Switzerland, historically known for its natural beauty and political neutrality, also holds a darker record: it conducted more witch hunts than any other European country. The last person executed for witchcraft in Europe, Anna Göldi, was beheaded in the Swiss village of Mollis in 1782. Her story is now commemorated in the Anna Göldi Museum in Ennenda, a village in the canton of Glarus.
A History of Witch Hunts in the Alps
Switzerland’s witch hunts spanned 350 years, longer than anywhere else in Europe. The Alps, with their fragmented geography, granted small communities and local courts a high degree of legal autonomy, allowing witchcraft accusations to spread rapidly under popular pressure. “In these isolated valleys, a lack of scientific understanding in the face of harsh climates and agricultural shortages drove inhabitants to attribute natural disasters to occult forces,” says Dr. Lionel Dorthe of the Fribourg State Archives.
Europe’s first systematic witch hunt began in Valais in 1428, nearly 60 years before the publication of the infamous inquisitorial manual, Malleus Maleficarum. Between 1428 and 1447, 3,500 people were executed for witchcraft and sorcery in the region. In Fribourg, 360 witch trials were documented between 1493 and 1741, while in the former Pays de Vaud (now Vaud), 3,000 trials took place during the same period.
The Legacy of Anna Göldi
Anna Göldi’s case stands out for its brutality and eventual exoneration. In 2008, the canton of Glarus unanimously declared her a victim of judicial murder, a charge led by local author and lawyer Walter Hauser.
The Anna Göldi Museum, housed in Ennenda’s historic Hänggiturm, examines the broader context of witch hunts, from Christian Europe’s historical power structures to contemporary issues like human rights and slavery. Dr. Ursula Helg, the museum’s director, highlights its significance: “This is the first place where a witch was exonerated by a democratic vote. We have corrected a historic injustice.”
The museum displays replicas of Göldi’s personal belongings, court documents, and the pins the child she was accused of harming allegedly spit out. A courtroom reconstruction and interactive exhibits bring the 18th-century trial to life, showing the injustice she faced.
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While the history of witchcraft trials is somber, modern Switzerland has adopted a lighter approach. The annual Belalp Hexe festival in Valais, which began in 1983, features skiers dressed as witches racing down the slopes on broomsticks. The event celebrates local folklore and attracts tourists to the region during the winter shoulder season.
Despite the playful tone of such events, the legacy of witch hunts remains a reminder of historical injustice. In Ennenda, descendants of those involved in Göldi’s trial still live in the village. The museum honors the many women who lost their lives to such trials, with a black-and-white banner bearing Göldi’s name hanging in the community that once condemned her.
Modern Switzerland’s Playful Take on Witchcraft
The festival culminates in the Witches Descent, a seven-mile (12-kilometer) race from the summit of Hohstock mountain to the village of Blatten. Racers, with faces painted green and wearing pointy hats, zip down the mountain against the backdrop of the 13,642-feet-high (4,158-meter-high) Jungfrau and Europe’s longest glacier, the Aletsch Glacier.
Gerold Berchtold, who owns Chalet Sepp where the Witches Descent ends, tells me, “Belalp Hexe has become something that is important to the local community.”
Early Witchcraft Beliefs and Accusations
The concept of witchcraft predates Christianity, with references in ancient texts like Homer’s Odyssey. Roman law and Christian beliefs later incorporated prohibitions against forbidden magic. The figure of the witch, as recognized today, emerged in the Western Alps as a symbol of winter, associated with age, malice, and the power to cause harm.
In the 15th century, a woman was accused of transforming into a raven, defecating in her husband’s eyes, and causing his fatal fall from a cherry tree. Rumors linked her transformation to visits with a lover. Despite the husband’s possible intoxication, she was charged with ‘raven flight’ and murder, ultimately burned at the stake.