Witchcraft Hysteria in Puritan New England :: American America History

Witchcraft Hysteria in Puritan New EnglandIn 1692, the problems following Massachusettss pitch from Puritan Utopia to royal colony had an unusual increase in the witchcraft hysteria at capital of Oregon Village (now the town of Danvers). Although the belief in witchcraft had started a huge problem in Salem, almost three hundred New Englanders (mostly lower class, middle-aged, marginal women spinsters or widows) had been accused as witches, and to a greater extent than thirty had been hanged. With this issue in Salem solely superiority in its scope and intensity. The general colonys way of life was experiencing about problems. These problems lead the community to believe that the devil was at work in the village. A few teenage girls became inlet listeners to voodoo stories told by Tituba, a West Indian slave, and began acting strangely. For no reason at all they started shouting, barking, groveling and twitching. The town doctor had come to the conclusion that they had been bewit ched. When the girls were told this, they pointed to Tituba and two sure-enough(a) white women as the offenders. The criminals were captured with a panic as word pass around that the devil was in their presence. As the three women were being asked questions the possessed girls involute on the floor in convulsive fits. Tituba shocked everyone when she confessed to the charge simply also told that many others in the colony were practicing the devils work. All this hysteria in the town started causing many problems. The crazed girls began pointing fingers at many residents, including several(prenominal) of the most respected people of the community. Within months, the jail in Salem was over its capacity with townsfolk that were accused of performing witchcraft. Seeing how the townspeople believed everything the girls were saying shows how gullible the community is. Ten months later, nineteen people had been hanged, uncompromising Giles Corey who refused to plea Guilty or not Guil ty was pressed to finis by heavy stones, and more than 100 others jailed. Accusations spread wider and went way beyond the borders of Salem. This worried colonial leaders and they decided that the witch hunts were out of control. The panel had about seen enough when the girls accused Samuel Willard, the pastor of Bostons eldest Church and president of Harvard College, of practicing witchcraft. The governor disbanded the special court and ordered the stay suspects released when he was stunned that his own wife was accused of worshiping the devil.