History Main / BurnTheWitch

* In one ''StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'' episode, Captain Kirk is declared to be a "witch." Which isn't that strange, as it was held universally acceptable that men could be witches as well. At least, until a particular misogynistic and sadistic witch-hunting book gained popularity, despite being put on the Vatican's BlackList.

* The ''{{Ravenloft}}'' module ''Servants of Darkness'' gives PCs the opportunity to derail this trope, proving an accused woman's innocence by exposing the evil fey creature which is truly to blame for the misfortunes plaguing a Tepestani village.

* In issue 72 of ''{{Superman}}/{{Batman}}'', a group of crazed religious fanatics kidnap Lois Lane and attempt to burn her at the stake. They [[CargoCult think Superman is God]], and seek to punish Lois for "rejecting" Superman for the "mere motal" Clark Kent and thus failing in her "duty" to give birth to TheMessiah. Fortunately, she is rescued by The World's Finest.

In pretty much every single usage of this trope, the person set to be burned is either innocent, or they are of course a good and/or harmless witch who actually [[NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished only wanted to help the townsfolk]] that are even now setting her ablaze. And if this isn't the case, it's probably a parody or deliberate aversion. The "actual witch who is accused by evil bigoted townsfolk" is likely the most popular variant. This tends to ignore that if witches actually did the things that they were historically reputed to (y'know, little things like killing entire flocks and crops, inflicting horrible withering sickness on people, selling their souls to Satan), you can kind of understand why a small town full of people probably barely clinging to a sustainable life as it is might have a bit of a bad reaction. However, attempting to burn a real, powerful witch has a chance to turn out [[BullyingADragon wrong]].

* Done in the ''SilentHill'' movie twice.

* Done in ''Finnian's Rainbow'', when Sharon is accused of being a witch after she tells a racist Senator "I wish ''you'' were black!" and he turns black (this was actually caused by leprachaun gold). This leaves the very pissed Senator to declare her a witch and threaten to burn her at the stake unless she can turn him white again. While they skip the stake at the climax, she is locked in a barn which is set on fire. Thankfully, she is rescued when the gold is used to wish the Senator white again. Weirdly, the movie takes place in 1960s, which is lampshaded when the Senator says that they have laws against witchcraft and Sharon's fiancee points out that that law was from the 1800s and ought to have been repealed.

** And heresy, can't forget heresy. It was also probably coerced crossdressing, at least while in prison. Before her capture by the English she had been wearing men's clothing and this was one of the things she was condemned for. After her abjuration she had to wear women's clothing. It's suspected that one day her guards took all her clothes away and left some men's clothing in their place. [[SadisticChoice She had a choice between going naked and risking being raped (repeatedly) or putting on the men's clothing]]. She chose to put on the men's clothes and this was percieved as evidence that she was no longer repentant and so should be burned.

* A common misconception, even in Massachusetts, is that the victims of the Salem Witch Trials Hysteria of 1692 were burned, when in fact, most were hanged, with the exception of Giles Corey, who was pressed to death (ie. had a large board the size of a door laid on top of him and then rocks were piled onto the board, till he suffocated. he got special treatment becuase he refused to confess to being a witch. He just told them to add more weight.)

** The other popular misconception is that they happened in Salem, Massachusetts. The trials of 1692 actually happened in Salem ''Village'', now called Danvers. Doesn't stop shops in Salem, MA from hawking witch-themed souveniers, of course.

* Done in the ''SilentHill'' movie. The townspeople burned Allessa Gillespe as a witch for being born out of wedlock and her father being Pyramid Head. They then burned the police officer who was helping the main character, and attempt to burn the main character as well before Alessa gets her very bloody revenge.

** The other popular misconception is that they happened in present-day Salem, Massachusetts. The trials of 1692 actually happened in Salem ''Village'', now called Danvers. Doesn't stop shops in Salem, MA from hawking witch-themed souveniers, of course.

