A History of The Malleus Maleficarum
Written and compiled by George Knowles
Pope Innocent VIII / The papal Bull / The Malleus Maleficarum / An extract from the Malleus Maleficarum / The letter of approbation / Johann Nider’s Formicarius / Jacob Sprenger / Heinrich Kramer / Stefano Infessura / Montague Summers /The Waldenses / The Albigenses / The HussitesFirst published in 1486, the Malleus Maleficarum was one of the most widely referenced and infamous books of its time.Throughout the middle Ages and the entire period of the witchcraft hysteria, the Malleus Maleficarum was the most influential guide used for the persecution and torture of witches and heretics. Montague Summers who translated it into English called it: “One of the most important, wisest and weightiest books in the world”. Due to the rapid spread of the Printing Press revolution in the late 1400's (generally attributed to Johann Gutenberg), it became widely available to the masses and for over two centuries was second only in sales to the Bible.It was initially written to lend credibility to, then justify, support and enforce a Papal Bull issued by Pope Innocent VIII on December 5th 1484.
Pope Innocent VIII (1484 - 1492).
Giovanni Battista Cibo (1432 - July 1492).
Innocent VIII (Pope - 1484/92) successor to Sixtus IV (Pope -1471/84), was born Giovanni Battista Cibo in Genoa (1432). He was the son of Aran Cibo who under Calixtus III (Pope - 1455/58) had been a senator in Rome. His wife Teodorina, was a lady of the house of de' Mari. Cibo’s youth was spent at the Neapolitan court from were he gained a lascivious aptitude. He was educated in Padua and Rome, studied Humanities and early gained a reputation as a Latinist.He also fathered two illegitimate children, Franceschetto and Teodorina, a trait that would characterize his life.While in Rome he was influenced by friends towards a career in the church, and later took up orders as a priest in the house of cardinal Calandnini, half-brother to Nicholas V (Pope - 1447/55). In 1467 he obtained from Paul II (Pope - 1464/71) the bishopric of Savona, and in 1472 Sixtus IV (Pope - 1471/84) allowed him to transfer to the see of Molfetta. A year later in 1473 he was created cardinal-priest of Balbina and entered the Sacred College. After the death of Sixtus IV, Cibo succeeded him as pope on the 29th of August 1484 and assumed the name of Innocent VIII.
The Conclave of 1484
The papal conclave of 1484 is described by high catholic authority “as one of the saddest in papal history”. Chief accounts of what went on come from diarist John Burchard, one of the officials present at that time, and historian Stefano Infessura who many believe was a 'bias papal rebel'. Between them we get a glimpse into some of the smallest details and events of those times.After the death of Pope Sixtus IV on the 12th August 1484, the conclave in Rome was spilt by factions. Cardinals clashed with cardinals leading to violence, feuds and riots in the streets, all in a bid to become or elect the next pope in power. At the time of his death there were thirty-two surviving cardinals, a greater number than at any time since the close of the twelfth century, excepting perhaps for the divided College of the Great Schism (1378-1417). Of the thirty-two,only three cardinals survived from before Paul II (1464/71), the cardinal-nephews of Calixtus III (1455/58), Rodrigo and Luis Borgia; and the cardinal-nephew of Pius II (1458/64), Francesco di Nanni Todeschini de' Piccolomini. Six cardinals survived from Paul II: Thomas Bourchier, Oliviero Caraffa, Marco Barbo, Jean Balue, Giovanni Battista Zeno and Giovanni Michiel. The remaining twenty-three were made cardinals by Sixtus IV: Giuliano della Rovere, Stefano Nardini, Pedro Gonsalvez de Mendoza, Giovanni Battista Cibo, Giovanni Arcimboldi, Philibert Hugonet, Giorgio da Costa, Charles de Bourbon l'Ancien, Pierre de Foix le Jeune, Girolamo Basso della Rovere, Gabriele Rangoni, Pietro Foscari, Giovanni d'Aragona, Raffaele Sansoni Riario, Domenico della Rovere, Paolo Fregoso, Giovanni Battista Savelli, Giovanni Colonna, Giovanni Conti, Juan Moles de Margarit, Giangiacomo Sclafenati, Giovanni Battista Orsini and Ascanio Maria Sforza-Visconti.
