Soldan's Geschichte der Hexenprozesse. Zweiter Band

Metadata

Gutenberg ID

25048

Title

Soldan's Geschichte der Hexenprozesse. Zweiter Band

Language

de

Book source

Project Gutenberg

Description max 80 words

This historical analysis examines the witch hunts of the 16th and 17th centuries, tracing the evolution of accusations from supernatural pacts to mass hysteria. It features early critics like Cornelius Agrippa and Johann Weyer, who challenged prevailing superstitions, alongside later debates on the psychological and legal mechanisms that fueled these tragic persecutions.

Summary up to 500 words

Wilhelm Gottlieb Soldan's *Soldan's Geschichte der Hexenprozesse* (Second Volume) presents a rigorous historical and critical examination of witch trials in Germany and beyond, tracing the evolution of belief, law, and persecution from the sixteenth to the nineteenth century. The narrative begins by highlighting the pivotal role of Cornelius Agrippa, a bold intellectual who questioned the foundations of magic and faced imprisonment for his views. His student, Johann Weyer, emerges as a central figure who argued that many accusations stemmed from imagination, natural causes, or demonic deception rather than actual witchcraft. Weyer distinguished between true sorcerers and elderly women falsely accused of *maleficia*, often driven by melancholy or intoxication. The text explores various theories explaining the phenomenon, including the suggestions of contemporaries like Maximilian Perty, who proposed that accused witches experienced vivid hallucinations or ecstatic visions induced by narcotic salves, creating a shared magical community in their minds. Others, such as Ludwig Meyer, pointed to mental illness as a central factor, noting that the insane were often dragged into the proceedings. Soldan critically evaluates legal and social factors, emphasizing the lack of written criminal procedure and shifting moral standards, which allowed false confessions to flourish under torture. He refutes defenses of the witch hunts, such as those by Vilmar, who claimed the trials were legally sound and that the accused were often guilty of sexual immorality. Instead, Soldan emphasizes the systematic nature of the injustices and the role of religious dogma. The book covers the decline of trials in the eighteenth century and the persistence of belief into the nineteenth, concluding with a reflection on the enduring tragedy of these events and the failure of justice to protect the innocent. Through detailed analysis of primary sources and contemporary theories, Soldan exposes the mechanisms of the witch hunts, revealing how fear, superstition, and flawed legal systems converged to produce one of history's darkest chapters.

LLM editorial rating

4.2/5

Download URL

https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/25048.epub.noimages

Local file path

data/epubs/pg25048.epub

Download EPUB

Downloaded at

2026-07-03 09:58 UTC

Categories

• Religion
• History