HST 122 -- Scientific Revolution: Context

I. Witchcraft and Magic
    A. both elites and commoners believed in the power of the
            divine and supernatural to intervene in human affairs
    B. skilled practitioners performed magic
		- astrologists [casting a horoscope, 1617]
		- herbalists [apothecary shop 1, apothecary shop 2, both 15th c.]
		- physicians, barber-surgeons [bloodletting, 13th c.]
		- alchemists [workshop, 1580]
			- sulfur and mercury
			- elixir of life
    C. magical and Christian beliefs did not oppose each other
    D. this began to change in the later Middle Ages when the church
            began to associate magic and witchcraft with the devil
            - esp. black magic, i.e., magic used for evil purposes
II. The Witchcraft Craze 
    A. over 30,000 people accused of witchcraft in Germany alone
            between 1550-1650
    B. Why did this happen?
        1. Religion
        2. Social and economic change
    C. more than 80 percent of accused witches were women
            - Handout: The Judgment of a Witch
                1. How would you describe Walpurga Hausmännin?
                    (age, profession, position in society, etc.)
                2. What are the accusations against her?
                3. What do these accusations tell us about contemporary beliefs
                        about women and witchcraft?
                4. How did the town officials discover that she performed
                        such actions?
                5. What was her punishment?
    D. Images
        1. Witches: 1, 2 [16th c.]
        2. Torture Devices: Garrotte (1, 2), Chair, Tickler (1, 2), Fork (1, 2)
    E. end of the craze
        1. people tired of the violence of the religious wars
        2. people looking to science for answers
            - witchcraft not possible because it's not reasonable
III. The Universe
    A. most people believed that the earth was the center of
        the universe (geocentric view)
    B. this is what it looks like to the unaided eye
    C. Ptolemy (c. 100-170) -- Greek astronomer
        - epicycles = small circular motions within the orbit of a planet
    D. Aristotle
        - planets and stars are made of a different kind of matter than
            the earth; thus, they don't fall to the earth like an apple
        - Aristotle's universe: the "Prime Mover" causes the planets, etc. to rotate earth
    E. Christianity
        - the sky is the heavens, the home of the angels; it's made out of
            pure matter that is permanently in place