At the start of the conclave seven cardinals were absent: Luis Juan del Mila y Borja was in retirement in Spain, Pedro Gonsalvez de Mendoza was acting as the first-minister of Ferdinand V and his wife Isabella in Spain; Pierre de Foix le Jeune and Charles de Bourbon l'Ancien were in France; as was Jean Balue acting as legate to Charles VIII. Paolo Fregoso was serving a term as doge of Genoa and Thomas Bourchier remained in England. This left twenty-five cardinals whose task it was to elect the next pope.
When the conclave began on the 25th of August 1484, a protocol was adopted called 'The Election Capitulation', and by solemn formula every cardinal promised to observe it if elected pope. It stipulated that 100 ducats should be paid monthly to members of the Sacred College, those whose yearly income from benefices might not reach the sum of 4,000 ducats. Then followed provisions for the continuance of the crusade against the Turks, the reform of the Roman curia including it's head and members, the appointment of no cardinal under the age of 30 years for whatever reason, the advancement of not more than one relative of the reigning pontiff to the sacred college and the restriction of its membership to 24. All 25 cardinals swore to up hold the capitulation and negotiations favoring the election of the next pope began in earnest.
Of the 25 cardinals that made up this conclave, there were two main rivals for the title. The first was Rodrigo de Lançol y Borgia, who began his campaign early in the vacancy. To Giovanni d'Aragona he offered the office of vice-chancellor, which he himself had held since his uncle's time. To Giovanni Colonna he offered the sum of 25,000 ducats and the abbey of Subiaco in commendam. He also made a similar offer to Giovanni Battista Savelli while securing the votes of Ascanio Maria Sforza-Visconti and Raffaele Sansoni Riario. The second main rival was Giuliano della Rovere, who numbered among his voters Giovanni Battista Savelli, Giovanni Colonna, Giovanni Battista Cibo, Domenico della Rovere and Girolamo Basso della Rovere.
As the negotiations became more protracted, bitter disputes erupted in the city of Rome. The ongoing feud between the Roman cardinals Giovanni Colonna and Giovanni Battista Orsini, and a strong popular rejection of the family of Sixtus IV led to rioting in the streets and civil disturbances.The conclave only came together with any senseof security due to the exertions of Marco Barbo from the Venetian faction, who succeeded in bringing about a truce among the Roman baronage.
After all the complex jockeying, deals and negotiations that preceded the actual balloting, on the morning of August 28th during the first scrutiny, Marco Barbo received at least ten, if not twelve of the 18 votes needed for accession, exceeding the votes of both Borgia and Rovere. The reaction to this sudden development was sharp, and the cardinals retired to re-assess their positions.
The election of Marco Barbo was unthinkable to the other two powerful cardinals, and seeing his own candidature was obviously impossible, Borgia thought seriously about advancing Moles de Margarit, whose advanced age might mean another election in the near future and a better chance for himself in a subsequent conclave.
The candidate of Rovere was Giovanni Battista Cibo, and during the remainder of August 28th, Rovere worked at a feverish pace to obtain the required votes for him. A turning point came when Giovanni Battista Orsini joined his party, of which Giovanni Colonna was already a member. Ascanio Maria Sforza-Visconti and Raffaele Riario were then won over, followed by Giovanni Archimboldi. Ascanio then discussed with Borgia the advisability of coming over to the cause of Cibo. Borgia did so and brought with him Giovanni d'Aragona. Other cardinals now began to join for reasons of political expediency and in search of favors from what was fast becoming the leading party. Giovanni Conti sided with the other Romans and Juan Moles de Margarit followed the lead of Borgia.
By the late evening Rovere could count on thirteen votes, and throughout the night Giovanni Battista Cibo sat awake in his cell signing petitions and making deals to favor other cardinals. We can be fairly sure that Giangiacomo Sclafenati, Giovanni d'Aragona and Giorgio da Costa were among those who benefited by voting for Cibo in the last scrutiny. All three were lifted from poor cardinalate titles to higher and better endowed titles shortly after Cibo became pope, and they would only have been able to do that with express papal permission. Giovanni d'Aragona received the title of Santa Sabina on the 20th of September 1484, this in exchange for San Lorenzo in Lucina, which he retained in commendam. Giorgio da Costa exchanged the title of Santi Marcellino e Pietro, a traditional Portuguese titled Church for that of Santa Maria in Trastevere on the 8th of November 1484. The Santa Maria in Trastevere had become vacant with the death of Stefano Nardini on the 22nd of October 1484. Giangiacomo Sclafenati received Cibo's own former titled church of Santa Cecilia on the 17th of November 1484, while retaining his old title of Santo Stefano al Monte Celio in commendam. In each case the increased revenue in benefices would have been substantial.
