Transcript
A (0:25)
Thastian planoleha shoonery plumeri dianadori ineltori alturi banishtori lohran agnesnius mowen thastian thuwen lederhud shkilina agustahi galeir chunkal thaan dawan toga agath anish tara rash agga togun chach o hog thu tila olich eg go punk I e tul building Ireland chachterocht.
B (0:48)
O riltis naheren don't raise your voice to prove you're right. Focus your mind with every word of irrefutable fact you can find, because conviction is the calm that comes when you know that you really do know. People who read the Financial Times know that they can shape their own perspectives with confidence because their viewpoints are informed by genuinely unbiased journalism, clarity and conviction. Source ft subscribe to the financial times@ft.comSourceFT.
C (1:20)
AI agents are everywhere, automating tasks and making decisions at machine speed. But agents make mistakes. Just one rogue agent can do big damage before you even notice. Rubrik Agent Cloud is the only platform that helps you monitor agents, set guardrails and rewind mistakes so you can unleash agents, not risk. Accelerate your AI transformation@rubrik.com that's R U B R-I K.com.
A (1:52)
Hello delicious friends, and welcome to who did what Now? The history podcast. That's not your history class with me, your host, Katie Charlewood, history harlot and reader of books who is starting this episode with a corrections corner because it is really bloody important. Accountability is where it's at, lads. So I was contacted by a domestic violence prosecutor I after my North Berwick Witch Trials episode, who was absolutely dismayed at my description of manual strangulation as a difficult and drawn out process. So here's the thing about manual strangulation. I'm talking like with your hands, not with a garrote or any other implement which can quicken the process. You can be unconscious in 10 seconds, you can be dead within a minute, you'll definitely be dead within five. And here's the thing. Manual strangulation is the most lethal form of domestic violence, short of murder. Right? Strangulation, then murder. Like, that's the jump as executions go though, death by strangulation. Manual strangulation is very specific and weirdly intimate. You know, as an execution it is though. But when it comes to domestic violence and strangulation, I never want to downplay or misrepresent any of that. So I am going to put a Link in the description down below, which is basically to educate you about the acute danger posed by even non fatal strangulation. There's a strangulation training institute and they've got a really, a really interesting infographic on the physiological consequences of structural triangulation. So check that out. And now that I've done that, now for something completely different. There were so many things happening out in the world that every now and again I am incredibly tempted to do a who's doing what now, like bonus thing and just like tell people, like, I'd really love friends to be involved in this and just tell them. And we talk about news events that are happening now, like Exodus 8 happening in Portland. Like what, what? Like what is happening? And also you can tell I was a cradle Catholic, can't you? And also like the heist. A heist in broad daylight in the Louvre. What. How dark is our timeline that. A major jewel heist of historical, historical gems, right? Artifacts even. And we're just like, oh, what delightful Sunday news. Like everything else is so horrible and terrible and, and the worst, right? And then this happens and we're like, jolly old show, like, what? Oh, but there's so much I want to talk about, but we have stuff to do and I know what you're thinking. You're thinking, katie, quit your jibber jabber and fact me and fact you I will. But first we've got to get our source on. Our sources are Witches of the north by Love Helena Williamson, Witchcraft by Marion Gibson, Female witches and Sami Sorcerers in the Witch Trials of Arctic Norway by Rue Blexhagen, John Cunningham by T.J. olson, Scottish witches and Witch Hunters by Liv Helen Williamson, the Witch Trials of Finnmark by Torbjorn Alm. And of course we have our old favourites, history.com and biography.com. are you sitting comfortably? Good. Then let's begin. By the 17th century, Scots were emigrating all over the globe, from the New World colonies in America to the Caribbean and even colonies up north of north. Medieval trading posts had expanded into towns and villages with less than 3,000 people spread over 20,000 square miles. And colonists were not the only inhabitants, though the indigenous Sami people had lived, hunted, herded, and just existed on the islets of Vardo and Wadsaw. So they're on these islets on the Finnmark region in northern Norway. Now Norway was part of Denmark Norway, like I think I mentioned this a little bit in the last episode. So from the 16th to the 19th century, the Dano Norwegian Union was a dual monarchy encompassing the Kingdom of Denmark and the Kingdom of Norway. Now, Norway also included several overseas possessions. So you had Iceland, Greenland, the Faroe Islands, and then of course there were colonies in like India, Africa, the West Indies, so on and so forth. Now remember, Greenland is covered in ice and Iceland is very nice. So many colonizers who had emigrated were Catholic and they lived a rather unexcited life together. Right. They just got on with the Sami people. They just existed in the same place, which was shocking. Like two people out with these societies. I