The European Witch-Hunt of 1500-1750

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Short description: Presented by Dr. Michael Graham of the University of Akron. Register online, in-person, or by phone at 330.896.9074.

Description: The European witch-hunt of 1500-1750 was one of history’s most troubling phenomena. It directly affected hundreds of thousands of people and claimed tens of thousands of victims, killed for committing a crime that modern commentators view as imaginary.

Michael Graham, professor of history at the University of Akron and author of several books and articles on the social and religious history of this period, will try to explain it. What was it which caused people at all levels of society, including the most educated, to live in fear of black magic? How could such fears have made sense to them? How did those fears develop, and by what process did they eventually ease? We will also take a closer look at some witchcraft-related material from Scotland, a country that experienced a particularly intense witch-hunt.