** And not all the rest were hanged. Some witches in Connecticut and Rhode Island were put to death by being tied to a stake on the beach at low tide, and then [[IfYouKnowWhatIMean the water did the trick.]]

This trope is often the climax of a classical WitchHunt in media, with plenty of TorchesAndPitchforks to go around. Such portrayals are often [[DidNotDoTheResearch not historically accurate]], depicted in places and times when there were no witch-hunts, or misrepresenting ones that did occur. In particular, one of the most famous episodes of witch-hunting, the Salem witch trials, featured ''no'' burnings at all (the accused were hanged). In reality, in England and in English colonies (including Massachusetts), burning at the stake tended to be reserved for women who killed their husbands, even in self-defense (the legal name for the crime was "petit treason") and for heretics (it was popular during the Reformation and Counter-Reformation, with Bloody Mary of England acquiring her nickname because of her noted penchant for it), but there was some overlap as heretics were often accused of witchcraft. In addition the vast majority of people accused of witchcraft in Europe were acquitted. Better to let a witch live (and later take her punishment in Hell anyway) than kill an innocent woman, especially if you did burn them as wood was valuable. On the other hand in Continental Europe witches were often burned to death, especially in the Germanic areas, to the point of becoming a tradition and the witch swapped for a mannequin.

* "Burn the Witch" by QueensoftheStoneAge.

* The MMORPG {{Shadowbane}} had the Temple of the Cleansing Flame, whose sole purpose was to save humanity by burning up large portions of it [[ItMakesSenseInContext and every elf they could find]].

* In issue 72 of {{Superman}}/{{Batman}}, a group of crazed religious fanatics kidnap Lois Lane and attempt to burn her at the stake. They [[CargoCult think Superman is God]], and seek to punish Lois for "rejecting" Superman for the "mere motal" Clark Kent and thus failing in her "duty" to give birth to TheMessiah. Fortunately, she is rescued by The World's Finest.

* Full Moon Entertainment's movie version of ''The Pit and the Pendulum'', taking place during the Spanish Inquisition, naturally invokes this trope a couple of times. Of particular note is a scene where an old woman, soon to be burned at the stake, manages to ingest some conveniently placed gunpowder before hand. This results in a very messy explosion once she catches aflame.

* In ''Devonsville Terror'' by Ulli Lommel the only actual witch of the three women killed suffers that fate. Witches killed in "burning times" and coming back from the dead to seek revenge on their persecutors' descendants should get their own trope IMO.
** They do. It's called SinsOfOurFathers.

* An episode of the first season of TheDeadZone television show had Smith going through a small town where a murder with satanic vibes had been committed, since he displays knowledge of the crimes via his powers they think he did the murder, they put him on trial for witchcraft so he can't leave the town while they search for evidence to pin him with, an angry mob ends up carrying him out of the court room to burn him at the stake for the murder because a child and her mother was involved, and another girl was missing.

* ''Il Trovatore'' by Verdi, anyone? Everything began with a witch burning...

* Witchfinder General, "Burning a Sinner".

** There was also a Halloween special that took place in the time the WitchHunt happened and Marge and other women were accused of witchcraft and were tied to the stake. Lisa pointed out that if they were witches, they could use their powers to escape. She quickly shuts up when Homer threatens to add her to the pyre.

-->''"Burn the witch''
-->''Burn to ash and bone"''
-->-- '''QueensOfTheStoneAge''', ''BurnTheWitch''

-->''"Choose me or your pyre!''
-->''Be mine or you will burn!"''
-->-- '''Judge Claude Frollo''', "Hellfire," ''Disney/TheHunchbackOfNotreDame''

-->'''Sweden:''' I can't wait to dance around the maypole! It's so beautiful this year!
-->'''Norway:''' Indeed. Only one thing is missing. ''(lights the maypole on fire)'' FIRE!!!
-->'''Denmark:''' Don't forget the witch!
-->-- ''{{Scandinavia and the World}}''