Werewolves.com | Werewolf Timeline 1500-1600

The Werewolf Timeline 1500-1600

werewolf timeline

1502? 1521?: In the early 16th century, three men from the town of Poligny in France were accused of being werewolves and were subsequently put on trial. The men, Pierre Bourgot, Michel Verdung (or Udon), and Philibert Mentot, were accused of committing a series of murders and other crimes while in the form of wolves. The three men were found guilty and were burned at the stake as punishment for their alleged lycanthropy. This case is an example of the way that the werewolf myth was used to explain and punish criminal behavior during this time period.

In 1541, there was a reported incident in Pavia, Italy in which a farmer was said to have transformed into a wolf and attacked several people in the countryside. According to the accounts of the time, the farmer was captured and, when questioned, claimed that the only difference between himself and a natural wolf was that the hair on a natural wolf grew outward, while the hair on his body grew inward. The farmer was subsequently sentenced to death, and his case is an example of the way that the werewolf myth was used to explain and punish violent behavior during this time period.

1555: Olaus Magnus was a 16th-century Swedish historian and clergyman who wrote extensively about the history and culture of the Baltic region. In his writings, Magnus describes the strange behavior of werewolves in the Baltic region, including their ability to transform into wolves at will and their preference for attacking and killing livestock rather than humans. Magnus' accounts of werewolves in the Baltic region are among the earliest written records of the werewolf myth in this part of the world and provide insight into the way that the myth was understood and believed during this time period.

1573: Gilles Garnier was a French man who was put on trial in 1573 for being a werewolf. Garnier was accused of committing a series of murders while in the form of a wolf, and was found guilty by a court of law. He was subsequently burned at the stake as punishment for his alleged lycanthropy. Garnier's case is an example of the way that the werewolf myth was used to explain and punish criminal behavior during the early modern period.

1578: Jacques Rollet was a French man who was put on trial in Paris in 1578 for being a werewolf. According to the charges against him, Rollet was accused of committing a series of murders while in the form of a wolf. He was found guilty by a court of law and was punished for his alleged lycanthropy. Rollet's case is an example of the way that the werewolf myth was used to explain and punish criminal behavior during the early modern period.

1588: The "Werewolf of Auvergne" was a French man who was accused of being a werewolf and was subsequently put on trial in 1588. According to the charges against him, the Werewolf of Auvergne was accused of committing a series of murders while in the form of a wolf. He was found guilty by a court of law and was punished for his alleged lycanthropy by being burned at the stake. The Werewolf of Auvergne's case is an example of the way that the werewolf myth was used to explain and punish criminal behavior during the early modern period.

1589: Peter Stubb was a German man who was accused of terrorizing the countryside near Cologne in the form of a wolf. According to the charges against him, Stubb was accused of attacking and killing livestock and other animals while in the form of a wolf. He was found guilty by a court of law and was punished for his alleged lycanthropy by being executed. Stubb's case is an example of the way that the werewolf myth was used to explain and punish violent behavior during the early modern period.

1590: Michel Jaques was a French man who confessed to becoming a werewolf on seven or eight occasions. According to his confession, Jaques claimed that he had been given an unguent by the devil that allowed him to transform into a wolf at will. Jaques' case is an example of the way that the werewolf myth was used to explain supernatural phenomena during the early modern period.

The "Werewolf of Châlons" was a French man who was put on trial in 1598 on charges of being a werewolf. According to the charges against him, the Werewolf of Châlons was accused of committing a series of murders while in the form of a wolf. He was also known as the "Demon Tailor" due to his profession as a tailor. The Gandillon family, which consisted of a sister, brother, and two of the man's children, were also tried in France in 1598 on charges of being werewolves. They were all found guilty by a court of law and punished for their alleged lycanthropy. The cases of the Werewolf of Châlons and the Gandillon family are examples of the way that the werewolf myth was used to explain and punish criminal behavior during the early modern period.
1598: Jacques Roulet was a French man who was arrested in the vicinity of Angers, France in 1598 on charges of being a werewolf. According to the charges against him, Roulet was accused of committing a series of murders while in the form of a wolf. He was found guilty by a court of law and punished for his alleged lycanthropy. Roulet's case is an example of the way that the werewolf myth was used to explain and punish criminal behavior during the early modern period.