The Last Witch of Langenburg: Murder in a German Village [Hardcover]

Thomas Robisheaux (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 16, 2009

A young mother dies in agony. Was it a natural death, murder—or witchcraft?

On the night of the festive holiday of Shrove Tuesday in 1672 Anna Fessler died after eating one of her neighbor's buttery cakes. Could it have been poisoned? Drawing on vivid court documents, eyewitness accounts, and an early autopsy report, historian Thomas Robisheaux brings the story to life. Exploring one of Europe's last witch panics, he unravels why neighbors and the court magistrates became convinced that Fessler's neighbor Anna Schmieg was a witch—one of several in the area—ensnared by the devil. Once arrested, Schmieg, the wife of the local miller, and her daughter were caught up in a high-stakes drama that led to charges of sorcery and witchcraft against the entire family. Robisheaux shows how ordinary events became diabolical ones, leading magistrates to torture and turn a daughter against her mother. In so doing he portrays an entire world caught between superstition and modernity. 22 illustrations; 3 maps

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Duke historian Robisheaux turns the obscure story of a smalltown German woman convicted of witchcraft into a marvelous window onto a society in crisis. On Shrove Tuesday, 1672, Eva Küstner delivered Shrovetide cakes baked by her mother to her neighbor, Anna Fessler, who was still recuperating from the birth of her child a few weeks earlier. A few days after eating some of the cakes, Anna died a painful death. Almost immediately, the community accused Eva and her mother, Anna Schmeig, of witchcraft. In this fast-paced account, Robisheaux chronicles the roles that various ministers, lawyers and physicians play in the indictment of Anna Schmeig and her immediate family. Robisheaux shows that Schmeigs trial and execution as a witch grew out of a small villages superstitions and its belief in the power of God to transform an evil event into an exemplary one. Drawing on rich records of the trials of Schmeig and her family, Robisheaux finely crafts a vivid glimpse of a time, place and state of mind that, though remote, is all too familiar. 22 illus., 3 maps. (Feb.)
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From The New Yorker

In the German hamlet of Langenburg in 1672, panic ensued when a young woman named Anna Fessler ate a butter cake and died overnight. Had Anna Schmieg, her neighbor, poisoned the cake by means of witchcraft? Robisheaux explores the lore surrounding one of Germany’s last witch trials, using details from a gruesome autopsy report, an investigation mounted by the court adviser Ulrich von Gülchen, and eyewitness testimony. The rich microhistory that results illustrates the contradictions between early modern European thought and medieval superstitions. Schmieg’s fate—underscored by filial betrayal, torture, and a wrangled confession—is worth learning, but, frustratingly, Robisheaux leaves larger historical questions unanswered, and we’re left pondering the significance of why Schmieg was the last witch of Langenburg.
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Product Details

• Hardcover: 432 pages
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company (February 16, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0393065510
• ISBN-13: 978-0393065510
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #459,758 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Thrilling History, February 7, 2009

By 

Sunny @ the Library "sunnyatthelibrary.com" (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Last Witch of Langenburg: Murder in a German Village (Hardcover)

The Last Witch of Langenburg is a fascinating look at the mechanics of witch trials as well as an interesting account of one of the latest convictions of a woman for witchcraft. Perhaps one of the more interesting things, and a blessing for readers, is how well-documented the trial is and author Thomas Robisheaux delivers this bounty of information in a very engaging narrative. While it is historical non-fiction, it reads, at times, like an historical thriller.

Robisheaux makes the smart move of diving immediately into the story, beginning with the miller's daughter, Eva Küstner traveling around her village delivering small cakes for the holiday of Shrove Tuesday, Mardi Gras' more tame cousin. From court testimony, we learn of her neighbor's deep suspicions about the delivery of the cakes, which will help lead to the accusation of witchcraft. Then of the dramatic death of villager Anna Fessler the evening after eating one of her cakes seals the deal. It is only then that Robisheaux goes into some of the more dry background details of the holiday of Shrove Tuesday, the tradition of baking cakes for it, and why witchcraft, rather than simple murder by poisoning, was Küstner's neighbors' conclusion. A wise decision, I think, to begin with the dramatic, involving the reader before moving on to some of the more academic material.

