Salem Witch Trials Essay

In January of 1692 a series of witch trials, caused by economical stress and fear of the devil, began in Salem. The Salem witch trials included executions that ended in devastation and the death of several men, women, and even children. The stress of the King William’s War in Europe caused people to flee to the closest place which was Massachusetts. With the overpopulating town the people ran out of occupations to offer and dwelling places. Christians and religious people believed that the devil used this time of stress to overtake their religious society.

Tituba caused the witch hunt outrage in Salem. Tituba, the servant of Reverend Parris practiced black magic. She showed this practice to Reverend Parris’s curious daughter and niece.

The fits included screaming, throwing of objects, peculiar sounds, not wanting to hear the word of God, and contortion. These women, called the “afflicted girls”, would later put pressure upon the accused for repentance. To better understand bewitchments you could compare it to people being possessed by demons in the twenty first century.

In response to the peculiarities, the leaders of Salem began the witch hunts. Trying and executing the witches began in 1648 with Margaret Jones of Charleston. The series of trials and executions recorded in history did not begin until much later.

Even though Tituba might not have been the first witch tried and executed, she admitted to practicing black magic and seeing the devil call her to this practice. She also revealed to the court that many other women practiced black magic. She and two others named Osborne and Good were the first women tried before court and were imprisoned on February 29, 1692, at the beginnings of the Salem witch trials. This was just the beginning of the trials. These trials alone resulted in two hundred people accused and placed before the

The first step when accusing someone was to tell the town magistrates. The magistrates would then decide if it was worth taking the accused prisoner. If they took your accusation into account, a public warrant for that person’s arrest would be sent out. When a citizen was arrested, he or she went before the court and were expected to confess. If the accused did not confess, “afflicted girls” began throwing fits for psychological pressure. When this did not work, they were brought before the Superior Court. In 1642 they would go to prison for several months. After the imprisonment they would appear in front of the superior court once more. After this last trial most men or women received the death penalty. The trials resulted in execution dates, June 10, July 19, August 19, and September