Heinrich Kramer

Malleus Maleficarum, or The Hammer of Witches, is the preeminent and most famous manual on witch-hunts. The book was first published in Speyer, in 1486. The Malleus Maleficarum was read and used in both Protestant and Catholic regions throughout the period of witch hunts and witch trials, from the late 15th to the 18th century. Contrary to popular understanding, the first true witch hunts, involving mass trials of ordinary men and women, began only during the Renaissance and Early Modern Period - not during the Middle Ages - and the Malleus played a key role in the emergence of these new persecutions. The book was for centuries the key point of reference for many of those involved in the pursuit of witches. At its peak, the Malleus was the second-best-selling book in Europe (after the Bible). The Malleus Maleficarum is the most well-known text representing a new synthesized theory that attempted to consolidate various theories relating to witches under a single framework and the first work to widely disseminate this framework across Europe. The Malleus brings together several theological ideas, provides a large number of "real-life," contemporary examples of witches and witchcraft, and, finally, outlines how the threat of the witches must be dealt with in practice. Although the material presented in the Malleus Maleficarum is not in itself truly novel-many other treatises containing many of its ideas already existed at the time when it was written (such as Johannes Nider's Formicarius)-it is nonetheless the most powerful and explosive synthesis of folkloric fears and Catholic theology to have ever been written. The speed with which the work spread may have been partly due to the then-recently invented printing press. The book is divided into three main parts: The first part is an attempt to combine the ideas of the Bible, the opinions of Church Fathers, and other theological authorities-along with scholars from antiquity and pre-existing folk beliefs about witches and evil magic-in order to provide "irrefutable proof" that witches exist. The second part of the book provides an overview of the phenomena of witches and witchcraft based on personal observations by the author and stories told to him by "reputable sources." Although the Malleus draws heavily on Johannes Nider's Formicarius - for its theological discussion as well as its "ethnographic" source material-it diverges from the latter by introducing and elaborating the concept of the "witches' sabbath." This new concept would later become the cornerstone of most witch trials in continental Europe. The third and most problematic and consequential part of the book is concerned with how to prosecute witches. In the Malleus, Kramer argues that the threat posed by witches is so pervasive that it must be dealt with principally by the secular authorities; he considered it too large a threat to be left solely to the Inquisition. The Malleus argues against any kind of lenience towards witches; they should preferably be tortured, and the authorities should at all costs avoid setting them free. In light of the new theory, the witch was no longer a mere human but a tainted servant or vessel of the devil. However, Kramer and Sprenger did not create this witch-entity purely out of their imagination or merely from the theological sources on which they drew but built their image of this new threat to a large degree on pre-existing folk beliefs. The main section of this new edition of the Malleus Maleficarum is a facsimile reprint of Montague Summers' 1928 translation. The book also includes a new 18-page introductory foreword and an updated list of references by anthropologist Nikolas Arhem. The new expansive introductory foreword helps contextualize the Malleus Maleficarum in light of more recent witchcraft and witch-hunt research.

