Peter Binsfeld

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Peter Binsfeld (* around 1545 in Binsfeld (Eifel) ; † November 24, 1598 in Trier ) was auxiliary bishop in Trier and witch theorist .

Life

Peter Binsfeld (or Latinized Petrus Binsfeldius ) was born as the son of a farmer and craftsman. In the Himmerod Abbey he initially served as a shepherd boy until the abbot recognized his talent and let him study in his monastery . He was later sent to Rome to complete his training in 1552 at the Collegium Germanicum .

He returned from Rome in 1568 as a priest in the Trier area, where Archbishop Jakob von Eltz assigned him the task of building the princely abbey with the town of Prüm , which at that time threatened to fall victim to the Lutheran reform , in the spirit of the Tridentine reform approaches to faith and discipline traced back. Since he solved this task to the satisfaction of the elector, he was appointed provost of St. Simeon in 1578 , two years later, in 1580, appointed auxiliary bishop in Trier and on February 2, 1581 by the archbishop of Trier, Jakob von Eltz, to the Titular Bishop of Azotus consecrated. He also held this office during the reign of Johann VII von Schönenberg (1581–1599), under whom the worst witch persecutions in the Trier electorate came about due to his great influence .

It is assumed that in the period from 1587 to 1593 around 360 people were burned for witchcraft in the Trier region, including the prominent "opponent" of Auxiliary Bishop Binsfeld, the mayor, electoral councilor and confidante of Archbishop Dr. jur. Dietrich Flade . For a long time, Flade knew how to oppose an escalation of the trials in the city of Trier, but then he himself was denounced and soon afterwards charged. Because of his high reputation, he was hanged in 1589 as an act of grace before being burned on the gallows . After that, Binsfeld could switch and do as he wanted.

The high reputation that Peter Binsfeld enjoyed not only with the Elector, but also in the city of Trier, is also demonstrated by his two-time work as Rector of the University of Trier in 1582/83 and 1587/88.

He died of the plague on November 24, 1598 .

The witches' tract

Title page of the witches' tract

The result was Binsfeld's witch's tract Tractatus de confessionibus maleficorum et sagarum, & auctior redditus. An, & quanta fides ijs abhibenda sit? on the basis of the indictment against Dietrich Flade and appeared in the year of his death, that is, 1589. This writing spread rapidly. Her early German translations in particular probably helped her to achieve this. The first German edition was published by Heinrich Bock in Trier as early as 1590 and just a year later the printer Adam Berg had the assessor of the Munich city court, Magister Bernhard Vogel, prepare his own German translation, which he titled Tractat von Wissens der Zauberer und Witches. Whether and how much to believe the same published in Munich in 1591. The work saw a total of six editions, so that a minimum of 6,000 printed copies must be assumed. This is evidence of how popular Binsfeld's work was. It was considered the standard work in the field of witchcraft for at least 100 years .

Preface and first part of the witches' tract

In the preface to his work, Peter Binsfeld acquainted his readers with the undoubted 'fact' that there are wizards and witches : “The imperial rights attest / kind dear reader / and then clarify the midday sun / that before old Times people have been / who hated / called magicians / God and the world. ” In the next few sentences, Binsfeld lists the most famous crimes: fornication, evocation of storms, turning away from God and turning to evil spirits and much more.

In order to show his fellow men the evils of witches and wizards even more clearly and to create the necessary basis for his argumentation for the denunciation practice, he put a treatise before the actual main part of his work that deals more closely with the practices of witchcraft. In it he provided 14 partial definitions about magic, which he titled as a lecture or prelude . Some examples are given below:

