La Sorcière: The Witch of the Middle Ages

by Jules Michelet

"La Sorcière: The Witch of the Middle Ages" by Jules Michelet is a history book published in 1862. Michelet portrays medieval witchcraft as an act of popular rebellion against feudalism and the Catholic Church, depicting secret religions and Witches' Sabbaths organized by oppressed peasants and women. The first part imaginatively reconstructs the lives of medieval witches, while the second recounts actual witch trials across Europe. Though largely inaccurate, it stands as one of the first sympathetic histories of witchcraft.