These were marks on the body believed to indicate that an individual was a witch (not to be confused with the marks scratched or carved on buildings to ward off witches). Instead, they were more likely to work side by side with the accusers to help them to identify witch marks. Barbara Ehrenreich and Deirdre Englishs Witches, Midwives, and Nurses: A History of Women highlights the roles of witches, midwives, and nurses in societies and discusses the oppression that has prevented these women from sharing their skills and knowledge. The idea that those accused of witchcraft were midwives or herbalists, and especially that they were midwives possessed of feminine expertise that threatened male authority, is a myth. There was some residual paganism in a very few trials. Despite the beliefs of lawyers, historians and politicians (such as Karl Ernst Jarcke, Franz-Josef Mone, Jules Michelet, Margaret Murray and Heinrich Himmler among others), there was no ‘real’ pagan witchcraft. Nobody was goddess-worshipping during the period of the witch-hunts, or if they were, they have left no trace in the historical records. In the context of this historical analysis, the womens. Witches were really goddess-worshipping herbalist midwives Witches, Midwives, and Nurses grew out of the authors involvement in the womens health movement. In England, most of the accusers and those making written complaints against witches were women.Ĩ. Across Europe, in the years of witch persecution around 6,000 men – 10 to 15 per cent of the total – were executed for witchcraft. Even in England, the idea of a male witch was perfectly feasible.

In other countries, including some of the Scandinavian countries, men were in a slight majority. In England the majority of those accused were women. Wise Women, Witches, Midwives, Healers, and Strong Girls Most of my favorite books have a strong, powerful female protagonist, one who knows or finds her own power, who stands up, speaks out, challenges convention, defies expectations, protects, serves, heals, transforms consciousness or culture.

Witch-hunting was really women-hunting, since most witches were women

Witches and midwives