  • The first definition confirms once again that magic is an immovable fact: "The first prelude or prelude: It is certain and there is no way to doubt / that magic names aygent / or Teuffelswerck through human help / happens in nature / and such according to instructions H. Schrifft / Spiritual: and worldly rights / and recher reason. " As evidence of this, he primarily cites Exodus 22; Leviticus 1.9 and Deuteronomy 1.8. But Augustine , Thomas Aquinas and the witch's hammer are also supreme authorities for him .
  • After Binsfeld has concluded from the book of Job that there are devils , he comes to his actual definition of magic in the third 'Vorrab': "That [sic!] But the vicious magic / of which we are dealing here / is / is in the factory three pieces are necessary for it. First / Divine will / who does this / and allows. On the other hand / the violence of Teuffels / who does this / and scratches on it. Thirdly and finally / the magical will of man / who willingly surrenders to it . " One might wonder about the first point of his definition, but Binsfeld explains this from the fact that God "is the greatest cause" for all things and thus nothing happens without his consent: "Then where God does not want / can the devil with all his might un power / do not harm man on earth. " In addition to the divine concession that the people by allowing the damage magic would punish check or repair, that is the devil important part of the witches beings. With him the magician enters into an alliance of his own free will ( devil's pact ), from which he takes the strength for his magic.
  • Under the heading 'Last Vorrab', Binsfeld now lists the causes that led to the fact that, in his opinion, the witchcraft and wizarding mischief was so rampant. First, the clergy's ignorance is responsible. These are too little informed to inform the people of the official doctrine. Second, the daily sleep of the authorities is jointly responsible, because more legislation has to be done to exterminate witches. Binsfeld sees one of the most important causes in unbelief , which is accompanied by all kinds of superstitions such as idolatry and divination . Leaving aside any excessive addiction to wealth , the lust and the propensity for cursing and swearing . The eighth cause for the author is "abandonment / or other sadness / or in disgusting things / faint-heartedness [...] / which often takes place in the female sex." (Binsfeld seems to have been the first to discover this cause, or at least to have considered it to be particularly important, because it is noticeable that especially with the Trier witches and warlocks, these grievances were particularly often encountered.) The ninth and final reason why someone Practice magic, sees Binsfeld in the mistake that one would never again show mercy to a person who had succumbed to the devil and so the witches would remain in the devil's covenant. However, this is wrong because God anyone who repent do and sincerely his sins regret would forgive. Because of this fatal error, penitent witches would often continue to torture themselves by the devil until they wished for death from the court in order to escape this fate: "In addition, it follows that a number of women / want more and are eager to be killed will / then to live so that they are not brought back to this laborious mill. "
  • Binsfeld now ends the first part with 13 final speeches in which he describes that "magicians / waragers / black artists / or all of those / so have a mind or pact with the evil spirit / cannot make a true Mirckel" that they "through Does de Teuffels / neither themselves nor other people change warfare-only and substantially / in wolves / cats / or similar animals " , but that they could very well make snakes, frogs and small animals. He also goes into more detail here on the devil's liability , on the ability to bewitch impotence , on the possibility of producing diseases and on the immense knowledge of what these fiends have in his opinion. The witches aviation is discussed in detail by him and ultimately true found.

In his first part of his work, Binsfeld has proven himself to be a staunch supporter of the witch's doctrine and there seems to be no doubt that he can be counted among the ardent proponents of this theory and is rightly listed among the so-called witch theorists .

Main part of the witches' tract

In the second part of his witchcraft treatise he comes to his real subject, namely "Whether the magician Bekanntnuß they do partakers resist their journeyman / or the same truck / share / believe unnd as vil / So that sey zuerfahren against them with scharpffer Ask." Therefore this 2nd part can confidently be called the main part of the work. First of all, Binsfeld refers to the current legal situation, which stipulates that defendants should not be believed in statements about possible accomplices, unless in the so-called exceptional crimes. According to Binsfeld, the exceptional crimes include all those who "raided for spiritual or physical corruption of the community / or great harm to a person" . If judges would be guilty of asking the perpetrators who were responsible for normal crimes, in exceptional cases it would be their duty! Binsfeld, who naturally counts sorcery among the exceptional crimes, now states in seven points what the magicians are to believe and what consequences must be drawn from it:

  • "The other conclusion / it is also certain / that the conjuring / so confessed by themselves / will not give such great faith / which is of such good shouting / reputation and life to man." This point indicates that Binsfeld has more faith in those who are more prestigious and of higher rank , and a person who is guilty of a crime can be believed even less than usual: "Dan apart from acquaintance / is quite a few of people's Maynung and belief / weakened. "
  • "The third conclusion / that the magician's acquaintance against his companion / gives enough guesswork to be embarrassing ." In the discussions on this point, Binsfeld explores the question of whether the charge of a magician against a fellow comrade is sufficient to proceed against this with the torture without other evidence. Ultimately, he answered yes to the question with the assertion that magicians would always tell the truth on this point : "But the magician gives information / not only often / but also almost all the time / and generally tends to be the truth / like such outside of the judge The process and experience itself can be seen. For this reason, a magician states / against his journeymen / a dapffer indication: Then to whom the explanation is due / which is also due / what has been explained. "
  • "IIII. The acquaintance of a journeyman / in the vice of magic against his other journeyman is sufficiently available for diligent research / and such in the vices excluded."
  • "V. The acquaintance of a journeyman / against his fellow journeymen and the same vice Theifhäftige / yes the Zeuberian vice / when she has an accusatory assumption or indication / there is a common and considerable indication of the embarrassing question."
  • "VI. Zweyer or dreyerr acquaintance against one or several of Vice's fellow journeymen / gives in the vice of magic an assumption to the embarrassing question." Hereby he restricts what was previously said, as he emphasizes that it is safer if someone has been denounced by more than one defendant. If, on the other hand, there is only one statement , one should first search for further evidence . Ultimately, however, he leaves it to the respective judge to decide whether one is sufficient or whether several are necessary.
  • "Sibend and final conclusion. As generally the scholars / after expulsion of the rights say / that the slanders and journeymen of the vice are admitted to witnesses / after the preceding conclusion: So it is surer to say / that such are not admitted to the condemnation / special alone prepare the same for torture in the Werck. " In this section, Binsfeld emphasizes that correct evidence is needed to convict people. However , he leaves open what he understands by correct evidence .

