The Salem witch trials are one of history's most famous prosecutions. What is unknown to many is that the Salem witch trials were not the first trials to occur in the world. Witch trials had been occurring primarily in Europe for hundreds of years before the Salem trials had occurred. The occurrence of witch trials began when the Christian people came to believe that the devil was able to give power to certain people, known as witches. The Salem witch trials began in colonial Massachusetts in 1692 and did not come to a halt until 1693. During that horrendous year, more than two hundred people were accused of practicing the art of witchcraft and twenty of those accused were executed without evidence. There is still visible evidence throughout
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The Protestants took the terrible crime of witchcraft as seriously as the Catholics, who were the original ones to accuse people of witchcraft. The majority of the people that were under suspicion of the crime of practicing witchcraft were mostly women, who were said to be more susceptible to the Devil’s will. Some were accused because of the fact that they were owners of cats, who were thought to be the Devil’s demon. Witch-hunters were under the delusion that these cat demons were the witches personal communication system, in which they could speak to the Devil at their will (The Witch Trials). After an individual was accused of witchcraft, depending on the destination, various forms of torture would take place until they confessed to working for the devil. One of the most famous forms of torture was strappado, which was when the authorities bound the person’s wrists behind their back with a rope. The rope would then be hoisted over a ceiling beam and pulled until the person was suspended in the air and then dropped. This process was repeated multiple times until the person’s shoulders were either torn off or dislocated …show more content…
Eighty percent of the people executed were women (The Witch Trials). During the years in which witch trials were very common, England executed almost 1,000 people, even despite the intensity in which witchhunter, Matthew Hopkins worked to find as many witches as he possibly could. There is not much known about Matthew Hopkins before 1944, but he was said to be a lawyer. In March of 1644, he made his first discovery of witches, all six he claimed had tried to kill him. After that he became known as a ¨Witch Finder General.¨ He searched out witches through many different cities and towns with his two assistants (Encyclopedia). Once found, he would force the accused to confess using various torture techniques. It was said that his favorite method was using red hot pincers against a witch’s body. The pincer was used to tear off different pieces of flesh, after they had been stripped naked and horse whipped (Milanese). After confessing he would have them hanged immediately by the authorities of the city or town. Between the year 1644 and 1647, Hopkins had more than 230 people executed for practicing witchcraft
The Protestants took the terrible crime of witchcraft as seriously as the Catholics, who were the original ones to accuse people of witchcraft. The majority of the people that were under suspicion of the crime of practicing witchcraft were mostly women, who were said to be more susceptible to the Devil’s will. Some were accused because of the fact that they were owners of cats, who were thought to be the Devil’s demon. Witch-hunters were under the delusion that these cat demons were the witches personal communication system, in which they could speak to the Devil at their will (The Witch Trials). After an individual was accused of witchcraft, depending on the destination, various forms of torture would take place until they confessed to working for the devil. One of the most famous forms of torture was strappado, which was when the authorities bound the person’s wrists behind their back with a rope. The rope would then be hoisted over a ceiling beam and pulled until the person was suspended in the air and then dropped. This process was repeated multiple times until the person’s shoulders were either torn off or dislocated …show more content…
Eighty percent of the people executed were women (The Witch Trials). During the years in which witch trials were very common, England executed almost 1,000 people, even despite the intensity in which witchhunter, Matthew Hopkins worked to find as many witches as he possibly could. There is not much known about Matthew Hopkins before 1944, but he was said to be a lawyer. In March of 1644, he made his first discovery of witches, all six he claimed had tried to kill him. After that he became known as a ¨Witch Finder General.¨ He searched out witches through many different cities and towns with his two assistants (Encyclopedia). Once found, he would force the accused to confess using various torture techniques. It was said that his favorite method was using red hot pincers against a witch’s body. The pincer was used to tear off different pieces of flesh, after they had been stripped naked and horse whipped (Milanese). After confessing he would have them hanged immediately by the authorities of the city or town. Between the year 1644 and 1647, Hopkins had more than 230 people executed for practicing witchcraft