Legal Definitions - ignis judicium

Ignis judicium is a historical legal term, Latin for "trial by fire." It refers to a form of judicial ordeal practiced primarily in medieval Europe, where an accused person's guilt or innocence was determined by subjecting them to a dangerous test involving fire. The underlying belief was that divine intervention would protect the innocent from harm or reveal their guilt through injury.

• Example 1: Accusation of Theft

  Imagine a peasant in a medieval village accused of stealing a valuable tool from the blacksmith. To prove their innocence, the village elder might order them to undergo an ignis judicium by holding a red-hot iron bar for a set period. If, after three days, their hand showed no significant burns or had begun to heal miraculously, they would be declared innocent, as it was believed God had protected them.

  This example illustrates ignis judicium because the accused's fate (guilt or innocence) is decided by their physical reaction to direct contact with fire, interpreted as a sign of divine judgment.

• Example 2: Accusation of Heresy

  Consider a person in the 12th century accused by the Church of spreading heretical ideas. As part of a trial, they might be commanded to walk barefoot over a path of glowing embers. If they completed the walk without suffering severe burns, it would be taken as a divine declaration of their orthodoxy and innocence from the charge of heresy.

  This scenario demonstrates ignis judicium through the use of burning coals as the test, where the outcome (injury or lack thereof) is seen as a direct message from a higher power regarding the accused's truthfulness or purity.

• Example 3: Dispute Over a Broken Oath

  In a feudal court, a knight might accuse another of breaking a solemn oath made before God, which was a grave offense. If the truth of the accusation was unclear, the accused knight might be subjected to an ignis judicium where they had to retrieve a small object from a cauldron of boiling water. While technically hot water, this was often considered a variation of the fire ordeal, where the condition of their hand after the ordeal would determine if they had indeed committed perjury or broken their sacred vow.

  This example, involving boiling water as a form of extreme heat, falls under the broader historical category of ordeals by fire or heat, where divine judgment is sought to resolve a serious dispute about truthfulness and honor.