By the following morning, Cibo had gained the support of Oliviero Caraffa and all the remaining cardinals created by Sixtus IV, except for Pietro Foscari who voted with the Venetians. This give him seventeen of the eighteen votes needed for accession. Against him were the Venetians:Marco Barbo, Giovanni Battista Zeno, Giovanni Michiel and of course Pietro Foscari. Of the three undecided cardinals:Philibert Hugonet, Gabriele Rangoni and Francesco di Nanni Todeschini de' Piccolomini, we cannot be sure who in the final scrutiny voted for Cibo. Thought is that Gabriele Rangoni is more likely to have done so than either Hugonet or Piccolomini, this because Rangoni's master, Matthias Corvinus was the son-in-law of Ferrante of Naples and an avid supporter of Neapolitan policy in Italian affairs.
The Reign of Innocent VIII
The first part of Innocent’s reign as pontiff was dominated by Giuliano della Rovere, but Innocent soon grow tired of power politics and allowed Lorenzo de' Medici to guide his policies during the latter part of his pontificate. He made Lorenzo's teen-age nephew a Cardinal, but stipulated that he should not assume the robes and obligations of the cardinalate until he was eighteen. This in direct conflict to the 'The Election Capitulation' all 25 cardinals had sworn to up-hold.The chief concern of the new pope at that time was to promote peace among the Christian princes, and shortly after his ascension he addressed a summons to the rank and file of Christendom to unite in a crusade against the infidels, while at the same time he himself was having difficulties with King Ferrante of Naples. The protracted conflict with Naples was one of the main obstacle of the crusade against the Turks, and while Innocent tried to unite Christendom against the common enemy, his own ulterior motives could be seen when in 1489, in consideration for an annual sum of 40,000 ducats and a gift of the Holy Lance (said to be the spearhead that had been used to pierced the Saviour's side), he consented to favour the sultan Bajazet II, by detaining his fugitive brother and pretender to the Turkish throne in prison in the Vatican.
In 1486, Innocent VIII declared Henry VII of England to be the rightful holder of the English crown by the threefold right of conquest, inheritance and popular choice. He also agreed to modifications affecting the privilege of sanctuary. Next he issued an appeal for a crusade against the Waldenses (also known as Waldensians or Vaudois). This was a Protestant religious sect founded in 1170 by Peter Waldo, a merchant of Lyons. They were closely allied to the Albigenses, who lived in voluntary poverty, refused to take oaths or take part in war, and later rejected the doctrines of transubstantiation, purgatory and the invocation of saints. Although subjected to persecution until the 17th century, their presence had spread through out France, Germany and Italy, and still today survives in Piedmont.
Innocent VIII was also actively opposed to the Hussite heresy in Bohemia (followers of John Huss who were opposed to both German and papal influence). The Hussites waged a successful war against the Holy Roman Empire from 1419 through 1620. With all this anti-Catholicism threatening the very foundations of the Catholic Church, Innocent VIII issued his most infamous proclamation, the papal bull of the 5th of December 1484. In it, he gave free reign to the Inquisition and opened the floodgates for near-on three centuries of the most vicious persecution, mainly against Witchcraft, but including anyone who opposed the authority of the Catholic Church. The principles he outlined in this bull where later embodied in the Malleus Maleficarum, and in 1487 he appointed Tomas de Torquemada as the Grand Inquisitor of Spain to enforce it.
In December of 1486, he forbade under penalty of excommunication, the reading of the nine hundred theses that Pico della Mirandola had publicly posted in Rome. Pico della Mirandola, Count Giovanni (1463-1494) was a prominent Italian theologist and humanist who wrote Latin epistles, elegies and a series of florid Italian sonnets. His philosophical writings included: Heptaplus and De Hominis Dignitate, the themes of which are about free will. Mirandola suffered persecution as a heretic until Alexander VI, Innocent’s successor in 1493, absolved him.
