Cautio Criminalis, or a Book on Witch Trials

Freidrich Spee von Langenfeld (Autor)

Buch | Hardcover

288 Seiten

2003
University of Virginia Press (Verlag)
978-0-8139-2181-5 (ISBN)

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In 1631, at the epicentre of the worst excesses of the European witch-hunts, Friedrich Spee, a Jesuit priest, published the ""Cautio Criminalis"", a book speaking out against the trials that were sending thousands of innocent people to gruesome deaths. Spee, who had himself ministered to women accused of witchcraft in Germany, had witnessed firsthand the twisted logic and brutal torture used by judges and inquisitors. Combined, these harsh prosecutorial measures led inevitably not only to a confession but to denunciations of supposed accomplices, spreading the circle of torture and execution ever wider. Driven by his priestly charge of enacting Christian charity, or love, Spee sought to expose the flawed arguments and methods used by the witch-hunters. His logic is relentless as he reveals the contradictions inherent in their arguments, showing there is no way for an innocent person to prove her innocence. And, he questions, if the condemned witches truly are guilty, how could the testimony of these servants and allies of Satan be reliable? Spee's insistence that suspects, no matter how heinous the crimes of which they are accused, possess certain inalienable rights is a timeless reminder for the present day. The ""Cautio Criminalis"" is an important and moving work in the history of witch trials and a revealing documentation of one man's unexpected humanity in a brutal age.

Marcus Hellyer is the Dibner Fund Assistant Professor for the History of Science at Brandeis University.

Erscheint lt. Verlag	30.6.2003
Reihe/Serie	Studies in Early Modern German History
Einführung	Marcus Hellyer
Mitarbeit	Sonstige Mitarbeit: Marcus Hellyer
Zusatzinfo	Illustrations
Verlagsort	Charlottesville
Sprache	englisch
Maße	159 x 239 mm
Gewicht	537 g
Themenwelt	Sachbuch/Ratgeber ► Gesundheit / Leben / Psychologie ► Esoterik / Spiritualität
	Geschichte ► Allgemeine Geschichte ► Neuzeit (bis 1918)
	Geisteswissenschaften ► Geschichte ► Regional- / Ländergeschichte
	Geschichte ► Teilgebiete der Geschichte ► Kulturgeschichte
	Geisteswissenschaften ► Religion / Theologie ► Weitere Religionen
	Recht / Steuern ► Strafrecht ► Kriminologie
ISBN-10	0-8139-2181-3 / 0813921813
ISBN-13	978-0-8139-2181-5 / 9780813921815
Zustand	Neuware