What really happened during the Salem witch trials?
No witches were burned - but 20 people were executed.
The answer
The Salem witch trials of 1692 in colonial Massachusetts resulted in the execution of 20 people (19 by hanging, one pressed to death with stones) and the imprisonment of nearly 200 more. Contrary to popular belief, no one was burned at the stake - that was a European practice. Modern theories for the mass hysteria include ergot fungal poisoning from contaminated rye (which can cause hallucinations), political feuds between rival families, and the trauma of recent frontier warfare with Native Americans.
Source: Smithsonian Magazine
- colonial America
- hysteria
- trials
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