The Malleus Maleficarum: The Hammer Of Witches

The Malleus Maleficarum (Latin for “The Hammer of Witches”, or “Hexenhammer” in German) is one of the most famous medieval treatises on witches. It was written in 1486 by Heinrich Kramer and Jacob Sprenger, and was first published in Germany in 1487. Its main purpose was to challenge all arguments against the existence of witchcraft and to instruct magistrates on how to identify, interrogate and convict witches. The Malleus Maleficarum (Latin for “The Hammer of Witches”, or “Hexenhammer” in German) is one of the most famous medieval treatises on witches.

It was written in 1486 by Heinrich Kramer and Jacob Sprenger, and was first published in Germany in 1487. Its main purpose was to challenge all arguments against the existence of witchcraft and to instruct magistrates on how to identify, interrogate and convict witches. It served as a guidebook for Inquisitors during the Inquisition, and was designed to aid them in the

identification, prosecution, and dispatching of Witches.

It was said to have set forth many of the modern misconceptions and fears concerning witches and the influence of witchcraft. Its main purpose was to challenge all arguments against the existence of witchcraft and to instruct magistrates on how to identify, interrogate and convict witches. The Malleus Maleficarum (The Witch Hammer),is arguably one of the most infamous books ever written, due primarily to its position and regard during the Middle Ages. It served as a guidebook for Inquisitors during the Inquisition, and was designed to aid them in the identification, prosecution, and dispatching of Witches.

The lasting effect of the Malleus upon the world can only be measured in the lives of the hundreds of thousands of men, women, and even children, who suffered, and died, at the hands of the Inquisitors during the Inquisition. At the height of its popularity, The Malleus Maleficarum was surpassed in public notoriety only by The Bible.

Its effects were even felt in the New World, where the last gasp of the Inquisition was felt in the English settlements in America. This book's main purpose was to challenge all arguments against the existence of witchcraft and to instruct magistrates on how to identify, interrogate and convict witches. Basically, it served as a kind of guidebook. However, it also set forth many of the misconceptions and fears about Witchcraft.

In 1490, three years after its publication, the Catholic Church condemned the Malleus Maleficarum, although it was later used by royal courts during the Renaissance, and contributed to the increasingly brutal persecution of witchcraft during the 16th and 17th centuries.

It has been said that the book is one of the most blood-soaked works in human history. When I first started the assignment, I really had no idea what it was or what it represented. The Witches Hammer to me is just another way that officials were trying to get rid of people that they were scared of or those in the communities around them that were different from them.

They wrote this book so that they could legally pursue those that followed different beliefs than their own and this made it seem “right”. With this being said, I feel that this book has helped others learn about the history of Witchcraft and it did shine some light on the persecution that stemmed from the ideologies in this publication. In Modern Wicca and Pagan practices, this book is still considered a

threat.

The reasoning behind this statement is because there are those that have read this book and still believe Witchcraft practitioners are bad. This is because of the fact that most wiccans and pagans alike fit outside the norm and most Christians feel that we are a threat to their religion. That is not True. If this book does nothing else, it does give us a better look at a time in history where we (Pagans and Wiccans) were deemed heretic and the steps that people took to make sure we were stopped.

Although, most of the people that died during the Inquisition weren’t even witches. They were just ordinary people that weren’t with the church’s teachings. In my personal practices, I would really like to read this book and see exactly what it entails. I understand that it is a darker book and a lot of death has come from it. I also understand that it would be a good teaching tool; I say this because it shows the history back then and we could get a better understanding of how everything played out, per say. It also shows resemblance to those in everyday life and we might be able to change a few people’s minds about how they treated those who practiced witchcraft. So, in a way, the real reason why this term is important is because it was a Witch Hunters basic manual to hunting witches.

I knew I had gotten the term wrong as soon as I found out it wasn't what I thought it was, And honestly I didn't think my research was going to take me on a bit of a shocking tale of what The Witches Hammer really was. I was and still am beyond words. Above, you will find that I have already given the explanation of why I am shocked. Witch Hunters? Something I never knew. This term is often misunderstood because well, I think this term gets misunderstood because a lot of people don't see it as a guide like they did back then. My misunderstanding of this term was that I thought it was sort of like a Hammer that judges used and things. Turns out I was wrong.