A demon spirit that has sexual intercourse with mortals. The
concept may have arisen from the idea of the commerce of gods
with people, which was rife in pagan times. The male demon
said to have intercourse with women is called the incubus and
the female demon who seduces men the succubus. The demons
were generally believed to appear most frequently during sleep
Imperator Encyclopedia of Occultism & Parapsychology 5th Ed.
or in nightmares. During the witchcraft scare of the late medieval
period these demons, when associated with an individual
witch or sorcerer, were known as familiars.
Belief in incubi and succubi goes back to ancient times but
was incorporated into Christian belief in the medieval period.
Such churchmen as Thomas Aquinas (122574) discussed the
The Description of Scotlande of Hector Boethius as translated
in the first volume of Holinsheds Chronicles (1577), has three
or four notable examples of these demons, which are corroborated
by Jerome Cardan. One of these, concerning an incubus,
is quoted in the quaint language Holinshed used
In the year 1480 it chanced as a Scottish ship departed out
of the Forth towards Flanders, there arose a wonderful great
tempest of wind and weather, so outrageous, that the master of
the ship, with other the mariners, wondered not a little what
the matter meant, to see such weather at that time of the year,
for it was about the middle of summer. At length, when the furious
pirrie and rage of winds still increased, in such wise that all
those within the ship looked for present death, there was a
woman underneath the hatches called unto them above, and
willed them to throw her into the sea, that all the residue, by
Gods grace, might yet be saved; and thereupon told them how
she had been haunted a long time with a spirit dailie coming
into hir in mans likenesse. In the ship there chanced also to be
priest, who by the masters appointment going down to this
woman, and finding her like a most wretched and desperate
person, lamenting hir great misfortune and miserable estate,
used such wholesome admonition and comfortable advertisements,
willing her to repent and hope for mercy at the hands
of God, that, at length, she seeming right penitent for her
grievous offences committed, and fetching sundrie sighs even
from the bottome of her heart, being witnesse, as should appeare,
of the same, there issued forth of the pumpe of the ship,
a foule and evil-favoured blacke cloud with a mighty terrible
noise, flame, smoke, and stinke, which presently fell into the
sea. And suddenlie thereupon the tempest ceased, and the ship
passing in great quiet the residue of her journey, arrived in saftie
at the place whither she was bound. (Chronicles, vol. 5, p.
146, 1808 ed).
In another case related by the same author, the incubus did
not depart so quietly. In the chamber of a young gentlewoman
who was the daughter of a nobleman in the country of Mar
there was found a foule monstrous thing, verie horrible to behold.
For the love of this Deformed, nevertheless, the lady
had refused sundry wealthy marriages. A priest who was in the
company began to repeat St. Johns Gospel, and suddenlie the
wicked spirit, making a verie sore and terrible roaring noise,
flue his waies, taking the roofe of the chamber awaie with him,
the hangings and coverings of the bed being also burnt therewith.
Jean Bodin, author of Démonomaie (1580) cites the case of
Joan Hervilleria, who at age 12 was solemnly betrothed to Beelzebub
by her mother, who was afterward burned alive for contriving
this clandestine marriage. According to the story, the
bridegroom was respectably attired and the marriage oath simple.
The mother pronounced the following words to the bridegroom
Ecce filiam meam quam spospondi tibi. Then, turning
to the bride, she stated Ecce amicum tuum qui beabit te.
Joan was not satisfied with her spiritual husband alone, however.
She became a bigamist by intermarrying with real flesh and
In another story Margaret Bremont, in company with her
mother and others, was in the habit of attending diabolic trysts.
She and the other