know. And you're thinking Catholics. We're just kind of chilling. Yep. I'm as surprised as you are. Okay, so King James VI of Scotland, he was the brother in law to King Christian iv and he had decreed anti witchcraft laws, right. So both of them just really hated the concept of witches. And Christian IV, he had decreed, you know, this in 1617 about witches and their accomplices, and this redefined like just the whole concept of witchcraft. So not only was it illegal to be a witch, it was illegal if you didn't report anyone that you believed to be a witch. And it combined variations of demonology, you know, some of the charms and such and the rest packed with the devil. It combined parts of the Malleus maleficarum with James's own demonology weaved through it. And this linked witchcraft to folk magic, traditional healing, devil worship and heresy. From 1617 onwards, all witchery and magic in the kingdoms of Denmark and Norway was, was punishable by death or for like lesser offences, exile. When the witch craze reached the extreme northern edge of the country, it was carried there by John Cunningham, a Scottish immigrant. See John Cunningham, he was born around 1575 at the manor Barns in the East Nuke of Fife in Scotland. It's also sort of in the area of Quail. So he was the illegitimate son of John Cunningham, the Laird of West Barnes. John Cunningham senior was married at least twice and at least one of those marriages produced a legitimate heir. However, it appears he may not have had a spare anyway. And John Cunningham Jr. Was, was legitimized in 1595. So when he's like around 20ish, and his father was a laird, which meant he had a little power, a little influence and buckets and buckets of money, which meant he could have easily forked out for a university education for his son, you know, like he did for his other children. But instead John was not given that same privilege as his siblings. And so he went to sea to see what he could ccc. But all that he could CCC was the bottom of the deep blue ccc. I regret nothing. So he manages to impress King James VI of Scotland. And so the seaman was highly recommended to James, brother in law. He, King Christian IV of denmark, Norway. In 1603, James writes a letter of recommendation, a letter that implies that the king knew John well and requested that Christian IV treat him with respect. So the kings, Christian and James, they got on really well. I mean, they're family, you know, they're kings. They both like nice clothes, the Bible, and accusing women of being witches and then killing them. You know, just king things. So anyway, he ends up treating him with the respect that is requested because it's like James knew him personally, it appears, but I'm not gonna read into that. So anyway, John Cunningham is hired by Christian and he is promoted within two years. And for what I assume was assimilation purposes, changed his name to Hans Koenig. I mean, at least he won't get confused with his dad anymore. Anyway, he's a naval captain now and he's commanding this small fleet of his own. So he's got the ship Trost, which means Comfort, and the ships Den Rodlov, or which mean Red lion, and the Katten, which means cat. It's just a ship called the Cat. What's your ship called? Red Lion. Comfort. You know, cat. So anyway, as a captain, John is quite impressive. Like, the fleet has been sent to re establish contact with Norse settlements in Greenland, and he guides the ships through very dangerous seas. Like, he's got a really cool head on him. Like, while everyone else is panicking, he's like, I got this right? Ciao. So some crew members, however, do find him, quote, a bit strange, especially after he had a tipple, right? At one point, he accuses two crewmen of being criminals and just leaves them in Greenland, like, with some supplies to keep them going, you know, for a bit. Like a bit. And again, Greenland is covered in ice, but Iceland is very nice. So they're also, like, charting, like, the area and they're naming things, you know, that probably already have names. Like, there's a mountain called Kakatsiak, which I've probably horribly butchered there, but they change it to Mount Cunningham. Yep, that's Mount Cunningham now. Cool. So apart from naming places, dumping men on the coast, and making people uncomfortable whenever he drank, John also managed to kidnap four indigenous people, which I feel like I shouldn't have to say this, but kidnapping people, especially indigenous people, is wrong. Don't do that. Unsurprisingly, a skirmish occurs because the native people of Greenland, they don't want them kidnapping their people. I end up firing cannons at them. It's ugh. Like. And he's just. He's just there stealing these people because he's a dick. I guess. Naturally, these men weren't super keen on being stolen from their homeland, you know, and trafficked. And so they start causing problems on the ship to assert his dominance. John shoots one and surprise, surprise, no more issues occur on board. Now, once they return to Denmark, by the way, right? Any information about these Greenlandels just who gone, they just disappear from the records, which usually means something bad happened, right? There's nothing anywhere at all. They're just like, taken. Sir John, he continues his naval career exploring around Greenland. He reaches the land that is known as Canada. It becomes known as Canada at one point. And, like, he's just, you know, scooting around the globe. He is earning his stripes for Denmark, Norway. He