Tortured screams echo through the dungeons and corridors. Here, everyone is put to the rack until they confess their devilish deeds. Johann Georg Fuchs von Dornheim, also known as The Witch Burner, has built this prison as part of his fight against sorcery – solely for witches.
This Catholic prince-bishop of the German diocese of Bamberg is notorious for his fierce crusade against all ungodly people, and hundreds are tortured and condemned to a death at the stake under his rule.
By virtue of his title as religious as well as secular overlord, Johann is immensely powerful and efficient. He sets up a witch commission to root out everyone who practices sorcery – including the Protestant Church whom he regards as equally ungodly. Following a failed grape harvest in 1626, a regular witch scare spreads among the populace. Such a disastrous harvest must be the work of the Devil and his helpers, and the witchcraft accusations escalate alarmingly. The Witch Burner conducts the many trials himself, and in just five years more than 600 people are executed. The violent panic doesn’t subside until even members of the top tiers of society are accused and condemned. Eventually, the German Kaiser puts a stop to the many witch trials.