The Peter Stubbe Case

The Peter Stubbe case
By Darren Bailey LRPS

In 1589, a very well documented and bizarre case was recorded regarding a man named Peter Stubbe (or Peter Stumpp). German pamphlets from 1590, some of which were translated into English (two copies still exist to this day) describe a maniac murderer roaming the German countryside. As their history records, Peter was a German serial killer who was executed for being a werewolf in the city of Cologne. His brutal sentence included having his flesh pulled from the bones with hot pincers, having both arms and legs broken (so he could not escape), and finally having his head removed and his corpse burned, all of which were intended to ensure he remained dead. Unfortunately, his daughter and mistress were executed along with him, supposedly for withholding knowledge of his crimes. And what exactly was his crime? Peter confessed (yes, after being tortured on the rack) to having killed and fed on 13 children, two pregnant women, and his very own son. The Werewolf of Beburg, as he came to be known, terrorized the country for several years. Bizarre murders and vicious mutilations, including the consumption of foetuses that were removed from his pregnant victims, set the townsfolk on edge. After being caught, Peter explained that he had practised black magic since he was 12 years old and that Satan had given him a belt that would allow him to transform into a werewolf. He described his transformation as “the likeness of a greedy, devouring wolf, strong and mighty, with eyes great and large, which in the night sparkled like fire, a mouth great and wide, with most sharp and cruel teeth, a huge body, and mighty paws“.

Art created using a Nikon D90 and a Nikkor 50mm f1.4

The werewolf was a movie prop.
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