Geske

Article summary

Geske, also known as Horgeske (died after 1597) was the central figure of a witch trial in Stockholm. Her trial belonged to the first of the witch trials in Sweden in which the Sabbath of Satan in Blockula, the Devils pact and the Devil's mark were mentioned. Geske was a resident in Stockholm. She was reportedly of Danish origin, and her sobriquet Horgeske stems from the Swedish word "Hora" ('Whore') or "Hor" ('Fornication'), signifying that she was a prostitute. In September 1597, Geske was prosecuted on charges of sorcery alongside another woman by the name Brita Åkesdotter. Geske was accused to have deprived a number of people of "power and courage" by the use of magic. A widow and her son accused her of having blackmailed them to give her "a golden ring, money and a piece of gold", but still continued to harass them. Her accomplice Brita were accused of having caused illness on the members of a household by having placed magical objects, consistent of magical butter and the foot of a roster in that house. Both of them denied the charges. During the trial, a woman by the name Karin made a testimony which pointed out both Geske and Brita as guilty. Karin claimed herself to be a witch, who recently had sexual intercourse with Satan, as had many other women in the capital.…

Key claims

1. date of death: 1597 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95

Discussion questions

1. Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
2. The record states that the date of death is "1597". What evidence would count against this claim?
3. Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
4. If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?

Bibliography

1. Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1351529395