The Brutal Basque Witch Hunt

In 1609, some 80 people were executed for witchcraft in France's Basque region. It inspired a final push to eradicate witches by the Spanish Inquisition across the border. One of the judges, Pierre de Lancre, published a sensationalist book which has been the source of every subsequent account. But newly discovered evidence paints a very different picture. Professor Suzannah Lipscomb finds out more from Dr. Jan Machielsen whose book The Basque Witch Hunt: A Secret History shows that almost everything historians thought they knew about this brutal episode is inaccurate. Listen to our previous episode with Jan Machielsen, An Early Modern Teenage Werewolf > Presented by Professor Suzannah Lipscomb. The researcher is Alice Smith and the producer is Rob Weinberg. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff. Not Just the Tudors is a History Hit podcast. Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original TV documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Sign up HERE for 50% off your first 3 months using code ‘TUDORS’ You can take part in our listener survey here >