Salem Witch Trials : A Part Of History

Salem Witch Trials: The witch trials were a series of hearings, and prosecutions of people being accused of witchcraft in colonial Massachusetts between February 1692, through May 1693. The primary source of the trials is unknown, but it was most recognized when a group of young girls, from the village Salem, started to speak of the devil invading their home and try to take over through his “minions” that he persuaded to write in his book. This group of girls accused over 200 people for working for the devil, or being witches, and

Introduction - The Salem Witch trials was a time of hysteria and confusion. People were being accused and giving false confessions of witchcraft being performed on the people of Salem, Massachusetts.

The Salem Witch Trials were a prime part of American history during the early 17th century. During this time, religion was the prime focus and way of life within colonies. This was especially true for the Puritan way of life. Puritans first came to America in hopes of practicing Christianity their own way, to the purest form. The Puritans were fundamentalists who believed every word transcribed in the Bible by God was to be followed exactly for what it was. The idea of the devil controlling a woman and forming her into a Witch was originated from people’s lack of awareness on illness, disease or simple hysteria. The Colonists lack of expertise on the methodical approach through sciences, left them concluding to a spiritual phenomenon.

The Salem Witch trials were a horrible time in American history filled with distrust, betrayal, and paranoia. These trials caused many innocent people to be imprisoned or even put to death. The Salem Witch trials took place in colonial Massachusetts from 1692-1693. These trials were unfair paranoia fueled cases in which the whole town of Salem would gang up on certain people accused of being a witch or warlock. The accused would be questioned and then taken to a special court made just for the witch trials. After the trial they would get a verdict of guilty or not guilty and the guilty ones would be imprisoned in harsh conditions or even put to death. This wasn’t the first time these “witch hunts” had occurred. According to Jess Blumberg in her article A Brief History of the Salem Witch Trials, “Several centuries ago, many practicing Christians, and those of other religions, had a strong belief that the Devil could give certain people known as witches the power to harm others in return for their loyalty. A “witchcraft craze” rippled through Europe from the 1300 stop the end of the 1600s.” This event took place right before the Salem witch trials began, setting a tone of fear and distrust throughout colonial America. At this time in the colonies, strict religion was a big part of everyday life which only made things worse for the accused. This is because the colonists were very set in their ways and did not have open minds when it came to other reasons as to why these strange

Salem Witch Trials was a series of hearings and prosecutions of people accused of witchcraft in the Salem Village of the 17th century New England. The trials caused executions of many people but mostly women. Salem Witch Trials exposed the different roles men and women were supposed to play during the seventeenth century. Women were supposed to take on “wifely duties” such as, be mothers and housewives. Women were thought to follow the men. The trials also revealed that there were strict religious norms during the seventeenth century. There was a rigid moral code believed that God would punish sinful behavior. Those who were under the covenant by the church of the Salem Village believed that Satan would select those to fulfill his work

The infamous Salem witch trials of colonial Massachusetts took place between 1692 and 1693. They involved the execution of fourteen women and five men within the brief time period. What is now the New England region had been established by a homogenous Puritan population, which emigrated from England. Abiding by a strict set of beliefs, the Puritans did not accept people of other backgrounds,therefore it might follow that the Salem Witch Trials of New England were a result of the strict Puritan society, which was actually primarily untrue. The Salem Witch Trials were not enacted as a result of Puritanism, but rather as a result of circumstance surrounding Rye.

Salem was a city of Christian puritans. Between 40 – 60 percent of the women ranging from 15-44 years of age were unmarried, widows, spinsters, and midwives in the 16th century. All them were in danger of being accused because of either their lifestyle or practices represented as a threat to the church, traditional family structure or the normal status quo of male domination. Salem village was a very religious and form close bonds between each other.

