Lecture 11C: Trials, Executions, and Aftermath

The Salem Hysteria: Trials, Executions, and Aftermath

Royal Intervention and Formal Trials

Sir William Phips, the newly appointed Royal Governor, arrived in Boston.
Phips gained fame and wealth by discovering a Spanish galleon with gold off the coast of Haiti.
Phips decided to proceed with formal trials for those accused of witchcraft.
At the time of his arrival, 27 people were held in Boston's jail, charged with witchcraft.
Phips established a court of Oyer and Terminer to try, convict, and execute the accused.
Phips described the situation as finding people with "preternatural torments," including being burned, stabbed, and dragged over distances.

Actions Taken by Phips and Stoughton

Phips acted to bring the accused to justice, responding to the "loud cries and clamors of the afflicted."
He ordered the prisoners to be placed in heavy irons to prevent them from practicing witchcraft.
Phips appointed William Stoughton, the Deputy Governor and Chief Justice, to lead the Court of Oyer and Terminer.
Stoughton was a Harvard and Oxford graduate with extensive political experience.
Phips left Boston to fight the French and their Indian allies on the frontier.

The Court of Oyer and Terminer

The Court included eight justices, selected by Phips for their "best prudence."
Justices included Samuel Sewall, Nathaniel Saltonstall (who resigned in June), John Hathorne, Johnathan Corwin, Wait Still Winthrop, Peter Sergeant, Bartholomew Gedney, and John Richards.
These judges were wealthy, well-educated merchants and lawyers.
The justices sought advice from leading ministers, particularly Cotton Mather.
Justice John Richards asked Cotton Mather about the use of spectral evidence.
Mather advised caution but did not oppose spectral evidence, suggesting encouragement of confessions.
Mather also advised looking for witches’ teats and testing the accused with the Lord’s Prayer.

Court Proceedings and Spectral Evidence

The court followed proceedings similar to those used by town magistrates, using hearing records as primary evidence.
The court rejected Cotton Mather’s advice and openly accepted spectral evidence.
A group of Massachusetts ministers, including Increase Mather, later echoed the advice to proceed cautiously with spectral evidence.

Key Trials and Executions

Bridget Bishop: The first case brought before the court, setting a precedent.
Spectral evidence was frequently used; witnesses claimed Bishop appeared to them and caused harm.
Stoughton instructed the jury that they only needed to prove the torments were unnatural, not actually suffered.
Bishop was found guilty and executed on Gallows Hill, her body thrown into an unmarked pit.
Rebecca Nurse: Her case was difficult due to reliance on spectral evidence from the hysterical girls.
Initially found not guilty, but Justice Stoughton sent the case back to the jury.
The jury reversed their verdict, finding her guilty, despite many defending her.
Governor Phips initially reprieved her but reversed his decision due to public outcry.
Nurse was executed in the first mass execution on July 19.
Sarah Goode: Responded to a minister's plea to confess with defiance, predicting the minister's death by hemorrhage.
Escapes: Thirteen accused witches escaped from prison.

Escalation of Trials and Executions

Trials continued with accusations of spectral attacks and murders.
George Burroughs: Hanged on August 19; proclaimed his innocence on the ladder.
According to Robert Calef, Burroughs recited the Lord’s Prayer perfectly, alarming the crowd.
Cotton Mather convinced the crowd of Burroughs’ guilt, a decision he later regretted.
By mid-September, the court had tried 15 more, with eight being hanged on September 22, including Martha Corey.
The afflicted girls harassed the accused witches during the executions.

Giles Corey and the Use of Torture

Giles Corey was pressed to death for refusing to stand trial.
Remaining silent meant the court could not legally try him.
The court used torture (crushing with stones) to force him to agree to a jury trial.
Corey’s last words were “More weight!” He remains the only person pressed to death by law in the United States.

Shift in Public Opinion and Court Recess

The Court of Oyer and Terminer recessed on September 22, intending to reconvene.
Confessions increased as the accused realized it could save their lives.
More than fifty accused witches confessed in 1692, none of whom were executed.
Confessions typically involved signing the Devil’s book and attending witches’ Sabbaths.
By late summer, some accusers recanted their accusations, and public support shifted toward those in prison.
Over 300 people offered support through petitions.
High-placed ministers questioned Justice Stoughton’s zeal.

Governor Phips' Intervention

Upon his return in October, Governor Phips found his own wife accused of witchcraft.
He dismissed the Court and forbade further imprisonments.
Phips blamed his subordinates, especially Chief Justice Stoughton, for the problem.
Increase Mather and other ministers cautioned against the use of spectral evidence.
Mather stated, "It were better that ten suspected witches should escape, than that one innocent person should be condemned."

Release of Prisoners and Resumption of Trials

By the end of October, the mood had changed; the girls' accusations were ignored.
The authorities released the accused from jail but were unsure what to do with those who had confessed.
The jails were still filled with nearly 50 confessed witches, including young children.
Phips released most of them.
Trials resumed in January, but almost every accused person was acquitted.

Aftermath and Pardons

In May 1693, Phips issued a general pardon to all those imprisoned.
Prisoners had to pay for their room and board, preventing some from leaving until they settled their bills.
Tituba was sold to a new master to pay her fees.

Unresolved Sentences and Stoughton's Disagreement

Eight people convicted by the Court of Oyer and Terminer in the fall had not been punished.
Martha Proctor's death sentence was reprieved while she delivered a baby.
Chief Justice Stoughton wanted the sentences carried out, but Phips acquitted them, enraging Stoughton.

Salem's Recovery and Reconciliation

Samuel Parris moved on in 1696; Joseph Green became the new pastor and worked to heal Salem's wounds.
Green mixed up the church’s seating plan, placing old antagonists together.
He rescinded excommunications and restored dignity to the families of the executed.
Ann Putnam confessed her role in the accusations, attributing it to a "great delusion of Satan."
Putnam begged for forgiveness and stated her belief that many she helped convict were innocent; she was the only accuser to repent.

Repentance and Apologies

Of the justices, only Samuel Sewell repented, apologizing publicly in 1697 after his daughter's death.
Sewell observed a day of fasting and prayer every year to remember his sin and repentance.
Twelve of the court’s jurors also publicly apologized.
Most people who apologized claimed they were deluded by Satan.

Stoughton's Lack of Repentance and Legal Reversals

Chief Justice Stoughton never confessed but claimed he acted according to his best understanding.
In 1702, the General Court of Massachusetts forbade the use of spectral evidence in trials.
In 1711, the General Court reversed all convictions from the witchcraft trials and ordered restitution to the victims' families, totaling £578.
The court initially refused Philip English's request of £1,200 but later awarded him £200, which he refused.

Cultural and Religious Significance

The Salem witch trials highlight the power of religious belief in 17th-century New England.
Disputes, fear of Native American attacks, and anxiety over the loss of a colonial charter contributed to the crisis.
Witchcraft was enmeshed in cultural understandings of religion and gender.

Salem as a Turning Point

Salem represents a major turning point in American legal history.
After 1692, executions for witchcraft ended, and courts became skeptical of accusations.
The events at Salem marked the end of valuing spectral evidence over empirical evidence.

Transformation of Massachusetts

Massachusetts became more English, influenced by the English Enlightenment.
Religious rationalism, influenced by figures like Newton and Locke, gained prominence.
Puritanism moved toward a more rational view of faith.

Conclusion

Comparing figures like Cotton Mather and John Adams illustrates the shift towards a more rational faith.
The Massachusetts that emerged from the trials was religious but more rational.