25 disturbing facts about the salem witch trials

Full List, Photo Credits, and Sources: https://list25.com/25-disturbing-facts-about-the-salem-witch-trialsSUBSCRIBE - http://bit.ly/2uwq6BJCheck out our store: https://teespring.com/stores/list25-swagFollow us on: List25 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/list25List25 Instagram: https://instagram.com/list25/List25 Twitter - https://twitter.com/list25 List25 Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/list25/See more Top 25 lists on our website:http://list25.comThe Salem witch trials were BRUTAL, but did you know that a big reason for the craziness surrounding the town was the Salem smallpox outbreak shortly before? Life, woman, life is Gods most precious gift; no principle, however glorious, may justify the taking of it.. Two of the casualties were babies. Ann Putnam testified that Good tried to choke and bite her, a claim that Mary Walcott corroborated. The Salem Witch Trials were a series of trial that took place in 1692, when it was believed "witches" were casting spells on people in the village of Salem. Interesting Facts about the Salem Witch Trials. It was a time of hysteria, when courts believed in the devil, spectral evidence and teenage girls. Even more interesting, the summer of 1692 was a dry one, and coincided with the apparent end of the bewitchments. Gallows Hill was discovered on a rocky outcropping now located, very unfittingly, near a Walgreens in Salem. Perhaps some training in the law would have constrained Stoughtons more extreme actions. Today, witchcraftis recognized by the government as a protected and legitimate religion under the First Amendment. Copyright 2023 by Factinate.com. So if you celebrate Christmas and live in Massachusetts today, be happy you were born when you were! The episode is heavily ingrained in American history and perpetuated through pop culture, but the souls lost and persecuted during that time aren't just present in our literature, media, and popular culture. No, it doesnt sound that romantic or comic to me either. For those who are unaware, Salem is located in Massachusetts, which, as you might remember from history class, was New Englands first established colony dating back to the arrival of the Pilgrims of the Mayflower at Plymouth in 1620. The Enemy of My Enemy. His sixth great grandson was Walt Disney. 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. 10 Astonishing And Tragic Facts Of 17th-Century Salem. Brooks, Rebecca Beatrice. Salem Witch Trials of 1692. Facts Did You Know? Salem Witch Hunt begins - HISTORY 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. Tituba: The Slave of Salem. History of Massachusetts Blog, January 2, 2013. https://historyofmassachusetts.org/tituba-the-slave-of-salem/. SALEM WITCH TRIALS CHRONOLOGY. 8. 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. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. It seems that a shocking number of accusations were made by members of the Putnam family. One of the most famous victims of the trials was a prominent woman in the local community named Martha Corey. The process of identifying witches began with suspicions or rumours. 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. Not all of the accused witches who escaped hanging did so through the mercy of the governor. There is little doubt that some individuals did worship the devil and attempt to practice sorcery with harmful intent. When the first accusations of witchcraft began in Salem Village, they initially targeted women. Our credibility is the turbo-charged engine of our success. Gallows Hill was discovered on a rocky outcropping now located, very unfittingly, near a Walgreens in Salem. The Salem witch trials are considered one of Americas most noteworthy cases of mass hysteria. Philip and Mary English Home, Site Of. Salem Witch Museum. New Hampshire. The phrase witch hunt, commonly used to refer to an unjustified or falsely conjured-up prosecution, is thought to originate as a reference to this time period in American history. 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. Another famous incident from the trials was the case of John Proctor. 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. 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. 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. Much of the evidence brought agains the witches, at least at first, was called spectral evidence, where people testified to seeing an apparition of the accused trying to inflict harm on them. 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. So if witchcraft wasnt really happening in Salem, what actually caused those girls to have the fits? In 1692, when the Salem witch trials began, the United States Constitution did not yet exist. Eventually, the accusations ensnared even the most powerful people in Massachusetts. It was believed that witches had animal helpers that could take almost any animal form and do their dirty work for them. 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. Bishop was known to rebel against the puritanical values of that time. 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. Tituba ultimately survived the saga and was not hanged. 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. If you think its all dramatic court rooms and burning at the stake, then you need to see these 25 Disturbing Facts About the Salem Witch Trials! 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. Instead, in 1692, hanging was the preferred form of punishment. 