Omar Bennett
The Salem witch trials, which took place between February 1692 and May 1693, were a series of hearings and prosecutions of people accused of witchcraft in colonial Massachusetts. More than 200 people were accused, 19 of whom were hanged, and 5 others died in custody. The trials were fuelled by xenophobia, religious extremism, and long-brewing social tensions, and they are often used as an example of mass hysteria and paranoia. The United States Constitution, on the other hand, was adopted on September 17, 1787, by the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and later ratified in 1788. Therefore, the Salem witch trials took place almost a century before the US Constitution was written and enacted.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Date of Salem Witch Trials | February 1692-May 1693 |
| Date of the Constitution | N/A |
| Location | Salem Village, Massachusetts Bay Colony (now Danvers, Massachusetts) |
| Number of accused | More than 200 |
| Number executed | 19 hanged, 1 pressed to death with stones, 5 died in custody |
| Pardons | Yes, in 1711, and in 2022 for the last convicted person |
| Legacy | Synonymous with paranoia and injustice; an example of the importance of due process |
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What You'll Learn
- The Salem witch trials took place between February 1692 and May 1693
- More than 200 people were accused of practising witchcraft
- At least 19 people were hanged
- The trials were fuelled by xenophobia, religious extremism and long-brewing social tensions
- The last convicted 'witch' was exonerated in July 2022
The Salem witch trials took place between February 1692 and May 1693
The trials began after a few local women in Salem Village were accused of witchcraft by four young girls: Betty Parris (9), Abigail Williams (11), Ann Putnam Jr. (12), and Elizabeth Hubbard (17). The accusations centred around the concept of "affliction", and the women were accused of causing physical and mental harm to the girls through witchcraft. The first three people accused and arrested were Sarah Good, Sarah Osborne, and Tituba.
The Salem witch trials occurred at a time when the village community was undergoing a period of turmoil with little political guidance. There was a social divide between the leading families, as well as a split between factions that supported and opposed the village's new pastor, Samuel Parris. The young girls exhibiting strange behaviours were related to Parris, and they were urged to identify the people afflicting them.
The accused were slandered and denied rights that should have been granted under English common law. It was virtually impossible to disprove charges of witchcraft, and defendants were convicted with no evidence other than personal accusations, the presence of a "devil's mark" on their bodies, or their failure of a "witch test". The courts also accepted spectral evidence, which was based on otherwise invisible spirits that only the accusers could see.
The Salem witch trials ended when serious doubts began to arise among leading clergymen about the validity of the spectral evidence. By May 1693, everyone in custody under conviction or suspicion of witchcraft had been pardoned by Sir William Phips, the governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
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More than 200 people were accused of practising witchcraft
The Salem witch trials, which took place between February 1692 and May 1693, were a series of hearings and prosecutions of people accused of witchcraft in colonial Massachusetts. The trials began when a few local women in Salem Village were accused of witchcraft by four young girls: Betty Parris (9), Abigail Williams (11), Ann Putnam Jr. (12), and Elizabeth Hubbard (17). These accusations centred around the concept of "affliction", with the accused women believed to have caused physical and mental harm to the girls through witchcraft.
The accusations made by these young girls led to a frenzy of hysteria and further accusations, often fuelled by the social and political divides that existed within the small community. This resulted in a wave of trials and prosecutions that extended beyond Salem Village to surrounding communities. More than 200 people were accused of practising witchcraft, with arrests made in numerous towns, including Andover and Topsfield. Of those accused, around 151 people could be traced back to 25 different New England communities.
The Salem witch trials were characterised by mass hysteria and a lack of political authority, with the process of identifying witches often beginning with suspicions or rumours. This led to a total of 30 people being found guilty, 19 of whom were executed by hanging. Additionally, one man, Giles Corey, died under torture after refusing to enter a plea, and at least five people died in disease-ridden jails. The Salem witch trials were the deadliest witch hunt in the history of colonial North America.
The trials were conducted in a haphazard manner, with informal hearings and the acceptance of so-called spectral evidence. Eventually, serious doubts arose among leading clergymen about the validity of this spectral evidence, which had been used to justify many of the convictions. In addition, the sheer number of those accused, including several prominent citizens, contributed to the end of the trials. In May 1693, everyone in custody under conviction or suspicion of witchcraft was pardoned by Governor Sir William Phips, who had previously intervened to add some formality to the proceedings when his wife was accused.
The Salem witch trials had a significant impact on U.S. court procedures, contributing to the establishment of rights to legal representation and cross-examination of accusers, as well as the presumption of innocence until proven guilty. The trials also left a lasting impression on the history of the United States, becoming a powerful metaphor for anticommunist hearings during the Red Scare of the 1950s and a cautionary tale about the dangers of isolation, religious extremism, false accusations, and lapses in due process.
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At least 19 people were hanged
The Salem witch trials took place between February or June 1692 and May 1693, and resulted in the execution of at least 19 people. The trials occurred in colonial Massachusetts, in Salem Village (now known as Danvers) and the regional centre, Salem Town. The hearings and prosecutions took place during a time of turmoil, with little political guidance, and a social divide between the leading families.
