Whispers of the Hexenberg haunt this very spot. For centuries this ground held a dark secret. Here in Hamburg’s past stood the infamous Fronerei. This was not just a prison. It was a place of torture and execution. The Hexenberg’s name speaks volumes.
The Fronerei was a grim structure. It housed those accused of witchcraft. From 1444 to 1701 at least 100 trials took place. Most ended with death. The accused were burned at the stake. Hamburg’s Stadtrecht the city’s law dictated this fate. Unbelievers who practiced witchcraft faced severe punishment. The law explicitly mentioned pacts with the devil.
Imagine the fear. The screams echoing through the night. The stench of smoke and burning flesh. The Fronerei also held a torture chamber. It was used to extract confessions. The building was located near Hamburg’s oldest marketplaces. It sat near St Petri church and the cathedral. Later public executions moved outside the city walls. They were conducted near St Georg. Condemned prisoners were transported via a road then called “Armesünderdamm” the poor sinner’s dam.
One of the earliest victims was Katharina Hanen in 1444. She was burned as an incantatrix a sorceress. Another case involved a farmer from Eppendorf in 1482. She was executed for desecrating a host. She allegedly buried it under a cabbage plant. The plant flourished abnormally. A light was seen shining from the plant at night. This was considered proof of her crime. The cabbage root was kept as a relic. Now it’s in the Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien.
Witch hunts intensified after the Reformation in 1529. Even Johannes Bugenhagen’s cook faced accusations. She was released thanks to Bugenhagen’s intervention. Waves of accusations followed. Many people were executed. Abelke Bleken was one such victim. Her testimony the Urgicht is preserved. She confessed to witchcraft and a pact with the devil under torture.
The last witch trial in Hamburg involved Margareth Uhler in Bergedorf in 1676. She was imprisoned for 21 months but acquitted. The Hexenberg’s legacy is chilling. A reminder of injustice and fear. Today a memorial stands nearby. It honors the victims of Hamburg’s witch hunts. The stones speak silently of their suffering. They remind us to learn from the past. They remind us to stand against injustice. The Hexenberg’s story lives on. It is a reminder of dark chapters in Hamburg’s history.