So if you celebrate Christmas and live in Massachusetts today, be happy you were born when you were! List three facts about each and three opinions. There have been many other instances of this kind of phenomenon sincemost recently in an outbreak of alleged evil clown sightings across the continent and beyond in 2016. History. Some three-fourths of those European witch hunts took place in western Germany, the Low Countries, France, northern Italy, and Switzerland. Ann Putnam, for example, used spectral evidence to accuse Rebecca Nurse,said, I saw the Apperishtion of [Rebecca Nurse] and she did immediatly afflect me. Such evidence was also used against Bridget Bishop, with many men claiming she had visited them in spectral form in the middle of the night. In January 1692 Bettys and Abigails increasingly strange behaviour (described by at least one historian as juvenile deliquency) came to include fits. An important minister in Boston named Increase Mather was one of these objectors, stating that It were better that ten suspected witches should escape than that one innocent person should be condemned.. The witch trials were held in Salem, Massachusetts, between February 1692 and May 1693. The Salem witch trials have gripped American imaginations ever since they occurred in 1692. According to the warrant for her apprehension, she was called for trial on March 23, 1692, under suspicion of witchcraft after being accused by Edward Putnam. Please reach out to us to let us know what youre interested in reading. The Salem Witch Trials of 1692 were a dark time in American history. The Salem Witch Trials (1692) Cartoon - YouTube (2:10) https://youtu.be/jJJLy5_DlqY Its time for a Halloween special! All Rights Reserved. This is the event that Salem is most known for, in only three months' time 19 innocent people, 14 women and 5 men, were hanged, and one man was pressed to death. However, despite our best efforts, we sometimes miss the mark. Far more women than men were among the accused, convicted and executed. When he stopped being paid altogether, he left Salem. By the time it was over, the resulting Salem witch trials had claimed the lives of 20 innocent souls. Witch trials had actually been a fairly common phenomenon in Europe during that period. Today, witchcraftis recognized by the government as a protected and legitimate religion under the First Amendment. There were complex political, religious, and racial issues under the crisis. To identify witches, authorities used the "touching test", in which victims of witchcraft would become calm upon touching the culprit. This series of prosecutions and hangings of those accused of practicing witchcraft provoked a major backlash, andthe event still haunts us today. Around the end of WWII, he surprisingly converted, Its said that the customer is always right. It was actually the local doctor, likely William Griggs, who first diagnosed the girls as having been bewitched when he couldnt find anything medically wrong with them to explain the strange behavior. Three presidents William Howard Taft, Chester Arthur, and Gerald Ford have been said to descend from one of Salems executed witches or their siblings. Probably stimulated by voodoo tales told to them by Tituba, Parriss daughter Betty (age 9), his niece Abigail Williams (age 11), and their friend Ann Putnam, Jr. (about age 12), began indulging in fortune-telling. The Salem witch trials are considered one of Americas most noteworthy cases of mass hysteria. Photo Credit: https://bit.ly/39AhFc2 The next time Giles wanted to attend, Martha objected and prevented him from going. The first witch trial occurred because the daughter (Betty Parris) and niece (Abigail Williams) of the local Salem Reverend had become violently ill. When you think of the Salem witch trials, you probably think of a bunch of confused villagers who didnt know any better, but there is so much more to the story. Please submit feedback to contribute@factinate.com. Ms Mades-Byrd said there were many misconceptions about the Salem witch trials and the truth had been lost in stories told over the centuries. While there was no need to provide evidence for accusing someone of witchcraftjust pointing fingers was enoughspectral evidence was often used during the trials. The governor pardoned the rest of the accused witches and they were released from jail. Music Credit: Spirit of the Dead by Aakash Gandhi#List25 #Didyouknow #WitchTrials Another reason why it sucked that these trials took place before the Bill of Rights existed? So if you celebrate Christmas and live in Massachusetts today, be happy you were born when you were! It was a time of hysteria, when courts believed in the devil, spectral evidence and teenage girls. He brought to Salem Village his wife, their three children, a niece, and two slaves who were originally from BarbadosJohn Indian, a man, and Tituba, a woman. The Salem Witch Trials, the events of 1692 in Salem Village which resulted in 185 accused of witchcraft, 156 formally charged, 47 confessions, and 19 executed by hanging, remain one of the most studied phenomena in colonial American history. Both Good and Osborn protested their own innocence, though Good accused Osborn. Accessed May 6, 2021. https://salemwitchtrials.com/accusedstats.html. Thomas Maule, a Quaker who found himself at odds with the Puritan community at times, was beaten and imprisoned for speaking out against the trials, despite the fact that he himself believed in witches. Her testimony added fuel to the fire, making