While these trials were taking place the judges and jurors would torture the accused “witches” until they would confess, once they confessed they would spare their lives and imprison. If they continued to claim to be innocent they were hung from Gallows Hill, just outside of Salem, Massachusetts, changing our judicial system forever. (Goss, 2008) One of the first women to be accused of witchcraft in Salem was a slave of the Parris family, Tituba. She was the first to be accused and the first to confess to witchcraft after being severely beaten by Samuel Parris.
Tituba was an easier target to accuse of witchcraft because she was a slave and not of much importance. After Tituba was accused, Sarah Good and Sarah Osborne, who were also of low statute and accused of witchcraft, were immediately arrested, interrogated, and tortured in attempt to get them to confess to dealing with the devil. These women all tried to plea their innocence but the girls all acted out, displaying terrible behaviors such as thrashing themselves on the floor, mimicking the accused, and even screaming out in pain until the accused person would admit to witchcraft.
The people of Salem were swallowed up by the impact these young girls, ages twelve to twenty, were having upon finding witches and wizards within the community. The jurors would just falsely accuse these people without any real hard evidence. The judges and jurors would sentence people to death just by having spectral evidence against them. (Blumburg, 2007) Soon after Tituba, Sarah Good, and Sarah Osborne were tried, an increasing number of people in the community started to become accused, putting neighbors against neighbors.
The Term Paper on Middle Ages Witchcraft Witches People
'Europeanwitchcraft was a unique phenomenon which differed from European high magic from the low magic or simple sorcery' (Russel 658). 'High magic and simple sorcery differ however in methods and motivation' (658). High magic was astrology and alchemy (658). Sorcerers are usually people that are motivated by strong feelings of jealously, revenge, malice which are experienced by everyone (Marwich ...
Abigail Williams, one of the ten afflicted girls, claimed to be tormented by the specter of Rebecca Nurse, a very well respected woman of Salem. After this accusation against Rebecca, she was arrested and brought in for questioning and many more respected women throughout the community were starting to be accused for tormenting the “afflicted girls” and other members of the community. Soon after Rebecca Nurse was examined and questioned, four more people were accused and arrested- Giles Cory, Abigail Hobbs, Mary Warren, and Bridget Bishop.
Bridget Bishop was the first victim to be executed for witchcraft practices. (Goss, 2008) In an attempt to find people as innocent or guilty of witchcraft the Judges would order the accused men and women to strip naked and be shaved everywhere on their bodies, including their genitals, and would have them searched for “Witches Teats. ” These were often moles or natural blemishes of the skin. This was believed to be one of the best ways to identify a witch; they were believed to be the “Devils Mark,” a place where the devil had kissed the supposed witches (Sargent, 2002).
Another method they would use to try and prove if one were a Witch was tying their hands behind backs and throwing them in water. If the accused sank, he or she was not a witch, but if they floated they were believed him or her to be a witch. People thought this because it was said that if a witch burned, she was made from wood. Therefore, she would float just like wood would. (Wenkler) May 10, 1692 Sarah Osborne became the first woman to die in prison from torture. Soon after, Sir William Phips became governor of Massachusetts. Phips commissioned a special court to hear and determine the pending witchcraft cases.
Governor Phips appointed seven justices to serve on the Court, and named William Stoughton as the Chief Justice and Deputy Governor on May 27, 1692. About two weeks after Stoughton was appointed, his first decision as Chief Justice and Deputy Governor was to sentence and execute Bridget Bishop on June 10, 1692. Bridget was the first of many to be wrongly executed on Gallows Hill. (Goss, 2008) On July 19, 1692 the first group of victims, Sarah Good, Rebecca Nurse, Susannah Martin, Elizabeth Howe, and Sarah Wildes were executed by hanging on Gallows Hill right outside of Salem.
The Essay on Arthur Miller Crucible Witch Salem
An Analytical Essay Explaining Why Arthur Miller An Analytical Essay Explaining Why Arthur Miller Wrote The Crucible Authors often have underlying reasons for giving their stories certain themes or settings. Arthur Miller's masterpiece, The Crucible, is a work of art inspired by actual events as a response to political and moral issues. Set in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692, The Crucible proves to ...
