Typical disigeneous crap from the Catholic church. Of course most burnings were carried out by civil authorities, the trial was carried out by the Church who then released the poor unfortunate to the civil authorities who were bound to carry out the harshest penalty they had on the books which was death. The release often came with a church recomendation for mecry but was backed up with a clause staying that those in power who showed mercy in not applying a death penalty must surely be suspect themselves, catch 22 or what.

For witchcraft alone between 1450 and 1750 an estimated 100,000 were killed either at the stake, hung or died through torture and neglect while awaiting either trial or execution. Factor in the suprsssions of various sects at the urging of the church and its inquisitors then you have a number beyond reckoning.

Going by Church records themselves, an idea of how corrupt the church was at this time and how it used the inquisition to make money. The Prince-bishop Gottfried of Bamburg made 500,000 Florins the goods taken from those condemned and burnt in just 4 years.

Sledge