I love to learn about history. But there are some chapters in human history that are difficult to comprehend. This isn’t because we don’t understand what happened. We can figure that much out. But they have become difficult and terrible because we cannot imagine how people could have allowed it to happen.
It seems this may be true of many current events. Too.
But back to the history.
Some of those atrocities are the witch trials. Both in America and in Europe.
For centuries, thousands of innocent people were accused of witchcraft. They suffered greatly. These people were imprisoned, tortured, and executed.
And what were their supposed crimes? Usually, the “religious righteous” accused them of causing illness, ruining crops, bringing bad weather, making cows stop producing milk, or simply looking at someone the wrong way. Of course, they were not responsible for these things. But they were accused. And that’s all it took.
Yes. It really went that way.
Between approximately 1450 and 1750, Europe experienced a terrifying period of witch-hunting. In America, it occurred from the 1640s to the 1690s.
It was all driven by fear and superstition. It was also guided by religious figures in those communities. It created mass hysteria and led to one of history’s most senseless persecutions.
And the accusations were terribly absurd.
A woman might be accused of witchcraft because her neighbor’s cow died. Another because a child became sick after she visited. Someone might claim to have seen a woman flying through the night or meeting with the devil. Even having an unusual birthmark could be considered evidence of a supernatural connection.
And people died because of these ridiculous claims.
Historians estimate that between 40,000 and 60,000 people were executed for witchcraft in Europe during the early modern period. Most were women, although men were also accused and killed. In comparison, there were only about 40 executions in America.
Germany, then a collection of territories within the Holy Roman Empire, was particularly devastated. This is based on records examined for the period between 1300 and 1850. Researchers identified 16,474 people tried for witchcraft in the territory corresponding to what is now Germany. Of those, around 7,000 people were executed.
I just can’t get over this. Thousands of human beings were put to death. All of this for crimes that were simply made up. And they were impossible to prove. The supposed supernatural offenses were just not real.
Worse yet, torture was frequently used to extract confessions. People admitted to impossible acts only because they could no longer endure the pain.
Many of the accused were pressured to name other supposed witches. And as you might imagine, this perpetuated a horrifying cycle of accusations and executions.
Maybe the most disturbing part is that the people responsible often believed they were doing something good. They convinced themselves they were protecting their communities from evil. Maybe.
But in reality, those people leading the witch hunts were nothing more than murderers. Plain and simple
We might like to think humanity has moved beyond such nonsense. Yet. We continue to see people making false claims about others. And we see the terrible effects of persecution. On so many levels.
Centuries have long gone by since those witch hunts. But the underlying danger remains.
Fear can overwhelm reason.
I’ll say it again. Fear (and hatred) can overwhelm reason.
And when people stop questioning accusations, innocent lives can be destroyed.
Thousands of people lost their lives because someone else believed something utterly absurd. What a terrible waste of human life.
And what a powerful reminder that believing something does not make it true.
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“Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities.” — Voltaire
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“People never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from religious conviction.” — Blaise Pascal
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“Fear is the foundation of most governments.” — John Adams
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“Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.” — George Bernard Shaw
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“The most violent element in society is ignorance.” — Emma Goldman
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