25 DISTURBING Facts About The Salem Witch Trials 429,208 views Sep 12, 2018 6.3K Dislike Share Save List 25 2.51M subscribers Get ready to pull out your history books as we bring you the most. (Salem Witch Trials "History" published on November 4, 2011 and updated on October 5, 2021). Unlike the others who were hanged, this unfortunate fellow was crushed to death by stones. She was an enslaved woman believed to have been from Central America, captured as a child from Barbados, and brought to Massachusetts in 1680 by Reverend Parris. Despite their obvious Christian commitment, the early American Puritans actually banned Christmas in the Massachusetts Bay colony in 1659, deeming it a sacrilege. A total of 25 people died because of the Salem witch trials. Thanks for your time! Massachusetts formally apologized for the witch trials in 1957something that Chief Magistrate William Stoughton never did. For those who are unaware, Salem is located in Massachusetts, which, as you might remember from history class, was New Englands first established colony dating back to the arrival of the Pilgrims of the Mayflower at Plymouth in 1620. Despite the Salem witch trials occurring centuries ago, researchers only just found the execution site for the trials in 2016. It was carried out as such by Sheriff George Corwin. Parris, whose largely theological studies at Harvard College (now Harvard University) had been interrupted before he could graduate, was in the process of changing careers from business to the ministry. Bridget Bishop, a woman considered to have questionable morals, was the first to be tried and executed during the Salem witch trials. Millers famous play about the Salem witch trials is called The Cruciblebut what is a crucible anyway? 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. Elizabeth Parris and Abigail Williams, the 9-year-old daughter and 11-year-old niece of Reverend Parris, started having "fits" described as: "severe convulsions and other strange symptoms.". The madness of the witch trials eventually resulted in 200 people accused of witchcraft, 140 to 150 arrests for witchcraft, and the hangings of thirteen women and six men. She added a hog, a great black dog, a red rat, a black rat, and a yellow bird, among other animals, to her storys cast. The Salem trials occurred late in the sequence, after the abatement of the European witch-hunt fervour, which peaked from the 1580s and 90s to the 1630s and 40s. Witch trials had actually been a fairly common phenomenon in Europe during that period. Some of the families now only remembered for their connection to the trials had actually been important and well-known people before that. What historians do know is that Abigail Williams was born on July 12, 1680. 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! Twenty of those people were executed, most by hanging. After weeks of informal hearings, Sir William Phips, governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, interceded to add some formality to the proceedings. 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. Directed by Guy Ferland. According to her death warrant, through her witchcraft, Bishop had caused bodily harm to five women, including Abigail Williams, Ann Putnam, Mercy Lewis, Mary Walcott, and Elizabeth Hubbard. Witches could change from human to animal form or from one human form to another. One particularly disturbing fact about the witch hunt in Salem is that animals could be found guilty of participating in witchcraft as well as humans, and they could be (and were) sentenced to death for it. 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. 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). I wonder if what the prescription is for that. For example, the infamous Putnam family had been one of the earliest settler dynasties to come to the Massachusetts Bay colony and establish themselves there. Facts: -"At the time of these events Parris was in his middle forties." -"They did not celebrate Christmas, and a holiday from work meant only that they must concentrate even more upon prayer." -"The edge of the wilderness was close by. How many people were killed during the Salem witch trials? Today, witchcraftis recognized by the government as a protected and legitimate religion under the First Amendment. While Miller maintained that he kept everything historically accurate, some have noted that he made changes to the real record for the sake of the play. 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. One man, Giles Corey, was killed over three days as increasingly heavier rocks were set atop his body. Although most of the accused witches were women, some men were also accused. Descendants of the Salem community have made constant efforts to clear the names of those ancestors and relatives who were falsely accused and convicted back in the 1690s, with some being officially recognized as innocent by the Massachusetts government as recently as the beginning of the 21st-century. Credit where credit is due! According to her testimony, she had seen four women and a man, including Sarah Osborne and Sarah Good, asking her to hurt the children. In addition to the twenty people convicted and executed for witchcraft, two dogs were also accused of and executed for the same crime. But the accusations didnt stop there. Far more women than men were among the accused, convicted and executed. A period of less than a year caused such turmoil that Salem, Massachusetts, is still widely known for the trials. 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. Make sure to watch this video all the way to the end to see which crazy witchcraft fact made our top 10! 