Malleus Maleficarum, or The Hammer of Witches, is the preeminent and most famous manual on witch-hunts. The book was first published in Speyer, in 1486. The Malleus Maleficarum was read and used in both Protestant and Catholic regions throughout the period of witch hunts and witch trials, from the late 15th to the 18th century. Contrary to popular understanding, the first true witch hunts, involving mass trials of ordinary men and women, began only during the Renaissance and Early Modern Period - not during the Middle Ages - and the Malleus played a key role in the emergence of these new persecutions. The book was for centuries the key point of reference for many of those involved in the pursuit of witches. At its peak, the Malleus was the second-best-selling book in Europe (after the Bible). The Malleus Maleficarum is the most well-known text representing a new synthesized theory that attempted to consolidate various theories relating to witches under a single framework and the first work to widely disseminate this framework across Europe. The Malleus brings together several theological ideas, provides a large number of "real-life," contemporary examples of witches and witchcraft, and, finally, outlines how the threat of the witches must be dealt with in practice. Although the material presented in the Malleus Maleficarum is not in itself truly novel-many other treatises containing many of its ideas already existed at the time when it was written (such as Johannes Nider's Formicarius)-it is nonetheless the most powerful and explosive synthesis of folkloric fears and Catholic theology to have ever been written. The speed with which the work spread may have been partly due to the then-recently invented printing press. The book is divided into three main parts: The first part is an attempt to combine the ideas of the Bible, the opinions of Church Fathers, and other theological authorities-along with scholars from antiquity and pre-existing folk beliefs about witches and evil magic-in order to provide "irrefutable proof" that witches exist. The second part of the book provides an overview of the phenomena of witches and witchcraft based on personal observations by the author and stories told to him by "reputable sources." Although the Malleus draws heavily on Johannes Nider's Formicarius - for its theological discussion as well as its "ethnographic" source material-it diverges from the latter by introducing and elaborating the concept of the "witches' sabbath." This new concept would later become the cornerstone of most witch trials in continental Europe. The third and most problematic and consequential part of the book is concerned with how to prosecute witches. In the Malleus, Kramer argues that the threat posed by witches is so pervasive that it must be dealt with principally by the secular authorities; he considered it too large a threat to be left solely to the Inquisition. The Malleus argues against any kind of lenience towards witches; they should preferably be tortured, and the authorities should at all costs avoid setting them free. In light of the new theory, the witch was no longer a mere human but a tainted servant or vessel of the devil. However, Kramer and Sprenger did not create this witch-entity purely out of their imagination or merely from the theological sources on which they drew but built their image of this new threat to a large degree on pre-existing folk beliefs. The main section of this new edition of the Malleus Maleficarum is a facsimile reprint of Montague Summers' 1928 translation. The book also includes a new 18-page introductory foreword and an updated list of references by anthropologist Nikolas Arhem. The new expansive introductory foreword helps contextualize the Malleus Maleficarum in light of more recent witchcraft and witch-hunt research.

A manual of demonology and witchcraft from medieval Europe, the Malleus Maleficarum is an infamous treatise defining methods for identifying, interrogating, and executing supposed witches. 'Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.' (Exodus 22:18 KJV) First written and published in 1486 by German Catholic clergyman Heinrich Kramer, this treatise was republished with additions from a second author, Jacob Sprenger, in 1519. Used to persecute supposed practisers of witchcraft during the witch hunts of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, the Malleus Maleficarum is a haunting reminder of the deep-seated paranoia and religious fervour that led to the torture and deaths of many innocent people. One of history's most infamous texts, this handbook struck fear into the hearts of many and fuelled the flames of hysteria surrounding ideas of heresy, witchcraft, and the occult during the Middle Ages. This is the 1928 edition translated by the English occultist Montague Summers and featuring his original introduction.

This seminal treatise about witchcraft and demons was penned by Heinrich Kramer, a man of the 1800's who had tried (and failed) to have a woman executed for witchcraft. Unhappy at the verdict of the court, Kramer authored the Malleus Maleficarum as a manual for other witch seekers to refer to. For centuries the text was used by Christians as a reference source on matters of demonology, although it was not used directly by the Inquisition who became notorious for their tortures and murders. Today, Kramer's book is considered to be a seminal treatise on witchcraft and demons. This edition was translated into modern English by Montague Summers. At the time this book was published in 1487, the Christian church had considered witchcraft a dangerous affront to the faith for centuries on end. Executions of suspected witches were intermittent, and various explanations of behaviors deemed suspect were thought to be caused by possession, either by the devil or demon (for example, incubus or succubus). Contrary to popular belief, Kramer's work does not exclusively recommend death by burning as a punishment for witches. It does describe various methods of exorcism, whereby the demonic force may be banished from the body of the suffering witch. It also openly advocates discrimination against women, albeit while acknowledging that a minority of witchcraft practitioners are male. A theory on why the vast majority of witches are female is offered, rooted in the presence of woman in the Biblical canon. Towards the end of the book, Kramer contends that witches are created from a pact made with the Devil himself, with whom they engage in sexual liaisons. The witch is then summoned by flight to an evil assembly headed by the Devil, encouraged to practice illicit forms of sex, and then granted the powers of maleficent magic. Today, Malleus Malificarum is considered to be the single and most complete source on Christian attitudes to witchcraft and demons in existence.