On August 5, 1692 George Jacobs stood trial, claiming his innocence of witchcraft, but his granddaughter, Margret, a confessed witch of Salem, testified against him. She soon retracted her testimony against her grandfather, feeling guilty, but it was too late because August 19, 1692 was the second execution day. The second group of victims- John and Elizabeth Proctor, John Willard, Martha Carrier and Reverend George Burroughs- were hung on Gallows Hill, Salem. The bodies of the executed were not believed to be Christians anymore and were not allowed proper Christian burials.
But were all just thrown into shallow graves near where they were executed. (Goss, 2008) After these executions, Mary Eastey wrote and submitted a petition to the courts, “No more innocent blood shall be (Blumburg, 2007).
There were thirty-nine people who signed that petition and many of them were then accused of witchcraft, but most of them were found innocent. On September 19, 1692 Giles Cory was charged with witchcraft and brought to stand trial in Salem. Cory refused to make a plea, an act to prevent his trial, and was then subjected to the torture of “pressing. This method of torture took two days of piling rocks on top of a wooden board placed on his body before it took his life. A few days after Giles Cory was killed, September 22, 1692, was the third and final execution day of witches in Salem. The victims Martha Cory, Mary Eastey, Alice Parker, Ann Pudeater, Margaret Scott, Wilmot Redd, Samuel Wardwell, and Mary Parker were hung on Gallows Hill. (Goss, 2008) Almost all of the executions took place because of the testimony of the ten “afflicted girls” of Salem.
These girls, aging from twelve to twenty sent almost 100 people to prison or to their deaths because of their accusations. On October 8, 1692 Thomas Brattle issued a challenge of the court in “A letter to a Reverend Gentleman. ” He questioned the wisdom of accepting the testimonies of the “afflicted girls. ” When Phips received this letter he shut down the Salem Court. Accusations continued to be made throughout Massachusetts, but were met with a new public response and most accusations were withdrawn. Governor Phips forbade the use of spectral evidence, which then nullified the testimonies of the “afflicted girls. In May of 1663 Governor Phips received instructions from England to discontinue the trials and put an end to all proceedings of witchcraft. All who were condemned in jail were pardoned and released. On December 17, 1696 Governor William Stoughton issued a proclamation declaring a colony-wide day of fasting and prayer “so that God’s people may offer up fervent supplications [to God] that all iniquity may be put away which hath stirred God’s Holy jealousy against this land…referring to the late tragedy, raised among us by Satan…through the awful judgment of God” (Goss, 2008).
The Essay on Salem Witch Trials Witches Town God
Dear Governor: It seems that God is seeking to punish us for our sins, sending Satan into our humble town of Salem to wreak havoc and chaos around us. He sends his minions, his witches, to do his bidding, and now poor Betty Parris, daughter Reverend Samuel Parris, lies in bed, breaking into fits of convulsions and hallucination, and often crying out in terror. We must purge Salem of this evil, to ...
The Salem Witch Trials changed our judicial system. Many people were wrongly accused of Witchcraft and killed or imprisoned because of spectral evidence and the thought that you are guilty until proven innocent. We now look at our judicial system as innocent until proven guilty. People must have actual proven evidence and testimonies. I believe we as Americans have definitely come a long way with being fair to those wrongly accused. Bibliography Blumburg, J. (2007).
http://www. smithsonianmag. com/history-archaeology/brief-salem. html? =y&story=fullstory. smithsonianmag. com, 1. Retrieved from www. smithsonianmag. com. Goss, K. D. (2008).
The Salem Witch Trials. In K. D. Goss, The Salem Witch Trials (pp. 1-183).
Westport: Greenwood Press. Sargent, J. (Director).
(2002).
The Salem Witch Trials [Motion Picture]. Wenkler, P. (n. d. ).
http://education. nationalgeographic. com/education/media/salem-witch-trials-interactive/? ar_a=1. Retrieved from National Geographic: http://education. nationalgeographic. com/education/media/salem-witch-trials-interactive/? ar_a=1
