Witchcraft in Western Europe In the 1480s-1660, the heightened sense of God’s power and divinity in western Europe led to the later infamous witch hunts. Christian theologians, canon lawyers, and officials claimed the essence of witchcraft was making a pact with the Devil. Around 100,000-200,000 people were tried for witchcraft, and about 40,000-60,000 of these were executed. 75 percent-85 percent of the people tried for witchcraft were women; this was attributed to Christian traditions, as women were associated with nature, the body, and disorder, and many were accused by neighbors. Legal authorities brought the case and issued others to bring in suspects which led to an influx of persons who contributed to bring in suspects, later known as witch panics. The last official execution for witchcraft in England was 1682, and in 1775 in the Holy Roman Empire.…show more content… This Pope was Pope Innocent VIII, who wrote the BULL Summis desiderantes and issued it on December fifth of 1484. The historical context of this document was that it was written during the Protestant Reformation of the fifteenth century, a time when the Catholic Church was called to reform, and also looked down upon Protestantism, which would fuel the Pope’s authoring of the BULL, as Protestant radicals became more likely to be accused of witchcraft. The BULL Summis desiderantes further details the ways in which witchcraft in western Europe affected many aspects of society, including the course of thinking among persons, women’s role in witchcraft, and the outcome of supposed witchcraft on the