Lisbon witch trial
The Lisbon witch trial took place in 1559-1560 and resulted in the execution of six women for
The trial
The witch trial in Lisbon of 1559 was conducted by the secular authorities. Five women were accused of witchcraft in the city of Lisbon. In the trial records, the accused confessed to sexual intercourse with the Devil and claimed that it was more pleasurable than sex with mortal men. One of them confessed to killing 200 babies. The confessions also claimed that the Devil and his demons visited them in prison and punished them with abuse in their cells as punishment for their confessions. The five women judged guilty were executed by burning.
The witch trial caused some unrest, which resulted in Queen Catarina ordering a general inquiry into witchcraft in Portugal. The inquiry resulted in the arrest of 27 people for suspected witchcraft. Of the 27 accused, one was sentenced to death. The remainder of those judged guilty were sentenced to other punishments, such as prison, banishment and whipping.
There are no other cases resembling the Lisbon witch trial in Portugal. The
References
- Brian P. Levack: The Oxford Handbook of Witchcraft in Early Modern Europe and Colonial America
- Rego, Yvonne Cunha (ed.) -- Feiticeiros, profetas e visionários. Textos antigos portugueses, Lisboa: Imprensa Nacional Casa da Moeda, 1981, p. 13-21.
- http://www.suppressedhistories.net/secrethistory/ReignD.pdf
- Steven T. Katz: The Holocaust in Historical Context: The holocaust and mass death before the modern age