Robisheaux continues in this vein, giving the reader a bit of the story and a bit of the background as the town's leaders and citizens become embroiled in the investigation of witchcraft. Most fascinating to the modern reader is the contrast between the rising notion of justice, fair trials, forensics, and the consultation of scientific experts, versus the almost medieval notion of witchcraft. How the contemporary town leaders reconciled the two makes for a great narrative and one that Robisheaux explores to its fullest. Luckily for the reader, it is also this commitment to the proper legal process that produces all the documents that make this account such a full story. Rather than relying on speculation and reconstruction based on typical attitudes of the time, we get to hear the opinions and statements of the persons involved in their own words, a treat not often found in accounts of persons not royal of very famous in their times.

I also appreciate that Robisheaux mostly sticks to information relevant to the case. Although some of the information about the Thirty Years War, for instance, was a little dry, it was also very necessary background information. However, because of this, I would not recommend this book to anyone who does not usually enjoy reading historical non-fiction. While as a reader of both historical fiction and nonfiction I appreciated the narrative portions of the story and the attempt to create a more dramatic development, this book is firmly rooted in the world of practical, academic information. However, for those who are interested in history, witchcraft, the justice system, or simply looking for a great history book, The Last Witch of Langenburg is a very satisfying story that will certainly fit the bill.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Extraordinary Accomplished History and High Stakes Drama, February 6, 2009

By 

A. Droessaert "Brynhild" (Durham, NC) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Last Witch of Langenburg: Murder in a German Village (Hardcover)

Researched for over fifteen years, this complex web of personal relationships in a time of crisis offers an astonishing glimpse into every day life in a small village in the 17th century. A high stakes drama with much food for thought about religion, science and sociology, this well written book will grab you and offer you a view from many perspectives on a wide range of human emotions and includes everything from superstition, famine, war and devastation to state of the art science, the workings of medicine and law, love, betrayal, and an education in history. The human drama which unfolds with increasing intensity and the gripping yet non-fiction tale of Professor Robisheaux, are unique in its genre and reveal new potentials in the field of micro history. This book and its deeply dramatic and disturbing story are made for a movie, and an award winning one at that!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars fascinating true-life witch tale, August 5, 2009

By 

H. F. Gibbard "Noir Guy" (Dark City, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Last Witch of Langenburg: Murder in a German Village (Hardcover)

"The Last Witch of Langenburg" is an excellent case study of a German witchcraft trial from the latter part of the Seventeenth Century. The author has done an enormous amount of research in the legal archives of the period and he moves seamlessly from micro-history (the petty grievances of a small German town) to macro-history (the effect of the Reformation and the Thirty Years' War on the German socio-political situation). He has an amazing grasp of the psychology of the accusers, the accused, and the judges involved.

Anna Schmieg, the accused, had the misfortune to be married to the owner of a mill situated just outside the small German village of Langenburg. Mill-owners were suspected by the peasantry of short-changing the local farmers, hoarding grain, and adulterating their product. They were also suspected of allying themselves with the Devil to obtain protection for their mills, which were hazardous working environments with their large grinding stones and running water. It didn't help that during the Thirty Years' War, invading armies had starved the populace, only increasing the suspicion toward those engaged in the somewhat dishonorable profession of miller.

Small-town German life during this time period was full of petty disputes, insults, and physical violence. The courts were jammed with cases involving personal disputes as well as moral offenses. To defend her husband Hans, Anna Schmieg became something of a sharp-tongued shrew, eventually hated by the townspeople around her.

On Shrove Tuesday, 1672, Anna sent her daughter Eva to deliver cakes to her neighbors. One of the neighbors, Anna Fessler, had given birth shortly before. After she ate one of the cakes, she died in horrible agony. An autopsy later showed that her intestines had literally exploded. Anna Schmieg, who'd had a previous dispute with Anna Fessler, was suspected not only of poisoning, but of witchcraft.

Yet, as the author points out, Anna Schmieg's was not viewed as an open-and-shut case by any means. German jurisprudence during this period featured an uncanny mixture of rationalism, concern for proper process of law, superstition, and barbarism. Careful examination of witnesses stood side-by-side with use of torture to extract confessions. Fear of wrongful conviction of the innocent was combined with credulity involving supernatural causes of illness and paranoia about allegiances with satanic forces. Erudite judicial opinions full of Latin phrases led to horrid deaths at the gallows. The author captures the grim and relentless process that led to the cruel executions of Anna Schmieg and another woman and the burning of their bodies at the stake. Along the way, we learn sobering lessons about how the irrational can sway the minds even of well-meaning and educated people.