"Witch hunt", raging in the Middle ages in civilized European countries, forever marred their history. Russia in those days looked much more humane and sensible country. But the fashion to look for all the troubles of the machinations of the evil spirit touched her.

Maybe in Russia snishoditelnoje treated witches and sorcerers because of the fact that did not see them as a big threat. It was hard to believe that some village grandma-fortune-teller can cause a storm or drought. And their antics in the form of stealing milk from another's cows, targeting corruption and love conspiracies of particular concern to the villagers did not cause. Zealous sorcerers could beat or attaccati hair, but burned to death not often. Only if considered them guilty of death.

Since ancient times as punishment witches and sorcerers used to be burned. In ancient Russia evil wizards was considered the Magi. Something in the ground and burned as for volhovst and magic. Especially popular this kind of penalty was in Novgorod. "Seduction" of the people and the rejection of the Christian faith by order of Prince Gleb Novgorod in 1071 burned the sorcerer, and in 1227 they burned already four of the Magi, although the boyars wanted to prevent it.

When in the year 1411 in Pskov began plague, on charges of napadenii disease were burnt 12 women.

In 1446 Prince Ivan Mozhaisk publicly burned together with the Duke's wife of Andrei Dmitrievich - the magic.

Most zealously struggled with witches and sorcerers Tsar Ivan the terrible. He seriously believed that the enemies of his three wives wasted magic and its very attempted to send to the light, and therefore luteal when suspected someone in witchcraft. By his order was seized Novgorod Archbishop Leonid and accused of witchcraft. Together with the Archbishop were arrested 15 of genok-wise women, which was subjected to cruel punishment - they were quartered and burned. In collusion with "the women whispering" accused Ivan the terrible and Prince vorotynsky.

Interestingly, the grandmother of Ivan the terrible, Princess Anna Glinskaya itself had the reputation of a witch. Rumor was facilitated by the fact that the Glinsky family was descended from Tatar murzas Lexana. About Anna said that she took heart from the dead, and cast them into the water, which then Kapila Moscow streets. So when 1547 in Moscow there was a terrible fire that destroyed in a few hours the city centre, including the Kremlin and Gostiny Dvor, the perpetrators of the disaster, the people thought Glinsky. The estate Glinsky was looted, servants and children killed and Yuri Glinsky crowd killed in the assumption Cathedral, where he sought asylum.

During the reign of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich in 1638 a large public response was caused by the case Zamoskvoretskaya witches. It turned out that evil is not hidden by dense forests, and gets to own the Royal chambers.

One of the tsarist gold-seamstress, razrugalis with girlfriend Anastasia, clearly said that she was a witch, again thick ash on sovereign trail. Good people reported about this place I need, and soon girlfriend zolotoshveyki was in a torture chamber. As it turned out that her husband Nastasia is a foreign national Lithuanian Yanko Pavlov, the fact tried to give political aspect. Nastasya was accused that it is on the order of the Polish and Lithuanian king brings damage to the Russian Emperor and the Empress. But being broken up on the rack, Nastasya kept saying that malice in her actions were not. And the ashes on the Royal trail she was showering "not for likhova of the case, and as the ashes of sir or her Majesty the Queen will go, and who at that time will be the petition, and then the case and will become".

Maybe Nastasya believed and put her in peace, but her unhappiness, the Royal family was attacked by pestilence. In 1639 died from the disease five-year tsarevitch Ivan Mikhailovich, and after him, a new-born heir Vasily Mikhailovich. Few doubted that the chain of deaths caused damage, which sent Zamoskvoretskaya witches. As a result of brutal torture Nastasya and her friend Juliana died in jail. Several Zamoskvoretskaya gossips were sent into exile.

Gained fame several executions of witches and wizards under Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich. So was burned in a house on charges of witchcraft Staritsa Olena. She herself admitted that arcane securities Yes herbs spoil people and some taught witchcraft.

The same penalty in 1647 were subjected Agafya and her teacher in the witch fact of Tereshka Ivlev, who was accused in the fact that with spells and "threads dead man with the sentence" starved to death several peasants.

