But there were two particular methods that gained infamy during the Salem Witch Trials — Witch Cakes and spectral evidence. The cake would then be fed to a dog, who would then apparently reveal the name of the witch. Tituba of Salem famously cooked a Witch Cake during the trials.
Ironically, it was her work on the cake and knowledge of spells that later led to Tituba being accused of witchcraft. Spectral evidence was a favourite form of proof for William Stoughton during his tenure as head of the court during the Salem Witch Trials. The afflicted would claim they saw an apparition or shadow in the shape of the person torturing them. This apparition meant the witch had given the devil permission to occupy their form.
Obviously, this was rife for misuse and abuse, with the afflicted being able to point their finger at anyone they desired, and for it to be taken as evidence by people like William Stoughton. Even back then, some recognised it as a flimsy form of proof, more helpful for pointing fingers than providing any solid evidence. But with someone like William Stoughton in charge, it was more than enough to condemn multiple people as witches.
Hubbard filed 40 complaints, testified 32 times and was directly responsible for the deaths of 15 of the victims of the Salem Witch Trials. Putnam accused over 62 people, and with her friends, seemed to have had a hand in all the executions of supposed witches. She is also the only one of the group to express remorse; apologising in later life for her part in the Salem Witch Trials. In a matter of weeks, the trials were over and those awaiting trial or execution were released.
Bridget Bishop was the first accused "witch" to be executed. She was tried and found guilty on the same day and hanged one week later on June 2. There were several more group hangings during the summer of , including:. Five more people died in prison as they awaited their trials, either from malnourishment or from injuries sustained during torture.
One of those people was Sarah Good's infant daughter Mercy, who was born in prison but died shortly after birth. Two dogs were also executed for their alleged contribution to witchcraft rituals.
Twenty-five people lost their lives during the Salem witch trials, but many more lives were altered or destroyed as a result. All told, more than were accused and arrested for the crime of witchcraft. Dozens of these people were pardoned after the trials and several escaped their sentences.
The real facts of the Salem witch trials establish them as a horrific period in American history. However, although the trials themselves only lasted a matter of months, their influence still resonates in American politics, literature and drama. Learn more about the parallels between the 17th century and the 20th century Communism trials of Joseph McCarthy. Staff Writer. All rights reserved. No One Was Burned at the Stake Contrary to popular belief, no one was burned at the stake during the Salem witch trials.
The witch hunt had many critics. However, critics of the trials were subsequently accused of practicing witchcraft themselves. The assumption was that anyone that defended the accused or denied the existence of witches must also be one of them and needed to be put on trial. The Salem courthouse was the venue for the trials with a woman known as Bridget Bishop being the first to be put on trial. Bishop had been accused of practicing witchcraft years previously but had been cleared of the crime.
Five of the afflicted girls were the ones that accused her by stating that she had hurt them physically and attempted to make them sign a pact with the Devil. Bridget however kept defending herself repeatedly during the trial by stating that she was innocent and she knew nothing about witchcraft.
At the end of her trial, Bridget was convicted and sentenced to death. On 10th June , she was hanged and became the first victim of the Salem Witch Trials. In July, five more people were hanged including Rebecca Nurse.
The execution of Rebecca became a pivotal moment in the trials. While most of the other women accused of practicing witchcraft were unpopular social outcasts, she was a well-loved and well-respected member of the community.
In fact, her initial verdict was not guilty but the afflicted girls began having fits in the courtroom as soon as the verdict was delivered.
The judge then asked the jury to reconsider its verdict. One week later, the jury changed its verdict to guilty. Rebecca was executed on July 19th and it was then that Salem residents started questioning the validity of the trials. Another crucial moment in the trials was the public and torture of Giles Corey. Giles had been accused of practicing witchcraft in April while his wife was being examined.
With the understanding that conviction would mean confiscation of his large estate meaning that it would not be passed down to his children, he refused to enter a plea and brought his trial to a halt. At that time, English law dictated that anybody that refused to enter a plea could be tortured in an attempt to force them to enter a plea.
The torture involved laying the prisoner on the ground while naked then placing a board on top of him. Heavy stones were subsequently loaded onto the board with the weight being increased gradually until either the person died or he entered a plea.
Giles was tortured in this manner in mid-September for 3 days until he died on September 19th. His cruel and gruesome death strengthened the growing opposition to the trials. We often look at the hysteria of the people in Massachusetts as a place for blame, but the quest to expose witches goes back more than years before the events of the Salem witch trials.
Books were published to describe what acts of witchcraft looked like so the general public could recognize them. When push came to shove, the Salem witch trials were less about witchcraft and more about the state of Christianity.
People were being sentenced to death because of heresy, which meant that they were showing a outward denial of the demanded Christian beliefs of the time. It was a crime so heinous that colonial law allowed all other laws to be superseded to deal with the threat. In modern terms, Salem declared martial law to deal with religious heresy. One of the biggest problems that helped to cause the Salem witch trials was the existence of a smallpox outbreak. Before vaccinations were made available against the disease, up to 3 in 10 people would die from a smallpox infection.
Children were especially vulnerable to the disease and it was spreading to epidemic proportion in the years before the trials. Having an angry witch killing your children made sense.
Some of the attitudes in the Salem witch trials are still seen today. One of the most popular points of view was that if you were against the trials, then you were, in fact, an advocate for the witches. This obviously meant that you must also be a witch.
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