the witch hunt spiral out of control. The story goes that Corey and her husband, Giles, sat in on the trials early on, causing Martha to express scepticism about the legitimacy of the proceedings. Between 1692 and 1693, more than two hundred people were accused. Gallows Hill was discovered on a rocky outcropping now located, very unfittingly, near a Walgreens in Salem. Although Massachusetts has given up its fight against witchcraft, there are still places in the world where witchcraft is legitimately feared by the public, sometimes even leading to real modern day witch hunts. Perhaps some training in the law would have constrained Stoughtons more extreme actions. The Evil Justice William Stoughton Was the Ultimate Hanging Judge at the Salem Witch Trials and Heres Why. HistoryCollection.com, January 29, 2018. https://historycollection.com/william-stoughton-ultimate-hanging-judge-salem-witch-trials/. Here are three notable facts about the Salem witch trials: About 42-50 people died being accused of witchcraft over the course of 300 years. In response, John found himself accused as well. George Burroughs, the Puritan minister, had nine children before being hanged. The grave of Martha Corey, the wife of Giles Corey . Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Make sure to leave us a comment after you watch this video to tell us what you learned and what video youd like to see next! One man, Giles Corey, was killed over three days as increasingly heavier rocks were set atop his body. Due to its association with the supernatural and the haunted, Salem is now a popular destination for Halloween festivities, which run throughout the month of October. These included "violent contortions and uncontrollable . 10 The Symptoms That Gave Witches Away Make No Sense At All All witches are women, but not every woman is a witch. The next time Giles wanted to attend, Martha objected and prevented him from going. They found it by following clues in an accused witchs writings and through guesses on where prisoners would be transported. Some of the attitudes in the Salem witch trials are still seen today. Part of the escalation of theSalem trials included investigators literally going door to door and asking homeowners to rat out any suspected witches in their midst. Regardless of the cause -- whether it was ergot poisoning, a teen prank, a vendetta against past wrongs, a grab for land or mass hysteria -- the Salem witch trials stand as a . William Stoughton, who presided over the Salem witch trials, studied theology at Harvard College and Oxford, but never became a minister and chose to enter politics instead. Do you question the accuracy of a fact you just read? Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Little is known about Tituba besides her role in the witch trials. The Salem witch trials marked a seven-month period of mass hysteria in 1692 Colonial America. Their initial accusations gave way to trials, hysteria, and a frenzy that resulted in further accusations, often between the differing factions. One of the turning points in ending public support and enthusiasm for the trials was the conviction and execution of one of the towns former minsters, George Burroughs, who publicly recited the Lords Prayer at the gallows, which was believed to be impossible for witches to do. The court first convened on June 2, 1692, with Bridget Bishops case being the first to be adjudicated upon. This resulted in him being accused as well, and in the end it was he who was executed while Elizabeth was instead sentenced to prison so that her unborn baby would not have to die. Several episodes of the original Bewitched TV series were actually filmed on location in Salem. The town of Andover in northeastern Massachusetts, not Salem Village, had the highest number of accused (42 accused in Andover versus 26 accused in Salem Village).However, it was Salem Village where the witch trials were taken to such drastic lengths. In fact, there was fear in Europe that an entire group of evil witches were consciously attacking Europeans in order to destroy Christendom. It is not known why Abigail was living with the Parris family but many historians assume her parents . In January of 1692, the daughter and niece of Reverend Samuel Parris of Salem Village became ill. William Griggs, the village doctor, was called in when they failed to improve. A complicated and long-lasting feud between the Putnam and Porter families of Salem may have been a motivating factor in some of the witchcraft accusations. 1 Majority Of Victims Were Girls Under Age 20 The Salem witch trials have been studied for centuries, and there is still no clear consensus on what exactly happened. Parriss orthodox Puritan theology and preaching also divided the congregation, a split that became demonstrably visible when he routinely insisted that nonmembers of the congregation leave before communion was celebrated. So if you are a witch, no need to worry about this ever happening again! Historically, women were the ones to be called witches, and unfortunately, they were also the . The First Amendment has generally served to protect individuals for opinions that they have expressed, albeit not for violent or illegal conduct. Witches could change from human to animal form or from one human form to another. Almost 150 people were accused of being witches and 20 were killed. Many parallels have been drawn between the events of Salem and the tactics used by the government during the Red Scare of the 1950s, in which Senator