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The Scourge of Demons - Possession, Lust, and Witchcraft in a Seventeenth-Century Italian Convent (Paperback)
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The Scourge of Demons - Possession, Lust, and Witchcraft in a Seventeenth-Century Italian Convent (Paperback)
Series: Changing Perspectives on Early Modern Europe
Expected to ship within 12 - 17 working days
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A fascinating examination of alleged demon possession and
witchcraft in a seventeenth-century convent in Carpi, Italy. In
1636, residents at the convent of Santa Chiara in Carpi in northern
Italy were struck by an extraordinary illness that provoked bizarre
behavior. Eventually numbering fourteen, the afflicted nuns were
subject to screaming fits,throwing themselves on the floor, and
falling abruptly into a deep sleep. When medical experts' cures
proved ineffective, exorcists ministered to the women and concluded
that they were possessed by demons and the victims of witchcraft.
Catering to women from elite families, the nunnery suffered much
turmoil for three years and, remarkably, three of the victims died
from their ills. A maverick nun and a former confessor were widely
suspected to be responsible, through witchcraft, for these woes.
Based primarily on the exhaustive investigation by the Inquisition
of Modena, The Scourge of Demons examines this fascinating case in
its historical context. The travails of Santa Chiara occurred at a
time when Europe witnessed peaks in both witch-hunting and in the
numbers of people reputedly possessed by demons. Female religious
figures appeared particularly prone to demonic attacks, and
Counter-Reformation Church authorities were especially interested
in imposing stricter discipline on convents. Watt carefully
considers how the nuns of Santa Chiara understood and experienced
alleged possession and witchcraft, concluding that Santa Chiara's
diabolical troubles and their denouement -- involving the actions
of nuns, confessors, inquisitorial authorities, and exorcists --
were profoundly shaped by the unique confluence of religious,
cultural, judicial, andintellectual trends that flourished in the
1630s. Jeffrey R. Watt is professor of history at the University of
Mississippi.
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