Europe's inner demons

But if the first confession at the Castel Sant’ Angelo yields a perfectly coherent picture, the second reveals some strangely incongruous features. For the statements by the next prisoner, Francis of Maiolati, include the following:

“Interrogated concerning the matter of the barilotto, he said that when he was young, ten or twelve years of age, he twice found himself in the crypt of a church which has since been destroyed, at a spot near Maiolati. After mass had been celebrated at night, just before dawn, the lights were put out and the people cried, ‘Put out the light, let us go to eternal life, alleluia, alleluia; and let each man take hold of his woman.’ ” Asked what he did himself, and whether he had sexual intercourse with any woman, he replied that he was young at that time, and the young people left the church; the adults stayed behind and had intercourse with the women present. They made a stamping noise, like the noise on the holy day of Venus.

Interrogated concerning the powders, he replied that, from the babies born, they take one little boy as a sacrifice. They make a fire, around which they stand in a circle. They pass the little boy from hand to hand until he is quite dried up. Later they make powders from the body. They put these powders in a flask of wine. After the end of mass they give some of this wine to all taking part; each drinks once from the flask, by way of communion. And he, Francis, was there twice, and drank twice, when attending mass. He also said that for thirty years he had not belonged to the sect, because he had had no occasion. He joined again after the arrival of Brother Bernard, who brought him back to it by his preaching; and he had made confession four times to the same Bernard.⁽²⁹⁾

Such was the story told by Francis of Maiolati. To understand it, two facts have to be borne in mind. As in all inquisitorial trials, the tribunal was empowered to use torture; and again and again the record of the enquiry expressly states that torture was in fact used. Francis may not have been tortured, but he certainly knew that he could be. Secondly, the prisoners incarcerated in the Castel Sant’ Angelo included a Fraticelli “bishop”, Nicholas of Massaro. This man did not figure at all in the first series of interrogations; but there are strong indications that Francis’s statement was intended to prepare the way for his appearance later. Interrogated afresh, Francis stated that he knew of the ritual infanticide only from senior members of the sect.⁽³⁰⁾ Another prisoner, Angelo of Poli, was more precise: the first time he had ever heard of the

barilotto was now, in prison, when the “bishop” Nicholas had told him of it.⁽³¹⁾

It is impossible to tell whether these laymen were forced to incriminate their “bishop” or whether, on the contrary, the “bishop” was forced to mislead his followers; but it is also immaterial. By whatever means, the scene was set for a dramatic confession by a leader of the Fraticelli.

The enquiry began in August 1466, and in October the commission laid its report before Pope Paul. The pope insisted that the enquiry should be resumed forthwith, and the prisoners interrogated afresh.⁽³²⁾ This time Nicholas of Massaro was at the head of the line; a venerable figure, it would seem, for he had been a bishop for some forty years. He at once confessed to everything — to taking part in the orgies and in the infanticides; also to handing out the wine with the ashes of the incinerated baby “nine or ten times”. He had only one correction to make: the orgies were not wholly promiscuous, the men usually chose women they knew, and he himself usually took Catherine of Palumbaria.⁽³³⁾ Catherine, being summoned, failed to confirm this — she could recall having intercourse with the elderly Nicholas only once or twice. On the other hand, she knew all about the infanticides and the making of the powders; indeed, these things were frequently done in her very house.⁽³⁴⁾