The Salem Witch Trials took place in Salem, Massachusetts during 1692 when citizens turned on each other and accused their neighbors of witchcraft, the Devil’s magic. The trials, which lasted from June to September, resulted in nineteen men and women being hanged, one man being pressed to death, and many other people dying in jail. Almost as soon as it began, the hysteria that had swept through Puritan Massachusetts ended. There are many opinions as to why the witchcraft trials caused such hysteria in Salem but many conclude that it was triggered by a spoiled food supply, Puritan religious beliefs, the constricted roles of females in Salem society, and the political and social tensions in the colony.

The Salem witch trials were a series of hearings and prosecutions of people accused of witchcraft in colonial Massachusetts between February 1692 and May 1693. The trials resulted in the executions of twenty people, but most of them women.

The Events and History of the Salem Witch Trials Katie Duggan
World history period 4
Mr. Whittemore
26 February 2016

To have a clear understanding of what happened in Salem, one must first understand the Puritans. This group of people greatly disagreed with the ways of the Church of England and desired to “purify” their religion. Their main desire was to be more doctrinally sound in their teaching, and to have more religious freedom. It is from them, that we have modern day Baptists. But to accomplish this, they departed from England and moved to Massachusetts. Originally, they were located in Plymouth, but over the course of time, the group began separating into different parts of Massachusetts. In 1606 Salem was founded, and this is where the Witch Trials occurred.

There is much one can learn about this tragic smear in our history as the United States of America. The Salem Witch Trials have been sensationalized as of late, becoming a popular show, and an event that many movies have been made of. Without doing the proper research, one would think that the trials were more violent than it became. There were no witches burning at the stake, or daily hangings, or drownings, but people of the time were frightened nonetheless. The acts of just a few key people drove a whole town to hysteria, and fear. Throughout the trials over a hundred people were accused of witchcraft, and nineteen people were executed solely based on the claims of others that they were using the Devil’s Magic, many without any evidence The fingers of two little girls, driven by the urging of one powerful man created a butterfly effect that caused a wake of destruction within the walls of Salem. It can be shown through research that the Reverend Samuel Parris was the driving force behind the hysteria that the townspeople of Salem were subjected to.

Salem, Massachusetts, the new English settlement for 17th century Protestants who wanted to purify the Church of England, was and is known for the atrocity that rattled the land. This atrocity, or The Salem Witch Trials, began around 1692, several years after the Puritans settled in Salem. During the Trials, an absurd amount of women, men, and even dogs were accused of being possessed by the Devil, thus making them perform witchcraft or wizardry on both townspeople and the townspeople’s valuables. Many women were found guilty of being witches and were executed by either hanging, stoning, or being burned at the stake. The Puritans made these women out to be horrible creatures, who followed orders from the Devil to reign havoc and terror

Salem, a tiny town in Massachusetts, has a dark history. Back in 1692, in New England where the thirteen colonies were founded, the Salem Witch Trials had begun, claiming the lives of innocent people and accusing hundreds of more innocents. The reason why the innocent were accused and convicted was because they were a witch or a warlock. A witch was a woman who practiced black magic and worshipped the Devil or Satan, a mythological creature that was evil. That was because in the sixteenth century, many people believed that magic was actually real and existed and in fact, practicing magic or more specific black magic, was considered a sin and a threat to the the Puritans. In fact, there were many factors and contributions that that led to the Salem Witch Trials that led many people to fear this possible non-existent magic and witches. This is one of America’s darkest and infamous tragedies that had happened in the

Many explanations for the cause of the Salem Witch Trials in 1692 have been offered by historians since the first girl fell ill to bewitchment in December 1961. This marked the beginning of the witch hunt that ended with the death of twenty convicted “witches”. Historical writers have tried to allocate one particular factor or event as the cause of the Trials, but it is more likely that many of these factors and events are connected and a number of these issues are at the centre of the trials. The context that these historians are writing in are reflected in their work and perspectives and are also influenced by their own emotions and opinions. For this reason alone, no objective reasonings have been or may not ever be brought forward to explain what truly caused the Witch Trials to occur.