Joseph McCarthy very harshly interrogated and went after anyone suspected of being a communist sympathizer. Credits: Danvers Lunatic Asylum: CHRONICLES- Danvers State Hospital | Danvers The Salem Witch trials occupy a large space in the American imagination. Omissions? On January 14, 1697five years after the trialsthe General Court ordered a day of fasting and prayers for the tragedy of Salem, stating, That so all God's people may offer up fervent Supplications unto him for ye preservation & prosperity of his Majtys.. Ergot causes hallucinations, convulsive fits, and sometimes death, and LSD derives from the substance. There have been many other instances of this kind of phenomenon sincemost recently in an outbreak of alleged evil clown sightings across the continent and beyond in 2016. Of them, thirty were found guilty, and nineteen of whom were executed. The feud was over the fact that Kazan had named communist sympathizers during his testimony to Congress. They are fascinating as well as scary. Even more interesting, the summer of 1692 was a dry one, and coincided with the apparent end of the bewitchments. Citizens began to believe that people were practicing witchcraft in their town. Children were also accused of witchcraft. People thought that witches used demons to do magic. 9 Things You Might Not Know About the Salem Witch Trials, The world's largest online family history resource - Start now, New England, Salem Witches and Others Tried for Witchcraft, 1647-1697, 6 Unusual Last Names You Wont Believe Exist, The Experience of an Ancestral Home Visit, Discovering African American Heroes in My Family Tree. Other girls and young women began experiencing fits, among them Ann Putnam, Jr.; her mother; her cousin, Mary Walcott; and the Putnamss servant, Mercy Lewis. The Salem trials also went on to become a powerful metaphor for the anticommunist hearings led by U.S. Sen. Joseph McCarthy during the Red Scare of the 1950s, famously in the form of Arthur Millers allegorical play The Crucible (1953). Accessed May 6, 2021. https://famous-trials.com/salem/2078-sal-acct. The Salem Witch Trials, 1692 17th Century Pocahontas Saves John Smith, 1608 Aboard the Mayflower, 1620 The First Thanksgiving, 1621 The Price of Adultery in Puritan Massachusetts, 1641 Living Among the Mohawks, 1644 The Execution of Charles I, 1649 The Great Fire of London, 1666 Inside the Court of Louis XIV, 1671 New York City, 1679 Villagers shot the dog immediately. More than 200 people were accused of practicing witchcraft and 20 were killed during the hysteria. Tituba initially denied the claim that she was a witch, but notoriously later decided to confess that it was true and accused two other women as well in the process. Although Giles was a wealthy farmer and Martha was a prominent church member, both of them had pasts they werent exactly advertising to the public. The late comedian Lucille Ball is a descendant of Rachel Vinson, who was acquitted in the witch trials. In 1635, Plymouth Colony made it a crime to "form a solemn compact with the devil by way of witchcraft." As late as the 19 th century, women were persecuted for cursing butter churns, making animals sick and causing people to die. The trials came to an abrupt halt when the Governors wife was accused of witchcraft, causing him to immediately order an end to the trials. Pressured by Parris to identify their tormentor, Betty and Abigail claimed to have been bewitched by Tituba and two other marginalized members of the community, neither of whom attended church regularly: Sarah Good, an irascible beggar, and Sarah Osborn (also spelled Osborne), an elderly bed-ridden woman who was scorned for her romantic involvement with an indentured servant. Of the 20 people executed during the trials, six of them were men: Giles Corey, George Burroughs, George Jacobs Sr., John Proctor, John Willard, and Samuel Wardwell Sr. John Proctor was the first man accused of witchcraft. Massachusetts formally apologized for the witch trials in 1957something that Chief Magistrate William Stoughton never did. This period of witch trials later came to be known as the Salem witch trials, named after the town of Salem and Salem Village (present-day Danvers). A crucible is a kind of container used for heating substances at very high temperatures, and the term is often used to describe high pressure situationssuch as the onethe witch trials creates for the accused. Fourteen women and six men were executed for witchcraft, and five others died in prison during the trials. Significantly, those that they began identifying as other witches were no longer just outsiders and outcasts but rather upstanding members of the community, beginning with Rebecca Nurse, a mature woman of some prominence. There is little doubt that some individuals did worship the devil and attempt to practice sorcery with harmful intent. In 1702, the court declared the trials unlawful. This caused her to be accused of conspiring on behalf of the witches, and eventually of being a witch herself. Well, many workers and service providers will, Being a nurse isnt easy or ordinarybut these nurses had more difficult, and more bizarre,, Sometimes, you hear a story so wild that you heave a sigh of relief when, Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex was the darling of Elizabeths old ageuntil he wasnt., Lets face it: Some people are just rude. It was a time when Christianity was prominent and no one steered away from the biblical beliefs. Because of the similarity in time period, location, and