Trials by water, fire and bread: 7 of the strangest ways of justice in history

1. Trial by bread

In ancient times, advanced forensic methods like DNA texts and collecting fingerprints had not yet been invented, and there were no video cameras with alarms then. Therefore, in matters of establishing justice, people increasingly relied not on evidence and evidence, but on the decision of the Lord God. Therefore, these trials were called God's judgments, or ordeals.

One of the most harmless ways was a test with consecrated bread - prosphora or host. It was used in both Catholicism and Orthodoxy. In Anglo-Saxon law, such a test was popular up to at least 1000 n. e. - mention of it is contained in the laws of the king Æthelred II the Unwise.

If someone was accused of a crime, he could prove his innocence in the following way. test subject fit to the altar, loudly praying to God to protect him. The priest hung a tablet of accusation around his neck, placed a poplar cross under his right foot, and held another one above his head. Then the churchman put a piece of hostia and cheese into the suspect's mouth, and he swallowed it. If he succeeded, he was forgiven. If

bread fell into the wrong throat - it means guilty.

In Orthodoxy, a similar ceremony was performed, in particular, on those suspected of stealing. The prosphora court was very common in Byzantium and Ancient Rus'.

Purely in theory, the prosphora trial could really help to identify the sinner. If a person was convinced of his guilt, he could well choke on bread because of psychosomatic ritual impact. But this required a very conscientious and God-fearing criminal.

They say that it was choking on bread during the test that Godwin, Earl of Wessex, suspected of killing the brother of King Edward the Confessor, died in 1053. Indeed, later historians considerthat this is a legend. French philologist Charles du Cange believesthat the common oath "Yes, so that I choke!" comes from this custom.

2. Cold water test

When it comes to ordeals, people think primarily of the Middle Ages. But in fact, God's judgments are a very ancient way of establishing guilt. For example, cold water test mentioned in the 13th law of the Code of Ur-Nammu, the oldest known surviving code, and in the second law of the Code of Hammurabi.

According to them, if a person is accused of witchcraftthen he had to jump into the river. If he got out of the water alive, he was justified. Ur-Nammu ordered the accuser to pay the innocent three shekels. Hammurabi was more severe with slanderers. According to his code, if the accused was found not guilty after the trial, the accuser was to be executed. And the victim was given the right to inherit his house.

For some time this practice was also present in Frankish law, but in 829 it was abolished by Emperor Louis the Pious.

Subsequently, in 1338, similar ordeals were sometimes used in Germany. If a person accused in poaching, he had to be immersed three times in a barrel of water. True, the Germans, apparently, did not interpret the ancient custom in this way, because in their version, if a person drowned, he was considered innocent, and if he surfaced, then vice versa. And he was eventually executed.

You ask: why then bother with court? Wouldn't it be easier to kill all the suspects at once? Well, if a person drowned during the test, it means that he proved his innocence and went to heaven. And this was more important for the God-fearing inhabitants of the Middle Ages than life on mortal earth.

The ordeal of cold water is also often associated with the witch hunt that broke out in Europe in the 16th and 17th centuries. In fact, this ordeal was applied to those suspected of witchcraft quite rare and was not recognized by the laws of most countries, but still took place. The last water trial of a witch took place in Szeged in Hungary in 1728.

Demonologists long ponderedwhy sorceresses have such excellent buoyancy. King James I of England believed that water is too pure an element and pushes out adherents of evil in a natural way. And the judge from Bonn, Jacob Rikius, believed that witches are supernaturally light, and therefore they know how to fly to the Sabbath. He also suggested not dipping them in water, but simply weighing them: less fuss, but the same result.

3. diving test

Cold water test attended and Indian civilization - it is described in ancient texts. But one more option is worth mentioning separately.

In India, as in other countries of Southeast Asia, the popularity of cock-fights. And it often happened that one player accused the other of cheating. For example, a swindler could oil his rooster so that the enemy could not grab it, or sharpen its beak and spurs with a knife.

To quickly and effectively resolve disputes over cockfights, the Indians used... diving competitions.

accuser and accused dived into a transparent pond and grabbed the poles that were hammered into the bottom. Whoever lasts longer without air is right and takes the money bet. And whoever could not stand it and surfaced for a breath of life-giving oxygen is considered a deceiver. Or a slanderer.

