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Tony Robinson on the top five superstitions that gripped medieval Britain

Ancient Britons didn’t despatch people willy-nilly, but in times of crisis – if a whole community was rocked by plague, say – then they might decide to sacrifice somebody as a way of bartering with the gods. In some cases, a wicker pyre in the shape of a man would be stuffed with animals and even human offerings. We can trace this practice back to Celtic times. The Celts saw the world in which they lived as crammed full of gods. Malleus Maleficarum, a handbook explaining how to identify, capture and kill a witch, was first published in Germany in 1487 and then circulated around Europe, stoking hysteria about witchcraft. Changelings In medieval Britain, parents sometimes believed that their child had been taken away by the fairy people and substituted with a changeling. Possession For most of human history, people have believed that spirits can get inside you and take over your mind. Vampires ‘Tony Robinson’s Gods and Monsters’ is on Channel 4 on Saturday 26 November at 8.15pm

Witches and Witchcraft in the Middle Ages | Middle Ages Written by Simon Newman History - Middle Ages Witchcraft in the Middle Ages was a controversial crime that was equally punishable to poisoning. If one was accused of witchcraft, the charges could be dropped by a relative’s defense in a trial by combat, or by twelve people swearing an oath of the accused’s innocence. In the case of a relative defending the accused, the accuser was required to pay a fine. With the rise of Christianity witchcraft became a superstition, and, as such, persecution of witchcraft persisted through the Middle Ages. History In the 5th century AD, Christian theologian St. Conversely, St. In the 8th century, St. Anti-witchcraft laws began to rise in the 7th to 9th centuries. Before the 13th century witchcraft was known as a collection of practices and beliefs associated with healing. Witches and Witchcraft in the Middle Ages began to be considered as “demon-worship” by the beginning of 13th century. During this time St. Magic -Black Magic -White Magic Appearance Practices

Medieval Witchcraft Facts and interesting information about Medieval Life,specifically, Medieval Witchcraft Medieval Witchcraft - White Witches, Wise Women and Cunning FolkDuring the early and middle Medieval era, up to the Renaissance period, the wisdom of the 'Wise women' or 'Cunning Folk' - the White Witches - were seen as helpful, if not invaluable, members of their communities. Their knowledge of the healing properties of various plants and herbs were often passed down through the generations. Their role was to provide help for people in need. Medieval Witchcraft - Black WitchesThe White witches were clearly distinguished from the 'Black' witches. Medieval Witchcraft - the Hammer of WitchesWhat led to the hysteria surrounding Medieval witchcraft? Medieval Witchcraft - the Hammer of WitchesDuring the Medieval times people blamed unexplainable events as the work of witchcraft and witches. Medieval Witchcraft - Reasons for the Persecution of WitchesDuring the Medieval era men were all-powerful.

Health and Medicine in Medieval England Health and medicine in Medieval England were very important aspects of life. For many peasants in Medieval England, disease and poor health were part of their daily life and medicines were both basic and often useless. Towns and cities were filthy and knowledge of hygiene was non-existent. The Black Death was to kill two thirds of England’s population between 1348 and 1350. In 1349, Edward III complained to the Lord Mayor of London that the streets of the city were filthy: No one knew what caused diseases then. Other theories put forward for diseases included “humours”. Astronomers blamed the planets going out of line As important, no-one knew how diseases spread – the fact that people lived so close together in both villages and towns meant that contagious diseases could be rampant when they appeared; as happened with the Black Death. Physicians were seen as skilled people but their work was based on a very poor knowledge of the human anatomy. Operations were carried out by ‘surgeons’.

Trepanning: the oldest surgical procedure in history Trepanning – which comes from the Greek word trypanon, meaning a device for boring holes – is the oldest-known surgical procedure, and possibly the grimmest. Written by Emily Bright Wednesday 12th August 2015 Submitted by: Jonny Wilkes A medieval surgeon performs a trepanning operation, c1350. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images) It is a process whereby a hole is drilled in the skull, and, with evidence going back to prehistoric times, it is one of the oldest surgical practices in history. It may have had a practical effect – to relieve pressure on the skull after an injury – but it could have also been used to give a trapped demon a hole to escape, or was so believed. Many different civilizations, from the Romans and Chinese performed the procedure, using sharpened pieces of flint as a surgical tool. It was even used by the Mayans, Aztecs and Incas as part of their ancient rituals. During the Middle Ages, trepanning continued to be used frequently.

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