story, people often mix up the Puritans with the Pilgrims, the group of Dutch settlers who created what we now know as the holiday of Thanksgiving. Apparently they felt that giving gifts took away from ones ability to focus on serious religious thought, and they did not like the pagan origins of some aspects of the holiday. Interestingly, dogs role did not end here. In May of 1693, Phips released from prison all remaining accused or convicted witches. During the Salem Witch Trials of 1692, more than 200 people were accused of practicing witchcraft. Brooks, Rebecca Beatrice. On March 1 two magistrates from Salem Town, John Hathorne and Jonathan Corwin, went to the village to conduct a public inquiry. The colony passed a bill in 1711 restoring the rights and good names of those accused and granted 600 restitution to their heirs. Learn about U.S. history, ancient Egypt, the deadliest wars, historical photos, and so much more. The most famous witch trial in history happened in Salem, Massachusetts, during the winter and spring of 1692-1693. The Salem Witch Trials began in spring 1692 and lasted for seven months, during which more than 150 people where arrested, 19 were hanged and one was tortured to death. However, witch trials are not a thing of the past. The first accusations during the Salem Witch Trials were against people who were for various reasons marginalized by society. He was stripped naked and covered with heavy boards. Two of the casualties were babies. The stars of the Salem story were the Puritan community of the Massachusetts Bay colony, a religious groupthat came over to America to escape religious persecution back in England. Millers famous play about the Salem witch trials is called The Cruciblebut what is a crucible anyway? Kyle Climans has been a published writer since 2011. Linder, Douglas O. Madame de Pompadour didn't just share King Louis XV's bed, she also shared his power. They began in 1692, a full 73 years before the start of the American Revolution and some 40 years before George Washington was even born. Most importantly, Stoughton allowed spectral evidence during the trials, so that an accuser could claim that an accused witch had appeared to them in a vision or hurt them within a dream. If there is any consolation for some of the condemned witches of Salem, it may come from the fact that their families lived on long after them. After that, the next thirty-three witchcraft trials resulted in acquittals. Accessed May 6, 2021. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_people_of_the_Salem_witch_trials. They were eventually assumed to be possessed. Since witches were often shackled in jail . Despite their obvious Christian commitment, the early American Puritans actually banned Christmas in the Massachusetts Bay colony in 1659, deeming it a sacrilege. Get ready to pull out your history books as we bring you the most DISTURBING facts about the Salem Witch Trials. As the weeks passed, many of the accused proved to be enemies of the Putnams, and Putnam family members and in-laws would end up being the accusers in dozens of cases. Tituba: The Slave of Salem. History of Massachusetts Blog, January 2, 2013. https://historyofmassachusetts.org/tituba-the-slave-of-salem/. How many people were killed during the Salem witch trials? Despite the horrible and senseless loss of life and community divisions that the witch trials caused, some historians believe that the traumatic incident had a silver lining. These 10 lesser-known facts about the . Making distraction rewarding since 2017. Arthur Millers play The Crucible played a large role in popularizing many of the details of the Salem witch trials and dramatizing facts that he uncovered in historical records. From petty paybacks to insane acts of karma, these bitter people somehow found the most ingenious ways. In 1692, when the Salem witch trials began, the United States Constitution did not yet exist. One of the most notorious periods of American history, the Salem witch trials of 1692 resulted in the execution by hanging of fourteen women and five men who were accused of being witches during a period of mass hysteria. Hoffer, who has written extensively on the Salem witch trials, is one of those who believes the girls who accused their neighbors of witchcraft were carrying out a prank. Thomas Maule, a Quaker who found himself at odds with the Puritan community at times, was beaten and imprisoned for speaking out against the trials, despite the fact that he himself believed in witches. Salem Witch Trials of 1692. Between February 1692 and May 1693, colonial Massachusetts was the scene of a mass hysteria sparked by false accusations from several young girls. The salem witch trials hysteria of 1692 was caused by the Puritans strict religious standards and intolerance of anything not accepted with their scripture. So if witchcraft wasnt really happening in Salem, what actually caused those girls to have the fits? Another more disturbing theory proposed by researchers like behavioral psychologist Linnda Caporael suggests that Salem suffered from ergot poisoning. The 1692 Salem witch trials are a big blot on American history. For everyone who remains intrigued by Salem, here are a few lesser-known facts about the witchcraft trials. (Salem Witch Trials "History" published on November 4, 2011 and updated on October 5, 2021). Upon Governor William Phipss return from England, he realized the need for a new court for the witch trials. Take, Salvador Dali was a man of contradictions. Norman