Witchcraft narratives in Germany: Rothenburg, 1561-1652

Given the widespread belief in witchcraft and the existence of laws against such practices, why did witch-trials fail to gain momentum and escalate into 'witch-crazes' in certain parts of early modern Europe? This book answers this question by examining the rich legal records of the German city of R...

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Huvudupphov: Rowlands, Alison
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Språk:engelska
Utgiven: Manchester University Press 2021
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author Rowlands, Alison
author_browse Rowlands, Alison
author_facet Rowlands, Alison
author_sort Rowlands, Alison
collection Directory of Open Access Books
description Given the widespread belief in witchcraft and the existence of laws against such practices, why did witch-trials fail to gain momentum and escalate into 'witch-crazes' in certain parts of early modern Europe? This book answers this question by examining the rich legal records of the German city of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, a city which experienced a very restrained pattern of witch-trials and just one execution for witchcraft between 1561 and 1652. The author explores the factors that explain the absence of a 'witch-craze' in Rothenburg, placing particular emphasis on the interaction of elite and popular priorities in the pursuit (and non-pursuit) of alleged witches at law. By making the witchcraft narratives told by the peasants and townspeople of Rothenburg central to its analysis, the book also explores the social and psychological conflicts that lay behind the making of accusations and confessions of witchcraft. Furthermore, it challenges existing explanations for the gender-bias of witch-trials, and also offers insights into other areas of early modern life, such as experiences of and beliefs about communal conflict, magic, motherhood, childhood and illness. Written in a lively narrative style, this innovative study invites a wide readership to share in the compelling drama of early modern witch trials. It will be essential reading for researchers working in witchcraft studies, as well as those in the wider field of early modern European history.
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spelling doab-20.500.12854ir-382032025-02-05T06:02:43Z Witchcraft narratives in Germany: Rothenburg, 1561-1652 Rowlands, Alison germany folklore witchcraft witches Defamation Early modern period Lutheranism Torture Wettringen (Münsterland) Witch trials in the early modern period Witch-hunt Würth thema EDItEUR::N History and Archaeology::NH History::NHD European history Given the widespread belief in witchcraft and the existence of laws against such practices, why did witch-trials fail to gain momentum and escalate into 'witch-crazes' in certain parts of early modern Europe? This book answers this question by examining the rich legal records of the German city of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, a city which experienced a very restrained pattern of witch-trials and just one execution for witchcraft between 1561 and 1652. The author explores the factors that explain the absence of a 'witch-craze' in Rothenburg, placing particular emphasis on the interaction of elite and popular priorities in the pursuit (and non-pursuit) of alleged witches at law. By making the witchcraft narratives told by the peasants and townspeople of Rothenburg central to its analysis, the book also explores the social and psychological conflicts that lay behind the making of accusations and confessions of witchcraft. Furthermore, it challenges existing explanations for the gender-bias of witch-trials, and also offers insights into other areas of early modern life, such as experiences of and beliefs about communal conflict, magic, motherhood, childhood and illness. Written in a lively narrative style, this innovative study invites a wide readership to share in the compelling drama of early modern witch trials. It will be essential reading for researchers working in witchcraft studies, as well as those in the wider field of early modern European history. 2021-02-10T12:58:18Z 2010-06-01 00:00:00 2020-04-01T15:30:57Z 2003 book 341414 OCN: 57655537 http://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/34984 9780719052590 https://directory.doabooks.org/handle/20.500.12854/38203 eng open access image/jpeg image/jpeg image/jpeg image/jpeg n/a n/a n/a n/a https://library.oapen.org/bitstream/20.500.12657/34984/1/341414.pdf https://library.oapen.org/bitstream/20.500.12657/34984/1/341414.pdf https://library.oapen.org/bitstream/20.500.12657/34984/1/341414.pdf https://library.oapen.org/bitstream/20.500.12657/34984/1/341414.pdf Manchester University Press 10.7228/manchester/9780719052590.001.0001 10.7228/manchester/9780719052590.001.0001 bcb4ab08-c525-4e6c-88e5-a0cf0a175533 9780719052590 open access
spellingShingle germany
folklore
witchcraft
witches
Defamation
Early modern period
Lutheranism
Torture
Wettringen (Münsterland)
Witch trials in the early modern period
Witch-hunt
Würth
thema EDItEUR::N History and Archaeology::NH History::NHD European history
Rowlands, Alison
Witchcraft narratives in Germany: Rothenburg, 1561-1652
title Witchcraft narratives in Germany: Rothenburg, 1561-1652
title_full Witchcraft narratives in Germany: Rothenburg, 1561-1652
title_fullStr Witchcraft narratives in Germany: Rothenburg, 1561-1652
title_full_unstemmed Witchcraft narratives in Germany: Rothenburg, 1561-1652
title_short Witchcraft narratives in Germany: Rothenburg, 1561-1652
title_sort witchcraft narratives in germany rothenburg 1561 1652
topic germany
folklore
witchcraft
witches
Defamation
Early modern period
Lutheranism
Torture
Wettringen (Münsterland)
Witch trials in the early modern period
Witch-hunt
Würth
thema EDItEUR::N History and Archaeology::NH History::NHD European history
topic_facet germany
folklore
witchcraft
witches
Defamation
Early modern period
Lutheranism
Torture
Wettringen (Münsterland)
Witch trials in the early modern period
Witch-hunt
Würth
thema EDItEUR::N History and Archaeology::NH History::NHD European history
url 341414
work_keys_str_mv AT rowlandsalison witchcraftnarrativesingermanyrothenburg15611652