Re: TWT #3: Witchcraft After the Witch Trials Jenny jenny@panix.com Tue Sep 5 17:06:11 2000 4. Portugal*p*Another area where there hasn't been a lot of research. Portuguese witch trials were run by the Spanish Inquisition. And in Portugal, the Inquisition was far more concerned with Jews than witches. There were comparatively few trials during the Burning Times, and when the Great Hunt ended, Portugal's trials dropped even further.*p*However in Portugal, most of the witches tried tended to be "real" witches -- they were primarily saludadores ("healers") and women who sold love potions. Portugal didn't get hit with any big crazes; it avoided most of the horrible stereotypes about witchcraft. And therefore its trials tell us a great deal about real witches, even though there aren't a lot of them.*p**br*5. Spain*p*Spain had a couple of big witch-crazes during the Burning Times. However if you remove these, most of the remaining trials focused on hechiceria (small magic -- divination, love magic, etc.) rather than brujeria (harmful magick or "witchcraft" as it gets translated). Most cases were handled by the Inquisition, though a few were tried in secular courts. For reasons we don't understand, baneful magic trials only occurred in northern Spain. Southern Spaniards still blamed misfortunes on malign "witches", but for some reason they rarely resorted to the Inquisition with their problems -- thus there were no witchcraft (brujeria) trials in this area.*p*After the end of the Burning Times, little changed. The number of cases dropped even further, but women still made up the majority of the accused (75%). They tended to be accused of casting love spells or using divination. In souther Spain, love magick was particularly associated with the "moriscas", women of mixed Spanish and Moorish ancestry. A minority of "witches" (less than 20%) were healers. Male "witches" tended to be accused of using magick to find hidden treasure -- a charge common to male "witches" throughout Europe. The Inquisition remained far more interested in Christian heretics, Moors, and Jews rather than witches.*p**br*6. Italy*p*In Italy, as in Spain and Portugal, most witchcraft cases were handled by the Inquisition. The Roman Inquisition persecuted witches much more than the Spanish Inquisition did. In Spain, only 7% of the Inquisition's cases involved magick; in Italy, 33% did. However like the Spanish Inquisition, the Roman Inquisition rarely killed witches. Most convicted witches received fines and penances.*p*After the Burning Times ended, Italian witchcraft charges changed dramatically. Originally, Italian witches were primarily accused of either healing magick, love magick, or cursing. After 1670, the Inquisition stopped prosecuting healers and most trials revolved around love magick and curses. *p*The gender of Italian witches shifted too. Before the 17th century, witches were predominantly women (70%). Many of the men accused during this period (40%) were priests. By the end of the 17th century the percentage of women witches dropped to 60%. And after 1670, most accused witches were men, not women.*p*(to be continued)*p*Jenny*br* TWT #3: Witchcraft After the Witch Trials Jenny 261 Thu Jul 27 15:18:28 2000