Rockwell, the famous painter and illustrator who created the cover illustrations for The Saturday Evening Post magazine for nearly five decades, was a descendant of Esther Dutch Elwell, accused of wickedly and feloniously sundry acts of witchcraft upon the body of Mrs. Mary Fiche.. Upon interrogation, the girls named Tituba (an Indian woman enslaved by the Parris family), Sarah Good, and Sarah Osborne as witches. Move over Montagues and Capulets: You might not be the most vengeful families out there. They were eventually assumed to be possessed. She was taken into custody the next day and jailed with her mother, Sarah, who had been accused of the same capital crime three weeks earlier. For more than 300 years, the complex drama of the 1692 Salem witch trials and its themes of injustice and the frailties of human nature have captivated and fascinated the public imagination. On March 23, 1692, a warrant was issued for the arrest of four-year-old Dorothy Good of Salem Village on "suspition of acts of Witchcraft.". Witches have been the origin of many myths and legends. Lieutenant Governor William Stoughton served as its chief magistrate and Thomas Newton as the Crowns Prosecuting Attorney. After weeks of informal hearings, Sir William Phips, governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, interceded to add some formality to the proceedings. The Salem witch trials were also the subject of Arthur Miller's The Crucible, written in the 1950s. When we do, we depend on our loyal, helpful readers to point out how we can do better. Which, yes, is a little ironic. Please let us know if a fact weve published is inaccurate (or even if you just suspect its inaccurate) by reaching out to us at contribute@factinate.com. New Hampshire. His vocal support for his wifewho was also accused of witchcraftand claims that the accusers were lying were among the possible reasons why suspicion fell on him as well. Maybe theres another reason that people still find themselves intrigued with the Salem witchcraft trials, besides the possibility of sorcery or the specter of mass delusions convulsing into violence. Giles had actually been accused and found guilty of murdering one of his farm hands years earlier, but was let off with just a fine! Salem Witch Hunt begins - HISTORY Courts relied on three kinds of evidence: 1) confession, 2) testimony of two eyewitnesses to acts of witchcraft, or 3) spectral evidence (when the afflicted girls were having their fits, they would interact with an unseen assailant - the apparition of the witch tormenting them). There's something about the family structure that encourages secrets. Another famous incident from the trials was the case of John Proctor. The trials came to an abrupt halt when the Governors wife was accused of witchcraft, causing him to immediately order an end to the trials. Animals in the Salem Witch Trials. History of Massachusetts Blog, February 20, 2012. https://historyofmassachusetts.org/animals-in-the-salem-witch-trials/. Besides their descendants, the accused witches of Salem leave another legacy: a rich and fascinating history for us to explore today. This database contains information on more than 200 individuals formally accused and put on trial for witchcraft in New England between 1647 and 1697, including those accused in the Salem witch trials. Some of the families now only remembered for their connection to the trials had actually been important and well-known people before that. The punishment for witchcraft was death. Tituba ultimately survived the saga and was not hanged. The witchcraft trials even targeted animals. Want to tell us to write facts on a topic? In 1692, when the Salem witch trials began, the United States Constitution did not yet exist. Even some members of his congregation at the time wanted to see him dismissed from his pew in response to his aggressive prosecuting role in the episode. The Salem witchcraft trials, which began in May of 1692 after months of rumors of Satanic influence, still grip the American imagination more than 300 years later. Animals were the "familiar spirits" of witches. Did you know this unbelievable witch trial fact: dogs were also major targets of the trials? SALEM WITCH TRIALS CHRONOLOGY. One exception was Giles Corey, who refused to stand for trialhe believed the court had already decided his fate, and he didn't want his property to be confiscated upon his verdict of being found guilty. Tituba initially denied the claim that she was a witch, but notoriously later decided to confess that it was true and accused two other women as well in the process. But the accusations didnt stop there. Many parallels have been drawn between the events of Salem and the tactics used by the government during the Red Scare of the 1950s, in which Senator Joseph McCarthy very harshly interrogated and went after anyone suspected of being a communist sympathizer. Tackling the same twisted subject as Stacy Schiff's much-lauded book The Witches: Salem, 1692, this Sibert Honor book for young readers features unique scratchboard illustrations, chilling primary source material, and powerful narrative to tell the true tale.In the little colonial town of Salem Village, Massachusetts, two girls began to twitch, mumble, and contort their bodies into strange shapes. Nige Tassell explains how hysteria in the village of Salem, Massachusets, gave rise to a horror that bedazzled the world Published: June 10, 2020 at 4:45 pm Subs offer
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