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Date Published: 27/01/2022
ARCHIVED - Catalonia issues pardon to women executed for witchcraft
The Spanish region may also name streets after murdered women to honour their memory
Spain’s northwest region of Catalonia has issued a formal pardon to hundreds of women who were executed for witchcraft between the 15th and 18th centuries.
The Catalan regional parliament passed the resolution by a large majority to honour the memory of over 700 women who were tortured and put to death for witchcraft.
Catalonia was one of the first places in Europe to carry out mass witch hunts, with witches often being blamed for the sudden death of children or for poor harvests, according to Pau Castell, professor of modern history at the University of Barcelona, and it was also one of the worst areas in terms of executions.
“We have recently discovered the names of more than 700 women who were persecuted, tortured and executed between the 15th and 18th centuries”, said the groups behind the new resolution.
Pro-independence and left-wing groups in the Catalan parliament affirm that these women were “victims of misogynistic persecution”, and are now lobbying for streets to be named after them.
Across Europe, tens of thousands of people, mostly women, are believed to have been executed for witchcraft. This pardon from Catalonia comes after similar initiatives were passed in Scotland, Switzerland and Norway.
Image: Wikimedia commons
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