Table Of ContentMagic and Medieval Society
Magic and Medieval Society presents a thematic approach to the topic of
magic and sorcery in western Europe between the eleventh and the fifteenth
centuries. It aims to provide readers with the conceptual and documentary
tools to reach informed conclusions as to the existence, nature, importance
and uses of magic in medieval society.
Contrary to some previous approaches, the authors argue that magic is
inextricably connected to other areas of cultural practice and was found
across medieval society. Therefore, the book is arranged thematically, cover-
ing topics such as the use of magic at medieval courts, at universities and
within the medieval Church itself.
Each chapter and theme is supported by additional documents, diagrams
and images to allow readers to examine the evidence side-by-side with the
discussions in the chapters and to come to informed conclusions on the issues.
This book puts forward the argument that the witch craze was not a
medieval phenomenon but rather the product of the Renaissance and the
Reformation, and demonstrates how the components for the early-modern
prosecution of witches were put into place.
This new Seminar Study is supported by a comprehensive Documents
section, Chronology, Who’s Who and illustrations. It offers a concise and
thought-provoking introduction for students of medieval history.
Anne Lawrence-Mathers is Associate Professor of Medieval History at the
University of Reading, and the Director of the Graduate Centre for Medieval
Studies. She is the author of Manuscripts in Northumbria (2002) and The True
History of Merlin the Magician (2012) as well as many articles on medieval
magical texts, women and manuscripts.
Carolina Escobar-Vargas is Lecturer in Medieval History at the University
of Reading. She completed a PhD thesis on ‘The Image and Reality of the
Magician Figure in Twelfth-Century England’ in 2011 and has delivered
several conference papers on related topics.
Introduction to the series
History is the narrative constructed by historians from traces left by the past.
Historical enquiry is often driven by contemporary issues and, in con-
sequence, historical narratives are constantly reconsidered, reconstructed
and reshaped. The fact that different historians have different perspectives
on issues means that there is often controversy and no universally agreed
version of past events. Seminar Studies was designed to bridge the gap
between current research and debate, and the broad, popular general surveys
that often date rapidly.
The volumes in the series are written by historians who are not only familiar
with the latest research and current debates concerning their topic, but who
have themselves contributed to our understanding of the subject. The books
are intended to provide the reader with a clear introduction to a major topic
in history. They provide both a narrative of events and a critical analysis
of contemporary interpretations. They include the kinds of tools generally
omitted from specialist monographs: a chronology of events, a glossary of
terms and brief biographies of ‘who’s who’. They also include bibliographical
essays in order to guide students to the literature on various aspects of the
subject. Students and teachers alike will find that the selection of documents
will stimulate the discussion and offer insight into the raw materials used by
historians in their attempt to understand the past.
Clive Emsley and Gordon Martel
Series Editors
Magic and Medieval Society
Anne Lawrence-Mathers and
Carolina Escobar-Vargas
First published 2014
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2014 Anne Lawrence-Mathers and Carolina Escobar-Vargas
The right of Anne Lawrence-Mathers and Carolina Escobar-Vargas to be identified as
authors of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with sections 77 and 78
of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any
form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented,
including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system,
without permission in writing from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks,
and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Lawrence-Mathers, Anne, 1953–
Magic and medieval society / Anne Lawrence-Mathers, Carolina Escobar-Vargas. –
1 [edition].
pages cm. – (Seminar studies in history)
Includes bibliographical references.
1. Magic–Europe, Western–History–To 1500. 2. Europe, Western–Civilization–
To 1500. I. Title.
BF1593.L39 2014
133.4′30940902–dc23
2013043370
ISBN: 978-0-415-73928-3 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-408-27050-9 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-315-77747-4 (ebk)
Typeset in 10/13.5pt ITC Berkeley
by Graphicraft Limited, Hong Kong
Contents
Acknowledgements viii
Chronology ix
Who’s who xiii
Glossary xx
List of plates xxiii
INTRODUCTION 1
1 MAGIC AND POLITICS 4
2 MAGIC IN THE CHURCH 13
Monks and charms 13
Palmistry and divination 17
Monastic astrology? 19
Peter Lombard, Gratian and the development of law and
theology in relation to magic 21
The Pope who was a necromancer: the Black Legend of Gerbert
of Aurillac 23
3 THE UNIVERSITIES 27
Magic and the twelfth-century Renaissance 27
Classifications of magic 30
Astrology and the astrolabe 33
Astral and image magic: the bases of ritual magic 35
The Ars Notoria 37
The Sworn Book of Honorius 38
Alchemy 40
Dealing with the growth of magical literature 41
vi magic and medieval society
4 MAGIC AND SECULAR SOCIETY 44
Gerald of Wales on miracles, wonders and magic in Wales and Ireland 45
Penitentials, confessors’ manuals and early lawcodes 48
Natural magic and its uses 52
Lapidaries 54
Herbals 56
Bestiaries 57
Conclusion 59
5 MEDICAL MAGIC 60
The problem of charms 61
Natural magic and medical magic 63
Astrology and medicine 66
The Zodiac Man 69
Medicine, magic and popular practice 70
6 CONCLUSION: THE RISE OF MAGICAL CRIME 75
William of Auvergne 76
Ritual magic and Aquinas’s demonology 78
Fourteenth-century show trials 80
Heresy and witchcraft 82
The onset of the witch craze 87
DOCUMENTS 89
1 Sibylline prophecies 90
2 Joachim of Fiore and Richard I 90
3 Report of astrological fears and predictions in 1186 92
4 Roger Bacon, Introduction to the Great Work, 1266 93
5 John of Salisbury, Policraticus 93
6 Michael Scot and the Emperor Frederick II 95
7 Twelfth-century Anglo-Norman horoscopes 97
8 Prognostication by thunder 98
9 Excerpts from the Dream-book of the Prophet Daniel 99
10 Peter Lombard, Sentences 100
11 Gratian, Decretum (Decretals) 101
12 Magical circles, demons and necromancy 102
13 William of Malmesbury on Gerbert of Aurillac 104
14 Hugh of St Victor, Didascalicon 106
15 Adelard of Bath, Treatise on the astrolabe 107
16 Ars Notoria: General instructions, and texts relating to astronomy 109
contents vii
17 The Emerald Table 111
18 Magical books in universities 112
19 Penitentials 113
20 Lapidary 113
21 Herbals 115
22 The Bestiary 117
23 On animals 118
24 Sphere of Apuleius 119
25 Zodiac Man 120
26 Speculum astronomiae 121
27 Guibert de Nogent, Monodies (Melancholy Memoirs) 122
28 Albertus Magnus on precious stones 122
29 On natural magic 124
30 St Thomas Aquinas on demons 125
31 Super Illius Specula 127
32 Bernard Gui, Manual for Inquisitors 128
33 Stephen Tempier, List of condemned opinions and works, 1277 129
BIBLIOGRAPHY 131
INDEX 140
Acknowledgements
The authors wish to thank their colleagues and students in the Graduate
Centre for Medieval Studies at the University of Reading for challenging
and helpful discussions. They are also very grateful to the British Library
for permission to publish photographs of MSS Sloane 172, fol. 37 and Sloane
2030, fols 125v and 126r. Finally, they thank Patricia Stewart for her
generosity in supplying the Latin text for the Bestiary extracts.
The translations in the Documents section are the work of the authors of
this book, who take responsibility for all errors. References are provided to
the published or manuscript sources upon which the translations are based.
Whilst every effort has been made to trace copyright holders, this has not
been possible in all cases. Any omissions brought to our attention will be
remedied in future editions.
