Why Did The Salem Witch Trials Happen

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Pages: 2

How did the trials begin?
The trials began after a group of young girls started to experience identical, strange symptoms, which was then blamed on witchcraft. These girls went on to accuse several local women of witchcraft, starting off with Tituba, an Indian slave.

What happened during the trials?
Throughout the trials, more girls started claiming they were being afflicted by witchcraft and time after time, the accusations kept on increasing. Many people were sentenced to prison, while others were sentenced to death

How did the trials end?
The trials ended with 20 deaths of both men, women, and children's. After one of the justice leader’s wife was convicted of witchcraft, the justice leader ended the trials for good. The people involved in making the decisions apologized and one of the main teen accusers at the time, also apologized for lying about accusing others of witchcraft.
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One theory why the the Salem witch trials may have occurred is because during this time the Puritans were scared of dying from exposure, starvation, or the Native Americans; They believed that the devil was among them, so when the idea of a witch came up, the people unhesitantly believed it was