It’s impossible to know whether such stories, reported at the height of anxiety over Witchcraft in Europe in the Middle Ages, reflected reality or not. In his book Murder, Magic, and Medicine, John Mann cites a 15th-century text by the theologian Jordanes de Bergamo, who wrote that “the vulgar believe, and the witches confess, that on certain days or nights they anoint a staff and ride on it to the appointed place or anoint themselves under the arms and in other hairy places.” Anxiety Over Witchcraft Leads to Legends In 1324, when the wealthy Irish widow Lady Alice Kyteler was put in prison for sorcery and heresy, investigators reported that in searching Kyteler’s house, they found “a pipe of ointment, wherewith she greased a staffe, upon which she ambled and galloped through thicke and thin.”Īccording to some historical accounts, rather than ingest these mind-altering substances by eating or drinking, which would have caused intestinal distress, witches chose to absorb them through the skin-often in the most intimate areas of their bodies. This “broomstick dance,” she writes, became confused with common accounts of Witches flying through the night on their way to orgies and other illicit meetings.īroomsticks were also thought to be the perfect vehicles for the special ointments and salves that Witches brewed up to give themselves the ability to fly, among other depraved activities. Flying Witches on Brooms Linked to Pagan Ritual?Īnthropologist Robin Skelton suggests the association between Witches and brooms may have roots in a pagan fertility ritual, in which rural farmers would leap and dance astride poles, pitchforks or brooms in the light of the full moon to encourage the growth of their crops. His confession came under torture, and he eventually repented but was still imprisoned for life. He was arrested in 1453 and put in prison for Witchcraft after publicly criticizing the church’s warnings about Witches. Edelin was a priest from Saint-Germain-en-Laye, near Paris. From the beginning, brooms and besoms were associated primarily with women, and this ubiquitous household object became a powerful symbol of female domesticity.ĭespite this, the first witch to confess to riding a broom or besom was a man: Guillaume Edelin. It gradually replaced the Old English word besom, though both terms appear to have been used until at least the 18th century. The word broom comes from the actual plant, or shrub, that was used to make many early sweeping devices. It’s not clear exactly when the broom itself was first invented, but the act of sweeping goes back to ancient times when people likely used bunches of thin sticks, reeds and other natural fibres to sweep aside dust or ash from a fire or hearth. But the actual history behind how Witches came to be associated with such an everyday household object is anything but dull. The evil green-skinned Witch flying on her magic broomstick is a Halloween icon. From pagan fertility rituals to hallucinogenic herbs, the story of Witches and brooms is a wild broom ride!
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