HIST 2C Chapter Notes - Chapter 3: Inquisitorial System, Eye For An Eye
Document Summary
The great european witch hunt was essentially a judicial operation. Witches would even commit suicide to avoid the punishment that the law had waiting for them (gruesome and violent) Even the angry villagers would take matters into their own hands and kill witches and sorcerers without the authority of the law. They would also torture them in as gruesome a manner or vigilante style . Central government didn"t approve of this because it challenges their authority, so they make an effort to put a stop to it. For the most part though, it can be said that anyone who was executed for being a witch were formally and legally tried and sentenced. First, the secular and ecclesiastical courts of continental europe adopted a new and inquisitorial system of criminal procedure that made it far easier for witch craft cases to be initiated and prosecuted.