The Malleus Maleficarum, usually translated as the Hammer of Witches, is the best known treatise on witchcraft. It was written by the German Catholic clergyman Heinrich Kramer and first published in the German city of Speyer in 1486.

The Malleus Maleficarum, usually translated as the Hammer of Witches, is the best known treatise on witchcraft. It was written by the German Catholic clergyman Heinrich Kramer and first published in the German city of Speyer in 1486.

For nearly three centuries Malleus Maleficarum (The Witches' Hammer) was the professional manual for witch hunters. This work by two of the most famous Inquisitors of the age is still a document of the forces of that era's beliefs. Under a Bull of Pope Innocent VIII, Kramer and Sprenger exposed the heresy of those who did not believe in witches and set forth the proper order of the world with devils, witches, and the will of God. Even if you do not believe in witchcraft, the world of 1484 did. Contemporary cases illustrate methods by which witches attempt to control and subvert the world: How and why women roast their first-born male child; the confession of how to raise a tempest by a washwoman suspended "hardly clear of the ground" by her thumbs; methods of making a formal pact with the Devil; how witches deprive men of their vital member; and many others. Methods of destroying and curing witchcraft, such as remedies against incubus and succubus devils, are exemplified and weighed by the authors. Formal rules for initiating a process of justice are set down: how it should be conducted and the method of pronouncing sentence; when to use the trial by the red-hot-iron; how the prosecutor should protect himself; how the body is to be shaved and searched for tokens and amulets, including those sewn under the skin. As Summers says, it was the casebook on every magistrate's desk. Montague Summers has given a very sympathetic translation. His two introductions are filled with examples of witchcraft and the historical importance of Malleus Maleficarum. This famous document should interest the historian, the student of witchcraft and the occult, and the psychologist who is interested in the medieval mind as it was confronted with various forces which could be explained only by witchcraft.

The Malleus Maleficarum is a seminal treatise regarding witchcraft and demons, presented here complete with an authoritative translation to modern English by Montague Summers. At the time this book was published in 1487, the Christian church had considered witchcraft a dangerous affront to the faith for many centuries. Executions of suspected witches were intermittent, and various explanations of behaviors deemed suspect were thought to be caused by possession, either by the devil or demon such as an incubus or succubus. Kramer wrote this book after he had tried and failed to have a woman executed for witchcraft. Unhappy at the verdict of the court, he authored the Malleus Maleficarum as a manual for other witch seekers to refer to. For centuries the text was used by Christians as a reference source on matters of demonology, although it was not used directly by the Inquisition who became notorious for their tortures and murders.

The Malleus Maleficarum is a seminal treatise regarding witchcraft and demons, presented here complete with an authoritative translation to modern English by Montague Summers. At the time this book was published in 1487, the Christian church had considered witchcraft a dangerous affront to the faith for many centuries. Executions of suspected witches were intermittent, and various explanations of behaviors deemed suspect were thought to be caused by possession, either by the devil or demon such as an incubus or succubus. Kramer wrote this book after he had tried and failed to have a woman executed for witchcraft. Unhappy at the verdict of the court, he authored the Malleus Maleficarum as a manual for other witch seekers to refer to. For centuries the text was used by Christians as a reference source on matters of demonology, although it was not used directly by the Inquisition who became notorious for their tortures and murders.

The Malleus Maleficarum is the best known and the most important treatise on witchcraft. It was written by the Catholic clergyman Heinrich Kramer and first published in 1487. It was a bestseller, second only to the Bible in terms of sales for almost 200 years. The top theologians of the Inquisition at the Faculty of Cologne condemned the book as recommending unethical and illegal procedures, as well as being inconsistent with Catholic doctrines of demonology.