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. However, no one ever embodied the concept of a witch as previously described. In May of 1693, Phips released from prison all remaining accused or convicted witches. The Salem Witch Trials begin. But by October 1692, his wife Mary found herself the target of sorcery accusations. In 1702, the court declared the trials unlawful. The Start of the Salem Witch Trials. Accessed May 6, 2021. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Phips. Image of The Salem Witch Trials. Please submit feedback to contribute@factinate.com. Here's what we know about the original witch hunt: 1. Unfortunately for Bishop, that allegation of witchcraft would not be her last. The Salem witch trails reveal about gender and power in the 17 th century in the US is that the roles men expected of women followed a strict guideline. 1032 Words | 5 Pages. We've compiled over 4375 history facts in one place, just for you. But not just adult women and men were impacted by the trials. The Salem witch trials occurred in colonial Massachusetts between early 1692 and mid-1693. Accessed May 6, 2021. https://salemwitchmuseum.com/locations/philip-and-mary-english-home-site-of/. 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. Some three-fourths of those European witch hunts took place in western Germany, the Low Countries, France, northern Italy, and Switzerland. Salem witch trials, (June 1692May 1693), in American history, a series of investigations and persecutions that caused 19 convicted witches to be hanged and many other suspects to be imprisoned in Salem Village in the Massachusetts Bay Colony (now Danvers, Massachusetts). In October 1692, a girl in Andover accused a neighbors dog of trying to bewitch her. Seven more died in jail. Salem Witch Trials: 25 DISTURBING Facts About The Salem Witch Trials | Salem Witch Trial Full Documentary The Geographic Channel | Samuel Parris | Dorothy Good | Familiar | Giles Corey | Salem Witch Trials - Events, Facts & Victims - HISTORY | George Corwin | Haunted Salem - Where Are the Most Haunted Sites? Other proof was the touch test, where if a witch who cursed someone touched the cursed person in the midst of a fit, theit fit would stop. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Dont feel too embarrassed if you happen to be from Massachusetts, you guys were not the first to do something like this. List three facts about each and three opinions. The panic and fear over witches hiding amongst the colony began when two young girls, Abigail Williams and Betty Parris, developed strange symptoms including having fits and screaming in pain at mysterious moments. Witchcraft was considered a crime against the church and the state. Credits: Danvers Lunatic Asylum: CHRONICLES- Danvers State Hospital | Danvers This series of prosecutions and hangings of those accused of practicing witchcraft provoked a major backlash, and the event still haunts us today. Witch trials had actually been a fairly common phenomenon in Europe during that period. This series of prosecutions and hangings of those accused of practicing witchcraft provoked a major backlash, andthe event still haunts us today. Of them, thirty were found guilty, and nineteen of whom were executed. The girls contorted their bodies into odd positions, made strange noises and spoke gibberish, and seemed to be having fits. Accessed May 6, 2021. https://www.newenglandhistoricalsociety.com/salem-witch-trial-descendants/. Many citizens believed that they way witches will get you is by baking a cake. 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. The people of Salem often ate rye bread,and in wet, swampy conditions (which Salem had at the time), rye can foster a fungus called ergot. 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. Millers famous play about the Salem witch trials is called The Cruciblebut what is a crucible anyway? In June 1692, Governor Phips appointed Stoughton as chief judge and prosecutor in the Salem witch trials despite Stoughtons lack of legal experience. The Salem Witch Hunt: A Captivating Guide to the Hunt and . 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. The Salem witch trials marked a seven-month period of mass hysteria in 1692 Colonial America. In addition, one man was pressed to death by giant stones for refusing to even plea innocent. No other mode of punishment was entertained by the Salem puritans. the devil's army against the Puritans, probably in an effort to protect herself from certain conviction by serving as an informant. In three days of vivid testimony, she described encounters with Satans animal familiars and with a tall, dark man from Boston who had called upon her to sign the devils book, in which she saw the names of Good and Osborn along with those of seven others that she could not read. His diagnosis of bewitchment put into motion the forces that would ultimately result in the hanging deaths of 19 men and women. Learn about U.S. history, ancient Egypt, the deadliest wars, historical photos, and so much more. Accessed May 6, 2021. https://salemwitchtrials.com/accusedstats.html. These included "violent contortions and uncontrollable . Another famous incident from the trials was the case of John Proctor. Ergot causes hallucinations, convulsive fits, and sometimes death, and LSD derives from the substance. Learn about the Salem witch trials and their legacy. Kyle Climans has been a published writer since 2011. Life, woman, life is Gods most precious gift; no principle, however glorious, may justify the taking of it.Arthur Miller, in The Crucible. Having an angry witch killing your children made sense. Sarah Good also gave birth to a daughter, Mercy, while in custody. 2023 Minute Media - All Rights Reserved. She crafted a tale detailing how the devil had come to her and asked her to do his bidding.

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