The Wild Hunt

Disclaimer

This is NOT a page about Wiccans or neo-pagans, and I do not advocate the belief that Wiccans are Satan-worshippers and/or baby-killers. I am well aware that they are not. This is a starting point for historical research into the great witch craze of 1100-1700 AD. And please, don't ask me for spells.

The Wild Hunt

Also known as the Furious Horde, the Devil's Hunt, Wütischend Heer, Chasse Artu, Wilde Jagd, the days of Jupiter (Wedeck 126), and the Mesnie Sauvage, the Wild Hunt was a frightening flight of witches, demons, and the souls of the prematurely dead. This group would pass through the air and the streets at night while inhabitants barricaded their doors for protection.

A plethora of gods and goddesses were believed to lead the Hunt. These include:

Likewise, there were many interpretations and interpolations of the Wild Hunt mythos. Here are a few:

Dando and the Wild Hunt Harlequin and the Wild Hunt Hounds of the Wild Hunt

The Sluagh and the Wild Hunt The Wild Hunt in Arthurian Folklore The Wild Hunt in Scandinavia

The Wild Hunt story has been a long-lived one. "In the 1940s it was said to be heard going through West Coker near Taunton on Hallow's E'en at night" (K. Briggs 437).

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The Wild Hunt is copyright 1998 to Shantell Powell.