The trials began when several young girls, including Betty Parris (aged 9), Abigail Williams (11), Ann Putnam Jr. (12), and Elizabeth Hubbard (17), began exhibiting strange behaviours and fits. They were urged to identify the cause, and accused local women of witchcraft, claiming they had caused them physical and mental harm. The first three people accused and arrested were Sarah Good, Sarah Osborne, and Tituba.
The Salem witch trials were a deadly outburst of mass hysteria, fuelled by xenophobia, religious extremism, and long-brewing social tensions. They were also influenced by the beliefs and politics of the time. Witches were considered followers of Satan, who employed demons to do their bidding, and changed form to move between human and animal shapes. It was believed they rode through the air at night to secret meetings. While these beliefs were not new, the combination of church politics, family feuds, and hysterical children, all unfolding in a vacuum of political authority, led to a deadly outcome.
The exact number of people executed during the Salem witch trials is unclear, with different sources citing 19 or 20 deaths. However, it is known that 14 women and 5 men were among those hanged. Additionally, Giles Corey, a 71-year-old man, died under torture when he refused to enter a plea, and at least 5 people died in disease-ridden jails. The Salem witch trials ended when leading clergymen began to doubt the validity of the spectral evidence used to justify convictions, and due to the high number of accused, including prominent citizens.
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The trials were fuelled by xenophobia, religious extremism and long-brewing social tensions
The Salem Witch Trials, which took place between February 1692 and May 1693, were fuelled by a complex interplay of factors, including xenophobia, religious extremism, and long-brewing social tensions.
The trials were sparked by accusations of witchcraft against several local women in Salem Village, made by four young girls: Betty Parris (9), Abigail Williams (11), Ann Putnam Jr. (12), and Elizabeth Hubbard (17). The accusations centred on the notion of "affliction", with the accused women purportedly causing physical and mental harm to the girls through supernatural means. The girls exhibited strange behaviours, such as fits, neck and back pains, tongues being drawn out, and uncontrollable bodily movements. These manifestations were quickly associated with witchcraft, igniting a "witchcraft craze" in the village.
At the time, Salem Village was a small community of around 500 people, characterised by social divides and political turmoil. There were rivalries between leading families, such as the Porters and the Putnams, and factions for and against the village's new pastor, Samuel Parris. The social tensions were further exacerbated by religious extremism. The community had been settled by religious dissenters seeking to establish a Bible-based society, and their religious fervour contributed to the intense atmosphere of the trials.
The accusations and subsequent trials unfolded in a context of xenophobia and suspicion of outsiders. The accused were often those who did not conform to the community's religious or social norms, and they were targeted due to their differences. Additionally, the trials were influenced by long-brewing social tensions and power dynamics within the village. Family feuds, church politics, and the vacuum of political authority all contributed to the escalating accusations and convictions.
The combination of these factors resulted in a deadly witch hunt, with nineteen people hanged and several others dying in custody. The trials caused lasting damage, and it took years for the community to recover. The Salem Witch Trials have since become a powerful metaphor for injustice, mass hysteria, and the dangers of religious extremism and isolation.
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The last convicted 'witch' was exonerated in July 2022
The Salem witch trials took place between February 1692 and May 1693. This was a series of hearings and prosecutions of people accused of witchcraft in colonial Massachusetts. More than 200 people were accused, 30 were found guilty, and 19 were executed by hanging. The trials began when a few local women in Salem Village were accused of witchcraft by four young girls: Betty Parris, Abigail Williams, Ann Putnam Jr., and Elizabeth Hubbard.
The Salem witch trials occurred in the context of a longer story of witch hunts that started in Europe between 1300 and 1330 and ended in the late 18th century, with the last known execution for witchcraft taking place in Switzerland in 1782. By the mid-17th century, witch trials had started to fade out across Europe, but they continued on the fringes of the continent and in the American Colonies.
The Salem witch trials ended when serious doubts began to arise among leading clergymen about the validity of the spectral evidence that had been used to justify the convictions. In 1702, the General Court of Massachusetts declared the trials unlawful, and in 1711, the Massachusetts legislature annulled the convictions and passed a bill mentioning 22 individuals by name, reversing their attainders.
Despite these efforts, Elizabeth Johnson Jr. was the last person convicted during the Salem witch trials to be exonerated, in July 2022. Johnson confessed to practicing witchcraft during the trials and was sentenced to death in 1693. However, she was granted a reprieve and lived until she was 77 years old. Her case had been overlooked by previous exoneration efforts, possibly due to administrative confusion or because she had no known descendants to fight for her name to be cleared. In 2022, 329 years after her conviction, Johnson was finally exonerated through the efforts of an eighth-grade civics teacher, Carrie LaPierre, and her students, who petitioned legislators to clear her name.
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Frequently asked questions
The Salem Witch Trials took place between February 1692 and May 1693.
The US Constitution was written in 1787.
The Salem Witch Trials took place almost a century before the US Constitution was written.
The Salem Witch Trials were a series of hearings and prosecutions of people accused of witchcraft in colonial Massachusetts. More than 200 people were accused, 19 of whom were executed by hanging.
