What was some of the most important evidence used in the Salem witch trials?

What was some of the most important evidence used in the Salem witch trials?

Courts relied on three kinds of evidence: 1) confession, 2) testimony of two eyewitnesses to acts of witchcraft, or 3) spectral evidence (when the afflicted girls were having their fits, they would interact with an unseen assailant – the apparition of the witch tormenting them).

What effect did the witch trials have on England?

The Witch trials in England were conducted from the 15th century until the 18th century. They are estimated to have resulted in the death of between 500 and 1000 people, 90 percent of whom were women.

What was special about the Salem witch trials?

The Salem witch trials occurred in colonial Massachusetts between 1692 and 1693. More than 200 people were accused of practicing witchcraft—the Devil’s magic—and 20 were executed. Eventually, the colony admitted the trials were a mistake and compensated the families of those convicted.

What impact did the Salem witch trials have on the town?

The Salem Witchcraft Trials had many effects on the town of Salem, Massachusetts. A lot of the effects were negative, destroying the community, government, even individuals. The Witch Trials affected the community of Salem in multiple ways. The witch trials created many tensions between several families in the town.

When did witchcraft become illegal in England?

In 1542 Parliament passed the Witchcraft Act which defined witchcraft as a crime punishable by death. It was repealed five years later, but restored by a new Act in 1562. A further law was passed in 1604 during the reign of James I who took a keen interest in demonology and even published a book on it.

What were the lasting effects of the Salem witch trials?

By the end of the Salem witch trials, 19 people had been hanged and 5 others had died in custody. Additionally, a man was pressed beneath heavy stones until he died.

How to learn more about the Salem witch trials?

Look at the websites listed below, and, on a separate sheet of paper, answer the questions about life in Puritan New England. Note that many of the websites contain interactive images. Click on the images to open them, and mouse-over the image to discover more about it. What values that we now consider ‘American’ were contributed by the Puritans?

What was the mission of the Salem Witch Museum?

The mission of the Salem Witch Museum is to be the voice to the innocent victims of the Salem witch trials, while also bringing awareness to the root cause of witch-hunts from 1692 to the present day.

Is the Bill of Rights protected in the Salem witch trials?

With the Bill of Rights in place, interpretations of the First Amendment consistently ruled that slander and defamation were not protected by the Constitution. This image is a fanciful representation of the Salem witch trials. (“The witch no. 1,” Joseph E. Baker, 1892, image via the Library of Congress)

When did the witch trials in Massachusetts end?

In 2002 the Massachusetts state legislature officially cleared the names of the last of the accused witches.