Demonology held fanatical power over medieval Europe. Its influence is popularly remembered in accounts of witch trials and water dunking. However, what is less well known is that demons of all kinds were feared – most intensely the succubus.
The records claim that a succubus could be identified by the following attributes:
* Supernatural beauty
* Dream walking – invading the dreams of men
* Sexual inducement – inspiring overwhelming feelings of lust, often through flirtatious behaviour
Any woman formally accused of these powers was immediately restrained and ordered to undergo “trial by violation” to determine their humanity.
Details of this brutal ordeal cannot be found in public records, as the church feared its very description could be corrupting. However, the secret journals of demonologists have recently uncovered this important piece of history. Despite its secrecy, succubi were hunted and trialled en masse in a frenzy that spanned centuries.
The most common methodology used for trial by violation is as follows. The accused is brought to the church basement where she is stripped naked, strapped into a harness, and suspended from the ceiling at waist height. Her mouth is gagged and legs tied spread.