The beginning of the Salem Witch Trials
On this day in 1692, several young Salem, Massachussetts girls are declared to be under the spell of a witch.
Sometime during February of the exceptionally cold winter of 1692, ten year old Betty Parris became strangely ill. She dashed about, dove under furniture, contorted in pain, and complained of fever. Talk of witchcraft increased when other playmates of Betty, including eleven-year-old Ann Putnam, seventeen-year-old Mercy Lewis, and Mary Walcott, began to exhibit similar unusual behavior. When his own nostrums failed to effect a cure, William Griggs, a doctor called to examine the girls, suggested that the girls' problems might have a supernatural origin.
Meanwhile, the number of girls afflicted continued to grow, rising to seven with the addition of Ann Putnam, Elizabeth Hubbard, Susannah Sheldon, and Mary Warren. According to historian Peter Hoffer, the girls "turned themselves from a circle of friends into a gang of juvenile delinquents." The teenage girls used their new-found fame as a means to enact revenge on any person they disliked.
On February 29, warrants were issued for the arrests of three other women. Witchcraft had been a common law crime in England since 1542, but was codified in statute form in 1604. Soon enough, the entire town of Salem was caught up in the witch hysteria. Any pre-existing fears and grudges were now played out through accusations. By the end of the spring, the Salem jails were full of alleged witches. More than half were recent immigrants from England who were not well liked by the town's natives.
The witch trials began in the summer of 1692. First up were Sarah Good, Rebecca Nurse, Susannah Martin, Elizabeth Howe, and Sarah Wildes. All were convicted and sent to Gallows Hill to be hanged on July 19. As they stood on the scaffold, most prayed to God to forgive the people who had accused them. However, one magnanimous woman told her accuser, "You are a liar. I am no more a witch than you are a wizard, and if you take away my life, God will give you blood to drink." Reportedly, the man to whom this was directed, Nicholas Noyes, died years later, bleeding from the mouth. John and Elizabeth Proctor were the two most prominent people in town to be accused. In the end, John was also hanged to death but Elizabeth escaped due to her pregnancy.
At one point, Ann Putnam and Abby Williams travelled from town to town, where they 'outed' other witches, most of which were total strangers.
Drunk on power, the girls went so far as to accuse the governor's wife of being a witch. This brought about a very quick ending to the 'witch epidemic'. Within days, all the clerics and politicians who had silently endured, or even encouraged, the witch trials, changed their stance and declared the trials a travesty. Governor Phipps dissolved the court in charge of the witch prosecution and no more 'witches' were convicted. Eventually everyone convicted was pardoned by the Governor. However, much damage had already been inflicted upon the people in Salem.
By the time the hysteria had spent itself, 24 people had died. Nineteen were hanged, and the rest died in prison, with the exception of an 80-year old man who was slowly crushed under heavy stones as a form of 'interrogation' since he refused to participate in his trial. Over 150 people (including a 4 year old child) were imprisoned during the 6 months that the girls wreaked havoc.
Sometime during February of the exceptionally cold winter of 1692, ten year old Betty Parris became strangely ill. She dashed about, dove under furniture, contorted in pain, and complained of fever. Talk of witchcraft increased when other playmates of Betty, including eleven-year-old Ann Putnam, seventeen-year-old Mercy Lewis, and Mary Walcott, began to exhibit similar unusual behavior. When his own nostrums failed to effect a cure, William Griggs, a doctor called to examine the girls, suggested that the girls' problems might have a supernatural origin.
Meanwhile, the number of girls afflicted continued to grow, rising to seven with the addition of Ann Putnam, Elizabeth Hubbard, Susannah Sheldon, and Mary Warren. According to historian Peter Hoffer, the girls "turned themselves from a circle of friends into a gang of juvenile delinquents." The teenage girls used their new-found fame as a means to enact revenge on any person they disliked.
On February 29, warrants were issued for the arrests of three other women. Witchcraft had been a common law crime in England since 1542, but was codified in statute form in 1604. Soon enough, the entire town of Salem was caught up in the witch hysteria. Any pre-existing fears and grudges were now played out through accusations. By the end of the spring, the Salem jails were full of alleged witches. More than half were recent immigrants from England who were not well liked by the town's natives.
The witch trials began in the summer of 1692. First up were Sarah Good, Rebecca Nurse, Susannah Martin, Elizabeth Howe, and Sarah Wildes. All were convicted and sent to Gallows Hill to be hanged on July 19. As they stood on the scaffold, most prayed to God to forgive the people who had accused them. However, one magnanimous woman told her accuser, "You are a liar. I am no more a witch than you are a wizard, and if you take away my life, God will give you blood to drink." Reportedly, the man to whom this was directed, Nicholas Noyes, died years later, bleeding from the mouth. John and Elizabeth Proctor were the two most prominent people in town to be accused. In the end, John was also hanged to death but Elizabeth escaped due to her pregnancy.
At one point, Ann Putnam and Abby Williams travelled from town to town, where they 'outed' other witches, most of which were total strangers.
Drunk on power, the girls went so far as to accuse the governor's wife of being a witch. This brought about a very quick ending to the 'witch epidemic'. Within days, all the clerics and politicians who had silently endured, or even encouraged, the witch trials, changed their stance and declared the trials a travesty. Governor Phipps dissolved the court in charge of the witch prosecution and no more 'witches' were convicted. Eventually everyone convicted was pardoned by the Governor. However, much damage had already been inflicted upon the people in Salem.
By the time the hysteria had spent itself, 24 people had died. Nineteen were hanged, and the rest died in prison, with the exception of an 80-year old man who was slowly crushed under heavy stones as a form of 'interrogation' since he refused to participate in his trial. Over 150 people (including a 4 year old child) were imprisoned during the 6 months that the girls wreaked havoc.
posted by JoeFriday at 7:15 AM
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