Mónica’s story: the woman shipped from Ghana to Portugal in 1556 to stand trial for using traditional medicine

By Jessica O'Leary, Senior Lecturer, Monash University

Standing before the Inquisition in Lisbon, Portugal in 1556, Mónica Fernandes, a woman from the coast of modern-day Ghana, was accused of casting malevolent spells and making pacts with demons. Her crime? Seeking a traditional Akan remedy for a simple cat bite.

The Portuguese Inquisition was a powerful institution tasked with identifying, investigating and punishing any belief or practice that deviated from official Catholic doctrine.…

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