Essay on Primary Sources for the Salem Witch Trials

By the reign of William III, there were becoming increasingly less cases of witch-hunting/trails and ultimate executions. The last recorded execution in England of an alleged witch is in 1682, though trials and accusations would still be brought alleged witches right up until the 1800’s both in England and on the continent in most cases /crown rule where witch-hunting/trials and executions took place, probably the most famous and certainly one of the most written about witching episodes is that of Witch Trials of Salem, Massachusetts. The Salem Trials took place between the 10th of June and the 22nd of 1692 and in this time nineteen people. In addition to this one man was pressed to death and over 150 people where sent to jail where four†¦show more content†¦Tituba was accused of witchcraft by two young girls (Betty Parris and Abigail Williams) after showing them and several others a number of things what could be described has having a voodoo origin. Though Tituba’s actions and beliefs were strange to those of a Puritan Salem, she may have very well believed in it all. Whilst other religious beliefs may not have been acceptable to the people, their own religious beliefs where very important to them. At the root of Puritan belief were three key points. The first that the bible was 100% accurate and should be followed down to every letter so if one should find a witch then they should be punished for the bible says ‘ Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live’ . Secondly perhaps most importantly is the belief that the Devil was real and the power to corrupt people and make them do his bidding, this belief is clearly visible as the Devil is mentioned in one form or another time again in the records of the trials. One such example is in the case of Martha Carrier in which the accusers claim to have see a black man either in the company of Martha Carrier or in the court room during the trial, time and again Martha is asked ‘What black man is that†¦or What black man do youShow MoreRelatedSalem Witch Trials : A Public Choice Perspective843 Words   |  4 PagesThe Salem witch trials are a memorable period in time that had a huge impact on American society. Many peop le are still questioning this historical event and what lead to the people of Salem developing that particular mentality. Benjamin Ray’s, â€Å"Salem witch trials† grants primary source historical documents to support the allegations of the witch trials in that period. 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