Mapping maleficia: The borders of witchcraft and a woman’s world through the with trials of Zug, Switzerland, 1737-1738

Abstract

This thesis argues that the witch trial of Zug, Switzerland, held between August of 1737 and January of 1738 provides a window into the world and spatial conceptualizations of lower status Catholic women living in eighteenth-century Switzerland. Through the examination of the accounts of the accused, the realities and fantasies held by these women are laid bare in the narratives of witchcraft they constructed, informing their interactions with the world around them. The marginal spaces of the Canton of Zug and the broader Swiss context were the backdrop to localized and broader diabolical concepts of witchcraft. Geographic information systems (GIS) databases and maps of the accused’s worlds as demonstrated through the trial record were created, allowing for the visualization of the records. These maps demonstrate that the boundaries of these women’s worlds were intrinsically tied to their regional Catholic identities, forming the basis of their interactions with the world around them.