The Ramsele witch trial, which took place in 1634, is one of the few known Swedish witch trials before the great witch mania of 1668–1676.
Background
In the year of 1634 a man and several women were put on trial in the city of
Ramsele in
Ångermanland
Ångermanland ( or ) is a historical province (''landskap'') in the northern part of Sweden. It is bordered (clockwise from the north) by Swedish Lapland, Västerbotten, the Gulf of Bothnia, Medelpad and Jämtland.
The name is derived from the ...
in
Norrland
Norrland (, , originally ''Norrlanden'', meaning 'the Northlands') is the northernmost, largest and least populated of the three traditional lands of Sweden, consisting of nine provinces. Although Norrland does not serve any administrative p ...
in Sweden. This was during a period of starvation, and they were accused of having stolen milk from their neighbors.
The man was said to have stabbed a knife in a wall and, uttering "terrible prayers," milked the wall through the knife. It had been claimed that the women had used small animals, hares and undefined creatures to milk cattle in their neighbor's barns. The women were pointed out by Barbro Påvelsdotter from Sandviken, who was the first to be arrested, and confirmed to have been with her to
Blockula.
Unfortunately, few records exist about this trial. In 1635, the vicar, Mr Elias, complained about the economic loss he had suffered because of the witches spells, and in 1636, the executioner Håkan of
Säbrå
Säbrå is a Human settlement, settlement in Härnösand Municipality, Västernorrland County, Sweden.
Säbrå Church was built after the Russian Pillage of 1719–1721. Its present appearance dates largely from changes made in 1758–1759, thoug ...
received payment for "Having burned one warlock and four witches". It is most likely that they were beheaded before they were burned, as no known witch in Sweden, with the exception of
Malin Matsdotter, was burned alive.
The real witch-hunt came to Sweden late, and didn't break out until 1668. It then reached its peak with the
Torsåker witch trials. Witch trials were known in Sweden before 1668, but they were few and often ended with an acquittal or a mild sentence, not execution, such as the case of
Brita Pipare
Brita, "the wife of Jöran Pipare" (floruit 1595) was an alleged Swedish witch. Her case is a significant one, illustrating a witch trial held when the belief in witchcraft had increased, but the law still did not permit harsh persecution of magic ...
Stockholm
Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...
in 1593. This is one of the few known examples of a "mass trial" of sorcery in Sweden before the great witch hunt in the 1670s; before 1668, there are few examples in Sweden of witch trials where more than two people were executed at the same time. Another example is the
Finspång witch trial in 1617, where seven women were executed.
See also
*
Elin i Horsnäs
*
Märet Jonsdotter
Märet Jonsdotter (1644 – September 1672) was an alleged Swedish witch. She is one of the best known victims of the great witch hysteria called ''det stora oväsendet'' ("The Great Noise"), spanning 1668–1676. Märet was the first to be accused ...
References
* Åberg, Alf, Häxorna: de stora trolldomsprocesserna i Sverige 1668–1676, Esselte studium/Akademiförl., Göteborg, 1989
* Ankarloo, Bengt, Satans raseri: en sannfärdig berättelse om det stora häxoväsendet i Sverige och omgivande länder, Ordfront, Stockholm, 2007
* http://www.solace.miun.se/~blasta/herdamin/ramsele.pdf
Witch trials in Sweden
1634 in law
1634 in Sweden
1634 in Europe
17th-century executions by Sweden
Sollefteå Municipality
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