Tanneken Sconyncx (1560 – 2 June 1603) was an alleged

witch Witchcraft traditionally means the use of Magic (supernatural), magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In Middle Ages, medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually ...

from Gottem in the

County of Flanders The County of Flanders was a historic territory in the Low Countries. From 862 onwards, the counts of Flanders were among the original twelve peers of the Kingdom of France. For centuries, their estates around the cities of Ghent, Bruges and Ypr ...

. Her case is among the most notable of the period in

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

Case

Sconyncx was described as a wealthy, beautiful merchant. She was accused of

witchcraft Witchcraft traditionally means the use of magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually women who were believed to have us ...

by the bailiff in the city of

Deinze Deinze () is a city and a municipality in the Belgian province of East Flanders. It comprises the city of Deinze, and the towns of Astene, Bachte-Maria-Leerne, Gottem, Grammene, Hansbeke, Landegem, Meigem, Merendree, Nevele, Petegem-aan-de-Leie, ...

, who also performed the arrest. She denied the charges and claimed that the bailiff had made his accusation as revenge because she had refused him sexually. She died during

torture Torture is the deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person for reasons such as punishment, extracting a confession, interrogation for information, or intimidating third parties. Some definitions are restricted to acts c ...

after having been tortured day and night without respite from 23 May to 2 June.

Legacy

In 1995 a statue of "the witch of Tielt" was placed on the market square of

Tielt Tielt (; french: Thielt) is a Belgian city and municipality in the province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the town of Tielt proper and the villages of Aarsele, Kanegem, and Schuiferskapelle. History Some traces of Gallo-Roman occu ...

West Flanders ) , settlement_type = Province of Belgium , image_flag = Flag of West Flanders.svg , flag_size = , image_shield = Wapen van West-Vlaanderen.svg , shield_size = , image_map ...

References

* J. Monballyu, ''Van hekserij beschuldigd, Heksenprocessen in Vlaanderen tijdens de 16de en 17de eeuw'', UGA Kortrijk-Heule, 1996, 128 p. * J. Monballyu, "Was Tanneken Sconyncx een heks? Een analyse van haar proces in 1602-1603", ''De Roede van Tielt'', 25:3 (1994), pp. 94–140. 1560 births 1603 deaths Flemish women People executed for witchcraft Incidents of violence against women Businesspeople of the Habsburg Netherlands Businesspeople of the Spanish Netherlands 16th-century businesswomen 17th-century businesswomen {{Women-hist-stub