Georg Haan (died 14 July 1628) was a prominent victim of the

Bamberg witch trials The Bamberg witch trials of 1627–1632, which took place in the self-governing Catholic Prince-Bishopric of Bamberg in the Holy Roman Empire in present-day Germany, is one of the biggest mass trials and mass executions ever seen in Europe, a ...

. Georg Haan was a doctor and member of the city council of

Bamberg Bamberg (, , ; East Franconian German, East Franconian: ''Bambärch'') is a town in Upper Franconia district in Bavaria, Germany, on the river Regnitz close to its confluence with the river Main (river), Main. Bamberg had 79,000 inhabitants in ...

. He was married to Katharina Haan and had two daughters, Katharina and Ursula, and four sons named Adam, Carl, Daniel and Leonhard. Haan was among the most well known secular personalities in Bamberg. He publicly opposed the policy of witch persecution by prince Bishop

Johann Georg Fuchs von Dornheim Johann Georg Fuchs von Dornheim (1586–1633) was the Prince-Bishop of Bamberg from 1623 to 1633. He was known as the "Hexenbrenner" (witch burner) and the "Hexenbischof" (witch-bishop) for presiding over the most intensive period of witch trial ...

, and in 1627, he sued the Prince Bishop before the Imperial Diet in Speyer. Haan departed for Speyer on 27 December. Shortly after his departure, his wife was arrested for witchcraft after having been pointed out by, among others, Hans Morhaubt, the son of Christina Morhaubt (who herself was burnt alive in August 1627). Katharina Haan was tortured until she confessed and was burnt alive after 16 January 1628. Shortly after, her daughter and namesake was swiftly arrested, tortured, sentenced and burned. When Georg Haan returned to Bamberg, he found that his wife and daughter had been arrested, condemned, and executed during his absence, and that his personal safety was also in danger. To avoid an arrest,

Maximilian I, Elector of Bavaria Maximilian I (17 April 157327 September 1651), occasionally called the Great, a member of the House of Wittelsbach, ruled as Duke of Bavaria from 1597. His reign was marked by the Thirty Years' War during which he obtained the title of a prince- ...

attempted to save him by offering to employ him, but the messenger he sent to Bamberg to deliver this news was prevented from reaching the city. Shortly after, Georg was arrested and accused of sorcery. According to protocol, he had been denounced by his son, Adam. He confessed to sorcery and was executed on 14 July 1628. In his will, he left his entire fortune to his children and other private people, and nothing to the Church. The following year, 1629, his remaining daughter, Ursula, and his son, Adam, were arrested and burnt. His remaining three sons were given protection by the Dominican Heilig Grab Abbey and survived the witch trials, which finally ended in 1632.

References

* Britta Gehm: Die Hexenverfolgung im Hochstift Bamberg und das Eingreifen des Reichshofrates zu ihrer Beendigung (= Rechtsgeschichte und Zivilisationsprozess. Nr. 3). 2. überarbeitete Auflage. Olms, Hildesheim 2012, , S. 214–243. {{DEFAULTSORT:Haan, Georg 1628 deaths Year of birth unknown Place of birth unknown German people executed for witchcraft People executed in the Holy Roman Empire by burning 17th-century German people 17th-century executions in the Holy Roman Empire Bamberg witch trials

See also

References