Before Binsfeld concludes his treatise with a "resolution of the argument" , he states that from his point of view it is inadmissible to carry out the witch bath as part of the witch hunt , as this would represent a temptation from God. It is also not allowed to mislead the magicians into confessions by making false promises . He shows himself gracious to repentant witches, because he wants to grant them the grace of the rope before they are burned. They can also be given Holy Communion without hesitation .

End of the treatise

In the last part of his work, Peter Binsfeld first refutes the Canon episcopi , which contradicts his own views. To reassure judges and court clerks, he emphasized that the devil could by no means free witches once imprisoned from the power of the court. Most important of all is his thesis that God would never allow the innocent to be punished. With this last argument, Binsfeld absolves himself and all other witch hunters of the guilt of possibly having killed innocent people, because God would not allow such cruelty at all. So this means that all witch hunters could never go wrong.

Binsfeld ends his treatise with the following words: “That’s enough of the tract the question has been written / all of which I am happy to submit to the judgment of our mother of the Christian churches. Honor and praise be to God / the most blessed youngsters / and all saints. "

Works

  • Tractatus de confessionibus maleficorum & Sagarum an et quanta fides iis adhibenda sit. Trier 1589.
  • Treatise from the acquaintance of wizards and witches. Munich 1591.

literature

  • Friedrich Wilhelm Bautz :  BINSFELD, Peter. In: Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon (BBKL). Volume 1, Bautz, Hamm 1975. 2nd, unchanged edition Hamm 1990, ISBN 3-88309-013-1 , Sp. 598.  ( Article / beginning of article in the Internet archive )
  • Wolfgang Behringer (Hrsg.): Witches and witch trials in Germany. Munich 1988.
  • Georg L. Burr: The fate of Dietrich Flade. In: Papers of the American Historial Association , Vol. 5, No. 3, 1891.
  • Johannes Dillinger: "Bad people". Witch persecutions in Swabian Austria and Kurtrier in comparison. Trier 1999.
  • Erich Düsterwald: Small history of the archbishops and electors of Trier. Sankt Augustin 1980.
  • PC van der Eerden: The devil's pact with Petrus Binsfeld and Cornelius Loos. In: Gunther Franz, Franz Irsigler (Hrsg.): Witches' belief and witch trials in the Rhine-Mosel-Saar area. Trier 1995, pp. 51-71.
  • Wolfgang Krämer: Electorate witch trials in the 16th and 17th centuries. Munich 1959.
  • Franz Xaver Kraus:  Binsfeld, Peter . In: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). Volume 2, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1875, p. 651 f.
  • Hermann Ries:  Binsfeld, Peter. In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 2, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1955, ISBN 3-428-00183-4 , p. 248 f. ( Digitized version ).
  • Wolfgang Seibrich: The auxiliary bishops of the Diocese of Trier. Trier 1998, pp. 83-90.
  • Othon Scholer: "O rubbish of superstition, o empty delusion of deception and ghosts of the night!" The attack of Cornelius Loos on Petrus Binsfeld. In: Gunther Franz, Franz Irsigler (ed.): Methods and concepts of historical witch research. Trier 1998, pp. 255-276.
  • Gerhard Schormann : witch trials in Germany. Goettingen 1986.
  • Wolfgang Seibrich: The auxiliary bishops of the Trier diocese (= publications of the Trier diocese archives , vol. 31). Paulinus Verlag, Trier 1998.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Entry on Peter Binsfeld on catholic-hierarchy.org ; accessed on February 18, 2018.
personal data
SURNAME Binsfeld, Peter
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Binsfeld, Petrus; Binsfeldius, Peter
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Auxiliary Bishop in Trier and witch theorist
DATE OF BIRTH around 1545
PLACE OF BIRTH Binsfeld (Eifel)
DATE OF DEATH November 24, 1598
Place of death trier