witches
anneboleyn
joanofarc
joanwytte
florencenewton
elisabethsawyer
mothershipton
marybutters
isobelgoldie
dollypentreath
carolineofbruns
clutterbuck
margaretjones
marielaveau
endor
bridgetbishop
burningtimes
toolsoftrade

Witches, Burning Times

Historically the term designated, especially for witches, the period within Western history in which there occurred intense burning, also the various types of murdering of witches. This period is known for its vindictive witch hunts which extended from the mid-15th century to the early 18th century.

The Burning Times is a Wiccan term referring to the witch persecutions in Europe during the late medieval and renaissance periods. According to the theory, Christian witch hunters were in fact attempting to root out practitioners of older pagan religions. The stories of Satanic worship was simply a rouse to convince the masses of the necessity of putting these people down or, at best, the result of confusion and miscommunication. The fact that women were targeted almost exclusively is a result of the fact that these pagan religions held women in much higher esteem and were generally considered the caretakers of magical knowledge.

Not only is the myth of the Burning Times false, it's disrespectful to the real victims of the witch-persecutions who were at first heretics and then were generally Christians unfortunate enough to be swept up in a hysteria that swept half a continent. None of the victims were Wiccan - the religion did not exist at the time. Few, if any, had any knowledge of pagan religion.

The idea of burning witches, one of the cruellest forms of execution, is said to have originated with Saint Augustine (354-430), who said "that pagans, Jews, and heretics would burn forever in eternal fire with the Devil unless saved by the Catholic Church."

Anne Boleyn, Joan of Arc, Joan Wytte, Florence Newton, Elisabeth Sawyer, Mother Shipton, Mary Butters, Isobel Goldie Dolly Pentreath, Caroline of Brunswick, Dorothy Clutterbuck, Margaret Jones, Marie Laveau, Witch of Endor Bridget Bishop Burning Times, Tools Of The Trade