date
2006
Journal or Book Title
Encyclopedia of Witchcraft: The Western Tradition
Volume
3
First Page
856
Last Page
860
Abstract
The first true witch hunts began in western Europe in the early fifteenth century. The earliest series of trials took place in Italy and in French- and German-speaking regions around the western Alps. Of course, concern about harmful sorcery had deep roots in medieval Europe, and both officially sanctioned prosecution and popular persecution had been brought to bear on its supposed practitioners long before. But only in the fifteenth century did the full stereotype of diabolical witchcraft develop, which would endure throughout the period of the major witch hunts in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
Copyright Owner
ABC-CLIO
Copyright Date
2006
Language
en
File Format
application/pdf
Recommended Citation
Bailey, Michael D., "Origins of the Witch Hunts" (2006). History Publications. 57.
https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/history_pubs/57
Included in
Cultural History Commons, European History Commons, History of Religion Commons, Medieval History Commons, Other History Commons
Comments
Encyclopedia of Witchcraft: The Western Tradition edited by Richard M. Golden. Copyright 2006 by ABC-CLIO. All rights reserved. Reproduced with permission of ABC-CLIO, LLC, Santa Barbara, CA.