4. Vomit test

Peculiar methods of establishing guilt also existed in Africa. For example, the inhabitants of Madagascar, at least since the 16th century, have used poisonous fruits Mangas Cerberus tree, locally called tangena, during the trials of sorcerers and other criminal elements.

defendants offered swallow three pieces of chicken skin and fruits containing the substance cerberin, which, if ingested or even inhaled, can kill or cause severe vomiting.

If the subject felt sick and three fragments of the skin returned to the outside, he was excused. And if at least one piece remained inside, they were sentenced to death. If the accused died from poison, he was considered guilty. But since it was already too late to execute him, they limited themselves to a ban on burying the sorcerer in the family cemetery.

Especially the vomiting test loved to apply to her prisoners, Queen Ranavaluna I, who ruled Madagascar in the 19th century. She became famous for mass repressions, which led to reduce the population of subjects from 5 to 2.5 million people only between 1833 and 1839. Of these, about 100,000 people died from the tangen test.

And only in 1863, King Radama II debunked the personality cult of the insane ruler, banned such courts, rehabilitated the deceased accused and allowed them to be reburied in family cemeteries.

Similar test existed also among some West African tribes - they only used not tangenu, endemic to Madagascar, but Calaber beans. Women suspected of witchcraft or possessed by evil spirits men were fed these poisonous beans. The survivors were presumed innocent.

5. trial by fire

One of the most common (and painful) ordeals. The suspect was forced to walk a certain number of steps on burning coals, or on red-hot metal strips, or while holding red-hot iron in his hands.

One of the most famous stories of the trial by fire involves the mother of the Anglo-Saxon King Edward the Confessor, Emma of Normandy. According to legend, her accused in adultery with bishop Elfwin of Winchester. But she walked barefoot on a red-hot iron and remained unharmed, proving her innocence.

True, there were not so many highly spiritual personalities whom even fire does not take, therefore, in most cases, guilt was determined differently.

When a person steadfastly endured burns, they were bandaged for him, and after three days they were examined. If the wounds healed, the subject was declared innocent, and if they festered, they were executed.

6. Trial by the cross

In the early Middle Ages, Christian preachers offered this ordeal to the newly converted Germanic tribes. These barbarians they were very fond of solving all litigations by judicial duel. Christians, on the other hand, believed that somehow it was too cruel, and a more charitable way had to be found. The test of the cross was legally fixed Charlemagne in 779.

The essence of this judicial procedure is as follows. If one German barbarian, only converted to Christianity, accused another equally severe guy of any misconduct, they were forbidden to fight. Instead, they went to church, prayed, and then stood in front of the altar with their arms spread out horizontally at shoulder level and taking the shape of a cross. Whoever lowered them first was considered guilty.

Particularly stubborn could stand for days until the muscles cramp.

True, later the capitulary of Louis the Pious in 819 and, again, the decree of Lothair I in 876 banned trials with a cross, because the subjects allegedly "try to become like Christ," and this is unacceptable. And the harsh Germanic peoples returned to the good old court fights. By the way, about them.

7. Trial by combat

Judicial duels have long been a great way to find out who is right and who is wrong, without too much fooling around with laws, evidence and other legal subtleties. The accuser and the accused met on the field of honor and foughtuntil one (or both) died. The survivor was considered victorious in court, since God personally led him to victory.

According to the code of laws "Saxon Mirror" of 1230, to a judicial duel resorted to in case of insult, bodily injury or theft. The parties were armed with swords and shields and could wear linen and leather clothing. But the head and legs remained bare, and the hands were protected only by light gloves.

If the accused evaded the fight after being challenged three times, the accuser could strike two blows into the wind and two into the wind with his sword, and the case was considered as if he had won the fight.

What happened if the day turned out to be calm, the code does not specify. Perhaps the jury declared a draw.

In Scandinavia, the same way of administering justice called holmgang, literally - "to walk around the island." And in Rus', the duel was called the "field", and those who went out to fight were called field workers.

Pskovskaya Judgment charter, By the way, allowed to participate in the battle not only for men, but also for women. Such is the equality. However, if the lady was noticeably weaker than the enemy and could not fight, she was allowed to put up a hired fighter in her place. But when a woman filed a lawsuit against a woman, hirelings were forbidden.

Particularly original type of court fights were divorce duels, popular in Germany in the 15th century. If the spouses could not divide the property peacefully or one party accused the other of treason, they could fight.

A man armed with a club was sitting in a waist-deep hole, and a woman attacked him with a stone in a bag. Such rules equalized the chances of the spouses, even if the lady was weaker.