Today starts the final full week of the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge. This is the last day I will share the linky code. Hope you get a chance to visit some of the other participants. I learn a lot about a variety of subjects, since I make a point to check out different blogs throughout the month.
I have to admit to being fascinated by the Salem Witch Trials. I've never been to Salem before, which is a shame since we live in Massachusetts. Part of that is because the hubby and I enjoy the history of different time periods. I'm early American history through the Civil War and he's World War II through the end of the Cold War.
In February of 1692, a group of girls in Salem Village began experiencing fits where they thrashed about and shrieked. After repeated questioning by adults, the girls began claiming local residents were witches and wizards. As the circle of people accused of being witches and wizards increased, so did the number of fits. By the end of the summer, hundreds had been accused, twenty-seven put on trial, and nineteen executed.
Growing discomfort over the trials within Salem Village, the wider community, and for some religious and civic leaders, led the governor, William Phips, to forbade further trials. Phips formed a new court in January 1863, that worked under stricter guidelines for evidence of witchcraft. The rest of the residents imprisoned for witchcraft were either acquitted or discharged.
Some historians link the witch trials to the changes that Puritan society was experiencing at the time. This type of mass hysteria has also been used as a cautionary tale about the dangers of isolationism and religious extremism.
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