Before the Witch Hunts: the Albigensian Crusade with Louis Pulford

Historian Louis Pulford reveals how a 13th-century religious persecution became the blueprint for centuries of persecution. The Albigensian Crusade (1209-1229) marked the first time the Catholic Church turned its crusading armies inward, targeting the Cathar religious minority in southern France. Pulford, who recently completed his PhD research on firsthand accounts of the crusade, traces how tactics developed during this campaign - from systematic interrogations to public marking of the accused - would later be deployed in witch trials across Europe and colonial America. By understanding how these persecution methods were first developed and refined during the Albigensian Crusade, we gain crucial insight into the mechanics of later witch hunts and how established systems of persecution could be turned against any marginalized group. Join us as we explore this pivotal moment when methods of mass persecution were refined and institutionalized, setting dangerous precedents that would echo through the centuries.

Order from Chaos: Reappraising the Historia Albigensis of Peter of les Vaux-de-Cernay by Louis Pulford

Importance of Heresy

Impact of Heresy

United Nations Human Rights Council Resolution 47/8

Study on the situation of the violations and abuses of human rights rooted in harmful practices related to accusations of witchcraft and ritual attacks, as well as stigmatization

End Witch Hunts

Connecticut Witch Trial Exoneration Project

Massachusetts Witch-Hunt Justice Project

Witch Hunt Website

Salem Witch-Hunt Education Project