patrolled the North Sea and was a captain the. During the Kalmar War. And again, we have to slip into some context here. Basically, the Kalmar War ran from like 1611 to 1613. So two years. And the long and short of it is, is that Sweden did not want to pay sound dues to Denmark, Norway. Denmark, Norway controlled the strait between the Baltic Sea and. And the North Sea. And it charged a toll to use it. And so Sweden decided that they were gonna try and avoid that by traveling through Lapland. Now, Lapland was sparsely populated, and that's also where Santa lives. So King Carl IX of Sweden declared himself King of the Lapps in Nordland. So, yeah, the indigenous people, by the way, around these areas, they were known as Finns and Laps. Okay? And so here's Lapland. And he's like, this is mine now. So he declares himself king, and then he starts collecting taxes in Norwegian territory. And there was a land grab. And then Denmark, Norway declared war. They're like, you can't have this. This is ours. So John's involved in that. And two years after the Kalmar War, John is sent to Spitsbergen, which is an island off the north of Norway, right? And here's. He's one of the commanders of a naval exhibition to demand tools from foreign whalers, because they're like, you can't be whaling inerties. Give us the money. In the following year, he captains another ship as part of an exhibition to rid Norwegian territories of whalers and pirates. Ahar, Sir John, Hans here was really cementing his position as a loyal subject of Denmark. Norway, a man who could be trusted to enforce the Dano Norwegian king's laws and the like. John Cunningham, he's in his 40s now, and with his harsh personality, life experience, and of course, his naval and colonial leadership made him the perfect candidate for the Finnmark governorship. What's interesting, actually, is that quite a lot of the royal officials of Northern Norway were typically foreign nationals. Like, it was a very deliberate choice by the king. Like, why? Probably because they were more likely to go the extra mile and prove themselves to the king. Like, don't get rid of us. We'll do the right thing or the wrong thing, more so, actually. So in 1599, King Christian had visited Finnmark and he was not happy. The Sami and the Catholic settlers were living harmoniously together. Like, they just kind of got on with it. And so on the return journey, the fleet sails into a storm on a treacherous sea. And of course, it's blamed on magic. Then they discover a member of the crew has just straight up stolen a Sami woman's cat. Naturally, they are convinced that the cat is evil and it is carrying a curse because it was stolen. And the plan is to just dump the cat overboard. But, like, what if that angers the witches more? The king orders that the cat be sent adrift with a month's supply of food in Lake A raft. Right, here's. Here's a horrible fact for you. The majority of people that try to ferry themselves off of an island on a makeshift raft or whatever have a much higher risk of dying than those waiting to be rescued. Right? Cats, I don't know if you know this, don't have opposable thumbs. And so I'm not entirely sure how great they'd be at sailing. And so they put the cat in this raft with food and it goes into the distance. And then once the cat is out of sight, the weather gets better. So they're like, clearly it was the cat. Right? So the fleet does make it back home, despite the evil Sami magic, right? There was this belief that the Sami could control the wind and stuff. And so, like, they made the storm happen. It's like, okay, so, like, this is. This is an event, really. So less than two years later, the governor of Finnmark dies suddenly, and his sudden death is blamed on the Sami people and their magic. To be clear, King Christian was convinced that the Sami had magically murdered the previous Finnmark governor. Now, this isn't altogether surprising when you consider that his brother in law, like, along with his brother in law, he believed that there was an international conspiracy of witches out to get kings. Right, right. In Finmark. Right. Some Sami were nomadic, trekking into the mountains following reindeer or caribou. Others lived permanently in fjord villages. All of them were no stranger to southern incomers, those who settled and those just passing through. And unlike other indigenous peoples, the Sami rarely caught the southern European diseases like the plague. Like, they're fairly hardy, you know, and they had their own culture, their own languages and their own traditions. Like, there were like so many different languages and dialects. And most of them are probably just wettered away now because, you know, colonization. The spirits and deities in the Sami religion were connected to nature spirits, ancestors, unincluded divination, and to the Christian king. Christian. This was barbaric. As if in a man in a robe leading a group to chant in unison before and after consuming the flesh and blood of an undead deity isn't fucking weird. Yeah, I am talking about the Eucharist and Christianity. You're welcome. Sami seers were thought to cast evil spells on others. And this leads to a bunch of ethnographers like Olaus Magnus, who had never even met a Sami person, and Peter Claus and Friess to claim that the Sami were evil tempered, dangerous enemies steeped in demonic paganism and witchcraft. It should be no surprise then that the first person to be tried as a witch after Cunningham's promotion to governor was a Sami woman.