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The biggest trials -

The biggest witch trials in history began to take place in 1609. Known as the Basque witch trials, they were unprecedented in size.

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Basque persecutions -

They began against the background of similar persecutions conducted by Pierre de Lancre in the Labourd province of the Basque Country.

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Logroño -

The trials were held in northern Spain in the city of Logroño, near Navarre. The city borders Basque territory.

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The Spanish Inquisition -

The trials were held as part of the Spanish Inquisition. The Inquisition was originally established in the 1400s by Spain's Catholic Monarchs.

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The Spanish Inquisition -

King Ferdinand II and Queen Isabella established the Inquisition to maintain Catholic orthodoxy in their kingdoms, in response to the multi-religious nature of Spanish society.

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Heresy -

The Inquisition wanted to root out 'heretics.' This included people who had converted from Islam or Judaism to Catholicism (who were considered to pose a danger to the stability of Catholic Spain).

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Heresy -

However, heretics weren’t limited to these groups. 'Superstition' was also considered heretical, and this was the category witchcraft and witches fell into.

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Inquisition at Logroño -

The meeting of the Inquisition at Logroño investigated cases in the Kingdom of Navarre, Alava, Gipuzkoa, Biscay, La Rioja, and the North of Burgos and Soria.

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Evidence -

By the end of 1609, some 7,000 cases of alleged witchcraft had been examined by the Inquisition, with evidence covering 11,000 pages.

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Accused people -

Most of the accused were women, however the trials also included children and men, among them priests guilty of healing with nóminas (amulets with names of saints).

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Auto de fé -

The first phase ended in 1610, with a declaration of auto de fé. This was a ritual of public penance for condemned heretics and apostates.

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Burned to death -

The first phase ended in 1610, against 31 accused witches. Of these, 11 were killed. Five were burned in effigy, and six were burned alive. A previous five had already died under torture.

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Suspension for evidence gathering -

The proceedings were then suspended until the inquisitors had a chance to gather further evidence on what they believed to be a widespread witch cult in the Basque region.

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Basque folklore -

Folk magic was practiced in the Basque region. Some people would eat, drink, converse, and dance in the forest or caves, at times consuming mind-altering herbs and ointments at events called akelarres, or Witches' Sabbath.

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Zugarramurdi -

Zugarramurdi, near the French border, was rumored to be a witches meeting place. Witches' Sabbaths were believed to take place at a cave and stream of water known as "Hell's Stream," located outside the town.

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Zugarramurdi -

The pre-Christian cult of Mari—a local goddess of the earth— had survived in the western part of the Zugarramurdi region, close to the Atlantic coast.

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Inquisition attention -

There was also another cult in the area, dedicated to Lamias, which celebrated half women, half animal-like creatures. But it was probably the festivals dedicated to Mari that attracted the initial attention of the Inquisition.

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Dungeon interrogation -

Almost 7,000 people were taken from Zugarramurdi and interrogated and tortured in the dungeons of Logroño.

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Junior inquisitor -

The junior inquisitor of the three-man tribunal in the Basque trials, Alonso de Salazar Frías, traveled across the countryside during 1611 to investigate the cases more deeply.

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Edict of Grace -

Frías was armed with an “Edict of Grace,” promising pardon to all those who voluntarily reported themselves and denounced their accomplices.

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Practicing witches -

In response, denunciations flowed in from the population. Frías finally returned to Logroño: with witchcraft-practicing 'confessions' from 1,802 people.

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Basis of the trials -

In spite of the manifold confessions, Frías questioned the whole basis of the trials—risking his own denunciation by the more senior judges.

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Torture -

However, the vast majority of the witnesses retracted their statements when they came before Frías, attributing their confessions to torture.

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Sabbath attendance -

Only six out of the 1,802 maintained their confessions, and claimed to have attended Sabbaths.

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No substantive proof -

Frías, the youngest judge in the Inquisition panel of three, was himself skeptical about the whole thing, saying that he had found no substantive proof of witchcraft on his travels.

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Dismissal -

The matter was referred to the Inquisitor-General in Madrid, which ruled in August 1614 that all of the trials pending at Logroño should be dismissed.

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Rigorous evidence rules -

At the same time, the Inquisition issued new and more rigorous rules of evidence, bringing the witch trials to an end in Spain.

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"Spanish Salem" -

Situated close to the border with France and inhabited by just 224 people, Zugarramurdi now carries the nickname of the “Spanish Salem.”

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The Witch Museum -

Tourists from across the world flock to visit Zugarramurdi’s Witch Museum and the Cuevas de las Brujas ("The Witch Caves").

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Intensity of witch trials -

This piece of history aside, Spain's witch hunts actually had much less intensity to them when compared to other European countries such as Germany, Scotland, and France.

Sources: (Smithsonian) (Are We Europe)

See also: Signs you'd be considered a witch in the 17th century

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