The Salem Witch Trials
Salem Witch Trials
The Salem witch trials took place in colonial Massachusetts between February 1692 and May 1693. During that time more than 200 people were accused of practicing witchcraft, also known as the Devil’s magic.1 By the end of the trial nineteen were executed by hanging and one was pressed to death with stones. Seventeen others died in prison while awaiting trial.2 Although the trials were named after Salem Village, one of the towns involved, trials were also conducted in other towns across the eastern shore of Massachusetts including Salem Village (now Danvers), Ipswich, Andover, and Salem Town.3
The “witchcraft craze” actually began in Europe around the fifteenth century. Many religions, including some Christian sects, believed that the Devil and other evil spirits could give certain people special powers to hurt other people. Most during the time accepted the belief that anything bad that happened was caused by the Devil. The Devil was blamed for events such as infant death, crop failures, and even arguments.4 Historians estimate that tens of thousands of people, mostly women, were executed in Europe during this time.5 As the witchcraft trials started to decrease in Europe, the idea of witches and witchcraft became popular in many American colonies.
Many factors came together in the Massachusetts colonies to cause people to believe in witches and witchcraft. Religious intolerance, fear of the unknown, the influx of refugees to the area, legal instability, and the recent “witchcraft craze” in Europe all contributed to the Salem witch trials.6 The original settlers of the Massachusetts colonies were conservative Puritans who left England because of their opposition to the Church of England, the established church of England. The Puritans opposed many of the traditions of the Church of England, including the Book of Common Prayer, the use of the Holy Cross during baptism, the use of cap and gowns by priest, and kneeling during the
The Salem witch trials took place in colonial Massachusetts between February 1692 and May 1693. During that time more than 200 people were accused of practicing witchcraft, also known as the Devil’s magic.1 By the end of the trial nineteen were executed by hanging and one was pressed to death with stones. Seventeen others died in prison while awaiting trial.2 Although the trials were named after Salem Village, one of the towns involved, trials were also conducted in other towns across the eastern shore of Massachusetts including Salem Village (now Danvers), Ipswich, Andover, and Salem Town.3
The “witchcraft craze” actually began in Europe around the fifteenth century. Many religions, including some Christian sects, believed that the Devil and other evil spirits could give certain people special powers to hurt other people. Most during the time accepted the belief that anything bad that happened was caused by the Devil. The Devil was blamed for events such as infant death, crop failures, and even arguments.4 Historians estimate that tens of thousands of people, mostly women, were executed in Europe during this time.5 As the witchcraft trials started to decrease in Europe, the idea of witches and witchcraft became popular in many American colonies.
Many factors came together in the Massachusetts colonies to cause people to believe in witches and witchcraft. Religious intolerance, fear of the unknown, the influx of refugees to the area, legal instability, and the recent “witchcraft craze” in Europe all contributed to the Salem witch trials.6 The original settlers of the Massachusetts colonies were conservative Puritans who left England because of their opposition to the Church of England, the established church of England. The Puritans opposed many of the traditions of the Church of England, including the Book of Common Prayer, the use of the Holy Cross during baptism, the use of cap and gowns by priest, and kneeling during the
Bibliography: Blumberg, Jess. “A Brief History of the Salem Witch Trials.” Smithsonian.com. 24 October 2007. <http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/brief-salem.html> (22 September 2012). Boyer, Paul and Stephen Nissenbaum. Salem Possessed: The Social Origins of Witchcraft. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1974. Boyer, Paul and Stephen Nissenmbaum, eds. The Salem Witchcraft Papers. 3 vols. New York: Da Capo Press, 1977. Calef, Paul. “Salem Witch Trials.” Readtiger.com. n.d. <http://readtiger.com/wkp/en/Salem_witch_trials> (22 September 2012). Campbell, Donna. “The Salem Witch Trials.” Department of English, Washington State University, 02 December 2010. <http://public.wsu.edu/~campbelld/amlit/witch.htm> (22 September 2012). Cases (29 September 2012). <http://www.history.com/topics/salem-witch-trials> (29 September 2012). Lalwani, Puja. “Facts About Salem Witch Trials.” Buzzle.com. 13 September 2010. <http://www.buzzle.com/articles/salem-witch-trials-facts.html> (22 September 2012). Latner, Richard. “The Salem Witchcraft Site.” Tulane University. n.d. <http://www.tulane.edu/~salem/> (29 September 2012). Linder, Douglas. “The Witchcraft Trials in Salem: A Commentary.” University of Missouri Kansas City. 2009. < <http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/salem/SAL_ACCT.HTM> (22 September 2012). (29 September 2012). Mather, Cotton National Geographic Society. “Salem Witch Hunt – Interactive.” Nationalgeographic.com. 2005. <http://www.nationalgeographic.com/salem/> (29 September 2012). Pavlac, Brian Ray, Benjamin. “Teaching the Salem Witch Trials.” In Past Time, Past Places: GIS for History. Edited by Anne Kelly Knowles. Redlands, Calif.: ESRI Press, 2002. Sandon, Andrew, “Salem Witch Trials.” Articlebase. 27 October 2006. <http://www.articlesbase.com/law-articles/salem-witch-trials-67616.html> (29 September 2012). Sule, Ashwini Kulkarni. “Tituba-Salem Witch Trials.” Buzzle. 04 July 2011. <http://www.buzzle.com/articles/tituba-salem-witch-trials.html> (29 September 2012). Sutter, Tim. “Salem Witchcraft.” University of Massachusetts Boston. 2003.<http://www.faculty.umb.edu/gary_zabel/Courses/Phil%20281b/Philosophy%20of%20Magic/Arcana/Witchcraft%20and%20Grimoires/salemwitchcraft.html> (29 September 2012).