WHORES OF THE DEVIL. Witch-Hunts and Witch-Trials

Hardback. The author looks into the history of witch delusion and the cruel butchers who hunted and executed so-called witches, from the Middle Ages to modern times. Who were these monsters, those who accused, arrested, judged and condemned without showing consideration or pity? What were their motives? Did they act to uphold the received faith, or was it for self-protection? Was it out of personal vindictiveness or for public recognition? For political aims, or sheer greed to confiscate the wealth of their victims? It was a little of all these - a deadly combination of power, fear, lust for control and the Grand Inquisitor's terrible trinity of miracle, mystery and authority. The book begins with the trial and execution of Joan of Arc, and goes on to discuss the activities of the Inquisition, the views of Martin Luther and England's Witchfinder General, Matthew Hopkins, the fate of the Salem witches in Massachusetts and newly discovered evidence from the University of Tubingen which shows that the witch-hunt was quite literally revived under the Nazis. With Notes, Bibliog. and Index. 313pp. 8vo. From the library of true crime writer, Wilfred Gregg, with his personal b/plate. F. in f. dw.