Innocent’s wars with the Italian states and especially that of Naples constantly depleted the papal treasury, this he replenished by creating and selling new papal offices and granting them to the highest bidders. Under his leadership and by example, insecurity reigned in Rome during his rule, owing mainly to his insufficient punishment of crime. However, he dealt mercilessly with a band of unscrupulous officials who forged and sold papal Bulls for there own gain, and meted out capital punishment to two of the culprits in 1489. Among their forgeries was the alleged permission granted to the Norwegians, enabling them to celebrate Mass without wine.
By 1492 at the age 60, Innocent was a feeble old man, he had become subject to lethargic or cataleptic trances, which several times had deceived those in his attendance to believing him dead. As he grew weaker it became impossible to nourish him and he was kept alive by sucking milk from a woman’s breast. Towards the end (according to Infessura), a Hebrew physician claimed to have a prescription by which he could save the Pope’s life. For his infusion, he needed young human blood and to obtain it he took three boys of the age of ten, and gave them a ducat apiece for as much as he might require of them. However, he took so much that the three boys incontinently died of his phlebotomy. The Hebrew was obliged to take to flight to save his own life, for when the Pope was informed of what had taken place, he denounced the deed as detestable and ordered the physician’s arrest (“Judeus quidem aufugit, et Papa sanatus not est,” concludes Infessura).
Pope Innocent VIII died on July 25, 1492, leaving behind him numerous children (Octo Nocens pueros genuit, totidemque puellas; Hunc merito poterit dicere Roma patrem - "Eight wicked boys born, and just as many girls, so this man could be entitled to be called Father of Rome"), towards whom his nepotism had been as lavish as it was shameless. His successor was Alexander VI (Pope – 1492/1503).
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Pope Innocent VIII / The papal Bull / The Malleus Maleficarum / An extract from the Malleus Maleficarum / The letter of approbation / Johann Nider’s Formicarius / Jacob Sprenger / Heinrich Kramer / Stefano Infessura / Montague Summers /The Waldenses / The Albigenses / The Hussites
The Bull of Pope Innocent VIII
Summis desiderantes, 5 December 1484
Desiring with supreme ardor as pastoral solicitude requires, that the catholic faith in our days everywhere grow and flourish as much as possible, and that all heretical pravity be put far from the territories of the faithful. We freely declare and anew decree this by which our pious desire may be fulfilled, and all errors being rooted out by our toil as with the hoe of a wise laborer, zeal and devotion to this faith may take deeper hold on the hearts of the faithful themselves.It has recently come to our ears, and not without great pain to us, that in some parts of upper Germany, as well as in the provinces, cities, territories, regions and dioceses of Mainz, Koln, Trier, Salzburg and Breman, many persons of both sexes, heedless of their own salvation and forsaking the catholic faith, give themselves to devils, male and female, and by their incantations, charms and conjurings, and by other abominable superstitions and sortileges, offences, crimes and misdeeds, ruin and cause to perish the offspring of women, the foal of animals, the products of the earth, the grapes of vines and the fruits of trees, as well a men and women, cattle and flocks, and herds and animals of every kind, and hinder men from begetting and women from conceiving, and prevent all consummation of marriage; that moreover they deny with sacrilegious lips the faith they received in holy baptism; and that at the instigation of the enemy of mankind, they do not fear to commit and perpetrate many other abominable offences and crimes, at the risk of their own souls, to the insult of the divine majesty and to the pernicious example and scandal of multitudes. And although our beloved sons Henricus Institorus [Kramer] and Jacobus Sprenger of the order of Friars Preachers, professors of theology, have been and still are deputed by our apostolic letters as inquisitors of heretical pravity, the former in the aforesaid parts of upper Germany, including the provinces, cities, territories, dioceses and other places as above, and the latter throughout certain parts of the course of the Rhine; nevertheless certain of the clergy and of the laity of those parts, seeking to be wise above what is fitting, because in the said letter of deputation that aforesaid provinces, cities, dioceses, territories and other places, and the persons and offences in question were not individually and specifically named, do not blush obstinately to assert that these are not at all included in the said parts and that therefore it is illicit for the aforesaid inquisitors to exercise their office of inquisition in the provinces, cities, dioceses, territories and other places aforesaid, and that they ought not to be permitted to proceed to the punishment, imprisonment and correction of the aforesaid persons for the offences and crimes above named. Wherefore in the provinces, cities, dioceses, territories and places aforesaid, such offences and crimes not without evident damage to their souls and risk of external salvation, go unpunished.