Fedor Ioannovich burned witches, nanasajo damage to the Tatar Prince Murat-Girey.

In 1671 the Prince Dolgoruky burned in a house of the old woman, accused of witchcraft.

In Astrakhan in 1672 was burned to Kornylo Semenov - he found conspiracies.

Russian Tsar Fedor Alexeevich died at the age of 20 in 1682. Popular rumor immediately attributed the blame in his death Naryshkin boyars, who allegedly brought forth the king with magic magicians of the German settlement, among which the main thought of the doctor Daniel van Garden.

No joke dispersed Riflemen broke into the Kremlin. Sorcerer Daniel van Garden they did not find, but took soul that dropped from the porch on the spears of another foreign doctor - Gutmane. For van Garden tried to intercede Princess Sophia, but her words had no effect. Archers in the house of the van Garden found snake skin and alcoholized multilegged animal, obviously magical origin, therefore doubt that he consorted with the evil spirit, they had not. So alcoholized octopus has become the main evidence doctor in the death of the king. Archers severely beat van Garden, and then has chopped to pieces.

They say that the head of the Streltsy order okolnichy Fedor Shaklovity was sent in the Preobrazhenskoye chernoknizhny to lime Peter I. What became of chernoknizhny, unknown. But it is known that on Bolotnaya square was publicly burned in the frame of Dorofeya Prokofiev with assistants for their theft and on their master health for evil magic and bogomolny intent". Prokofiev in 1869 hired Royal steward Andrey Bezobrazov to the magic inspired the Emperor not to send his Governor in the Terek river. Moreover hired quite cheap: for the ruble money, a quarter of rye flour, half-OSMANY flour, osmino peas, floor-OSMANY cereals, Potosi meat and half a bucket of wine. Oh, icolas this wine with a meal from the magician and his assistants when they burned in a frame. Not escaped execution and the Stolnik Bezobrazov.

Actually, Prokofiev was "a folk healer". During interrogations in Order investigation he said that dental disease cures, ache and persuades the blood reaches out. And taught him this craft Nizhny Novgorod Konoval Fedor Bobylev. However, Dorofeya acknowledged that has really done and let the wind plot on Tsar Peter Alexeevich that to Bezobrazova was more affectionate.

By the middle of the XVIII century justice against the sorcerers became more liberal. Perhaps the last sentenced to death sorcerer was a peasant from Solvychegodsk County Andrey Kozitsyn, who without consequence of torture told that at Easter 1752 entered into an Alliance with the forces of Satan, had renounced God and the Orthodox faith and received in a personal subordination of devils, the senior from which called ARKTOS. These devils, he attempted with hexes on his fellow villagers.

On the basis of this recognition Kozitsyn condemned to burning in a log cabin. In January 1763 sentence was directed for approval in the Arkhangelsk province office. However, there verdict is not approved, referring to the Senate decrees, which was supposed to replace punishment corporal punishment. The result is sold out to the devil Kozitsyn punished 40 lashes, pulled out his nostrils and sent to Nerchinsk hard.

In the XIX century punishment sorcerers and witches were limited by flogging. Mikhail Tokarev from the city Pinega Arkhangelsk province at the instigation of the sisters Efimii Lobanova was in 1815 sentenced to 35 lashes Church and repentance. "Corpus delicti" in this case was the fact that he had filled on the woman damage, causing her to hiccup.

Now witches in criminal prosecution for their activities do not pursue. Moreover, they will gladly advertise in Newspapers and on television. Meanwhile, it seems that the current sorcerers and witches much more cruel than the ancient woman and Magi.

A resident of the town of Onega Ekaterina Vishnyakova was at a friend's reputation as a witch. So when it's in July 2007, invited his friend as debt repayment 9 thousand rubles to perform the ceremony for the return of her husband, she readily agreed. To perform a magical rite Ekaterina lured familiar to a cemetery at night, and there they tied her to a tree and tied eyes and started to choke him. Fortunately, trustful lady managed to escape and run to the cemetery of the cabin, where she had taken refuge from persecution of witches. For attempted murder Vishnyakova was sentenced to nine years of imprisonment.

Oleg Loginov