Malleus Maleficarum Published
1486
The Dominicans Heinrich Kramer and Jacob Sprenger published their Hammer of Witches, a detailed manual for identifying, interrogating, and executing witches. It cited Scripture, classical authorities, and pornographic imagination. Printed in dozens of editions, it became one of the earliest bestsellers of the press era and a blueprint for legal atrocity.
In context
Also in 1486 (3 other events on record)
- Pico della Mirandola's Oration on Human Dignity · Europe · Culture
- Henry VII Marries Elizabeth of York · Europe · Politics
- Diogo Cao Dies on African Coast · Africa · Exploration
Before and after in Europe
Before and after in Religion
Era
Late Middle Ages (1301–1500), one of 874 events from that era on Saeculum.