Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal & Society

Episode: Inside the Icelandic Witch Trials

Host: Dr. Kate Lister
Guest: Dr. Olene Karelov Thorvarthar Dotier
Release Date: October 31, 2025

Episode Overview

In this gripping Halloween episode, sex historian Dr. Kate Lister is joined by Icelandic historian Dr. Olene Karelov Thorvarthar Dotier, digging into the little-known but chilling 17th-century Icelandic witch trials. Defying the European stereotype, 93% of those accused and burned as witches in Iceland were men. The episode explores why this was the case, the role of folk magic, and how hysteria, power struggles, and personal vendettas shaped one of Europe's most unusual witchcraft panics.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Setting the Scene - Iceland in the 17th Century

[06:22] Dr. Dotier:

• Iceland was a rural, unurbanized, sparsely populated (only ~50,000 people) part of the Danish kingdom.
• Education was very limited, mostly the domain of priests, magistrates, and civil officials educated abroad, particularly in Denmark and Germany.
• Officials imported mainland European ideologies—including witchcraft persecution—back to Iceland.
• Witch trials were concentrated geographically, primarily in the Westfjords; there were none in the south or east.

2. The Deep Roots of Folk Magic

[08:41] Dr. Lister & Dr. Dotier:

• Iceland had a longstanding tradition of folk magic, from runic inscriptions to seiðr (sorcery), embedded in sagas and law books.

• Magic was often linked to nature, healing, and pagan traditions.

• Although official Christianity came in the year 1000, folk rituals, beliefs, and magical practices endured, eventually clashing with church doctrine.

  "Magic is deeply rooted in religious practices since long before the year of 1000 when Icelanders reformed to Christianity."
  — Dr. Dotier [09:08]

3. The Reformation & Imported Witch-Hunting Fervor

[11:17] Dr. Lister & Dr. Dotier:

• Post-Reformation Iceland was swept into the wider European hysteria against witchcraft, with Lutheran preachers emphasizing the devil's influence.

• Incidents of mass hysteria and public fainting in church services were noted, underlining the intensity of religious terror.

  "...Priests preached about these threats of the devil, and they did so with such fervor that women fell into a daze during masses and were carried out...moaning and groaning and half unconscious..."
  — Dr. Dotier [11:45]

4. The Men Who Fanned the Flames: Key Figures of Persecution

[14:20-16:21] Dr. Dotier:

• Reverend Páll Björnsson (spiritual leader, author, witchcraft zealot) and Thorleifur Kortsson (secular lawman, German-educated) spearheaded the trials.

• All 23 people burnt in the 17th century were under their jurisdiction.

• In contrast: peaceful leaders in the south (Bishop Brynjólfur Sveinsson and Gisli Magnusson) did not engage in witch persecutions, resulting in no executions in their domains.

  "...We see how individuals can affect the world."
  — Dr. Dotier [16:21]

5. The Malleus Maleficarum: Importing European Witch Lore

[16:29-17:59]

• Icelandic clergy and lawmen read and were influenced by the notorious witch-hunter manual, the Malleus Maleficarum ("The Witch's Hammer").

• Rev. Páll Björnsson copied passages and ideology directly into his own work, shaping the trials’ tone.

  "It's like fan fiction, but just mad fan fiction."
  — Kate Lister [17:55]

• Despite the book's misogyny, the reality in Iceland was opposite: most victims were men.

6. Why So Many Men? Gender & Social Hierarchies

[19:06-21:19]

• Most of those accused and executed for witchcraft in Iceland were men.

• Root causes included the social structure—women had little property or formal status, so public disputes (the spark for many witch accusations elsewhere) rarely involved them.

  "They did not have social status, so to speak...and they did not own properties. And many of the women witch trials were raised around disputes about properties and influence."
  — Dr. Dotier [20:13]

7. The Case of Helga Halldórsdóttir

[21:19-24:17, 26:44-28:15]

• Helga, wife of Reverend Páll, suffered from fits/illness, interpreted as witchcraft affliction.
• Her suspicions drove the prosecution of several local men: first Jon Leifsson, then Erlendur Íjolfsson.
• Confessions were extracted under pressure and sometimes torture, with accused implicating others to the authorities.

8. Witchcraft Law: Oaths, Evidence, and Executions

[28:30-31:39]

• Guilt was decided by "oaths"—neighbors swore on guilt/innocence, akin to a jury but far less impartial in small communities.

• There was little emphasis on evidence, heavy reliance on rumors, slander, and confessions (often coerced).

• Many executions were technically illegal, as the Danish king had decreed only higher courts could pass death sentences—this was largely ignored by Icelandic officials until 1683.

  "There has not been much burden of proof...confessions did not always match the charges...people thought they should show repentance before the death."
  — Dr. Dotier [28:42]

9. Method of Execution and Its Horrors

[32:23-34:04]

• Burning alive was the method—unique in its brutality compared to hanging in England.
• Community was expected to witness; accounts exist describing the horror and trauma caused.
• No law prescribed burning until after most had occurred, likely adopted from European heretic executions.
• Approximately 25 people were burned (23 as witches), 20 of them men.

10. Last Fires and Lingering Legacy (1675–1678)

[34:23-34:54]

• Helga’s illness returned; more men (Magnús Bjarnarson, Lassi Didrik, and others) were executed after being accused of afflicting her.
• In a macabre episode, rain repeatedly extinguished the flames during Lassi's execution, interpreted by some as a sign he was innocent—but the execution was completed nonetheless.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "The witches are claimed to be child murderers...melting their flesh into remedies...Fundamental idea behind this...is the fear of women's knowledge..."
  — Dr. Dotier [17:59]

• On the role of ideology:
  "The whole thing was rooted in ideological contradicts and a power game, so to speak."
  — Dr. Dotier [17:59]

• On community trauma:
  "We have descriptions of people kicking and moving from the fire, falling off and being put on it again...it was a horrendous thing to watch."
  — Dr. Dotier [32:44]

• On the peculiarity of the Icelandic pattern:
  "Of the 22 executed for witchcraft in Iceland, 20 were men."
  — Kate Lister [34:54]

Timestamps for Key Segments

| Segment | Timestamp | |------------------------------------------------|-----------------| | Opening and introduction to Icelandic trials | 06:01-08:41 | | Folk magic & pre-Christian roots | 08:41-11:17 | | Reformation and hysteria in the church | 11:17-14:06 | | Key figures: Páll Björnsson & Thorleifur Kortsson | 14:06-16:21 | | The Malleus Maleficarum’s influence | 16:29-17:59 | | Men as the main victims | 19:06-21:19 | | The case of Helga and community accusations | 21:19-22:39 | | Witchcraft law and judicial practices | 28:30-31:39 | | Burnings: method, horror, and legality | 32:23-34:04 | | The final trials and executions | 34:23-34:54 |

Tone & Style

The episode is witty, vivid, and at times stark, with Dr. Lister's humor balancing the episode’s dark material and Dr. Dotier providing historian's rigor. The podcast makes references to modern parallels (mass hysteria, scapegoating) while always returning to the specificity and cultural context of 17th-century Iceland.

This episode is a compelling deep dive into how cultural anxieties, imported ideas, and individual obsessions fueled a uniquely male-focused witch panic – and left indelible marks on Icelandic history.