The Magical Universe: Everyday Ritual and Magic in Pre-Modern Europe

by Stephen Wilson

The universality of the magical beliefs which have existed throughout Europe from the time of the Romans to the present has been hidden by a focus on the sensational aspects of magic, and on witch trials in particular. The Magical Universe shows how magical beliefs and practices permeated all aspects of work and of family life, and profoundly influenced the approach of men and women to health and healing, birth, marriage and death. Magic offered the hope of protection in a dangerous and uncertain world, if the correct rituals were observed. Magical beliefs borrowed from and were incorporated in church rites. Such beliefs, shared by the powerful as well as the poor, lasted remarkably late in many rural areas and have still not completely vanished.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Religion, Medieval

592 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads data base.

Reviews

[Nimue Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

There is a myth that magical traditions hung on after Christianity became dominant and, despite attempts at suppression by the elite, poor people kept magic and pagan belief alive. What this book does is to offer examples from across mediaeval Europe that cast this idea in a very different light.
The Magical Universe is mostly a catalogue, sorting magic by focus rather than time, place or surrounding culture. It does not offer a deep analysis of the source or logic of much of what it charts, there are very few qualitative judgements about what might have worked. That’s not the purpose of the book. Its aim is to demonstrate the widespread nature of magic, across countries and centuries, and to flag up the complex relationship between magic and Christianity. Consequently, it does the job well, but is rather a dry and arduous read. There is a wealth of information here, but it requires effort and engagement on the part of the reader to do anything with it.
What this book makes absolutely clear is that Christianity and folk magic were intertwined. The magical role of priests, the curses of saints, the use of Christian prayers and liturgy in magic, the depth of similarity between miracle and magic, are all demonstrated. It suggests that many of our ancestors will have considered themselves to be Christian whilst regularly practicing magic. It undermines the idea of magic as separate, elite or specialised, and puts it in the realm of the normal and domestic. I think this is hugely important in terms of how we view not only the history of our own traditions, but our relationship with other faiths, and with our ancestry.

[J.M. Hushour · Rating 5 out of 5]

A most useful reference that doesn't stray too far into being mere "lists-of-things". For the uninitiated, you couldn't really go any better with this as a start. If you're familiar with the subject, the compendium might seem to be retreading familiar ground, but Wilson lays everything out in a nice, thematic manner so even if you're aware of late medieval fertility rites or the Divine Foreskin of Metz you'll find something neat and new. The themes run the gamut of human existence, from agriculture to childbirth, death, witches, demons, saints, and apotropaic prophylacticism. Maybe I made that last bit up. Invaluable!

[Jonathan · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's hard to imagine a more thorough survey. That becomes more challenging in some ways - knowing how various rituals varied or stayed the same across much of Europe is interesting, but the volume and depth of examples makes this more reference encyclopedia than popular history.

That's not a bad thing - but know what you're picking up before you do.

[Laura Hellsten · Rating 2 out of 5]

Great for Encyclopeadic facts less deep on any kind of analysing or giving insights to understanding.

[Genevieve Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is something of a historical catalog of magic and ritual, from the explicitly religious to the folkloric, in Europe prior to the modern era. Wilson's range is wide, from antiquity to the early modern era, and his book is organized by the type or setting of magical practice, so that examples from Ancient Greece and modern Spain may occur in the same paragraph.

This constructs a composite picture of the surprising endurance of magical practice up to the modern period, with the implicit suggestion that it is since everywhere in decline. Wilson does not advance this argument, however, preferring instead to provide a comprehensive account of the magical worldview and tying it primarily to subsistence-level societies where agriculture is the dominant form of work. The chapter on magic and religion is brief, but since that topic has been exhaustively researched by other scholars, Wilson may perhaps be forgiven. This book is especially valuable for its bibliography; researchers and others interested in this subject will find plenty there to explore.

[Janice Liedl · Rating 4 out of 5]

A massive, wide-ranging and intriguing survey of how a belief in and practices of magic were integral to European societies for hundreds of years, Wilson's book is probably too daunting for most non-academics. It pays off if you have interest in the subjects: he touches on all sorts of magic from the charms of childbirth to numerology and more. It's a learned, expansive and smart survey of an intriguing subject that tends to be buried behind the mountains of studies about witchcraft.

[Madly Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book on the magical landscape of Middle Age Europe.