Barbara Zdunk (1769 – 21 August 1811) was an ethnically
Polish
Polish may refer to:
* Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe
* Polish language
* Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent
* Polish chicken
* Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...
alleged
arson
Arson is the act of willfully and deliberately setting fire to or charring property. Although the act of arson typically involves buildings, the term can also refer to the intentional burning of other things, such as motor vehicles, watercr ...
ist accused of
witchcraft
Witchcraft is the use of Magic (supernatural), magic by a person called a witch. Traditionally, "witchcraft" means the use of magic to inflict supernatural harm or misfortune on others, and this remains the most common and widespread meanin ...
. Zdunk lived in the town of Rößel, in what was then
East Prussia
East Prussia was a Provinces of Prussia, province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1772 to 1829 and again from 1878 (with the Kingdom itself being part of the German Empire from 1871); following World War I it formed part of the Weimar Republic's ...
, and is now
Reszel
Reszel (; Prussian: ''Resel'' or ''Resl'') is a town in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, in northeastern Poland. As of 2012 the population was 4,896. A small medieval town situated in the historical Warmia region, Reszel possesses many archite ...
in
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...
. She is considered by many to have been the last woman executed for witchcraft in Europe. Although, the accusations of witchcraft were listed in her case, witchcraft was not a criminal offense in Prussia at the time.
The case
In 1806, a devastating fire ravaged the town of Rößel, which burnt almost entirely to the ground. Zdunk, who was a maid known for her fondness of magic, was blamed. She was arrested in 1807, and imprisoned in Rößel castle. No evidence of substance was available, but she was still accused and found guilty of causing the fire. In 1811, Zdunk was executed by
burning at the stake
Death by burning is an execution, murder, or suicide method involving combustion or exposure to extreme heat. It has a long history as a form of public capital punishment, and many societies have employed it as a punishment for and warning agai ...
on a hill outside Rößel, though she was apparently strangled to death by the executioner before the fire was set.
It is believed today that a group of Polish soldiers were the actual arsonists. There is uncertainty as to the true reason for Zdunk's conviction, which was upheld by several appeal courts, up to the king himself. Revenge on Poland on the part of the Prussian authorities or a concession to an outraged public may have played a role, or that she was a 38-year-old woman who had a teenage boyfriend.
Similar to the execution of
Anna Göldi in 1782, who is frequently claimed to be the last person to be executed for witchcraft in Europe, it is dubious whether the trial of Zdunk can be counted as a witch trial in a legal sense.
See also
*
Doruchów witch trial
The Doruchów witch trial was a witch trial which took place in the village of Doruchów in Poland in the 18th century. It was the last mass trial of sorcery and witchcraft in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.
The trial allegedly resulted in ...
, likely the last larger witch trial in Poland
*
Mary Bateman, a contemporary case of a similar execution
*
Krystyna Ceynowa, a somewhat later case of an illegal witch trial in Poland
References
Source
* Neil Wilson, Tom Parkinson, Richard Watkins: ''Poland'' (Lonely Planet Publications)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zdunk, Barbara
1769 births
1811 deaths
People from Reszel
People from Royal Prussia
Polish people executed for witchcraft
People executed by Prussia
Executed Polish women
People executed by Germany by burning