Why was Giles Cory pressed to death?
About noon at Salem, Giles Cory was pressed to death for standing mute; much pains was used with him two days, one after another, by the court and Captain Gardner of Nantucket who had been of his acquaintance, but all in vain.
Who was Giles Corey?
For the band of the same name, see Giles Corey (band). Giles Corey ( c. August 1611 – September 19, 1692) was an English-born American farmer who was accused of witchcraft along with his wife Martha Corey during the Salem witch trials.
How many times did Giles Corey get married?
Giles Corey was a prosperous land-owning farmer in Salem and married three times.
Why does Giles feel guilty about the accusation of his wife?
In The Crucible, Giles feels guilty about the accusation of his wife because he had told a minister that Martha had been reading strange books, which was discouraged in that society. Corey also appears in Robert Ward 's operatic treatment of the play, in which his role is assigned to a tenor.
What is the pressing of Giles Corey?
It passed on to his two sons-in-law, in accordance to his will. The pressing of Giles Corey is unique in New England. It is similar to the case in England of Margaret Clitherow, who was arrested on March 10, 1586, for the crime of harboring priests, hearing Mass, and secretly being of the Catholic faith.
Where did Martha and Giles live?
At the time of the witch trials, Corey was 80 years old and living with Martha in the southwest corner of Salem Village, in what is now Peabody.
Where was Giles Corey born?
Giles Corey was born in Northampton, England, sometime before August 16, 1611, the date on which he was baptized in the church of the Holy Sepulchre. Giles was the son of Giles and Elizabeth Corey. His birth is recorded in the parish records. His name is quite often spelled "Corey", but the baptismal record is "Cory". It is not certain when he arrived in North America, but there is evidence he was living in Salem Town as early as 1640. He originally lived in Salem Town but later moved to nearby Salem Village (now Danvers) to work as a farmer. There are quite a few entries in the court documents as to his behavior, which was not completely good, but in those times, any accusation was an offense against the state.
Who was Giles Corey?
Giles Corey was a prosperous farmer with a bit of a dark past. An upright and proud man, he had a few times escaped the punishments of the leaders of Salem, Mass. His relationship with the community was strained and the people of Salem might have wanted revenge, thus the Salem Witch Trials became the perfect cover for getting away with his ...
Where did Giles Corey live?
Giles Corey, a well-to-do farmer, hailed from Northampton, England where he was born in 1621. Sometime after his first marriage to a woman named Margaret, Corey made the three-month journey to America. He settled in Salem town for a while where the couple had a daughter, Deliverance, on Aug. 5, 1658. In 1659 the small family moved ...
Why was Giles Corey important to the Salem community?
In 1659 the small family moved to Salem Village to become farmers. On the outskirts of town, Giles Corey became a prosperous farmer. Farming was important back then, not only for a source of food for individuals but also for storing crops during harsh winters. As such, Corey became an important figure in the community.
What is the curse of Giles Corey?
The Curse Of Giles Corey: The Man Slowly Crushed To Death For Being A “Witch” In Salem. Giles Corey and his wife Martha were already outsiders in the farming village of Salem, Massachusetts when they were accused of witchcraft. They subsequently faced a torturous fate. Wikimedia Commons An artist’s rendering of Giles Corey on trial.
What was the prodigal past of Corey?
His prodigal past without punishment riled the establishment of Salem as members of the community began to become ever more suspicious of Corey and to think him a man prone to violence who took the law into his own hands. This would be the farmer’s undoing in 1692 at the height of the witch trial hysteria.
What happened to Jacob Goodale and the Coreys?
One day in 1675, Corey discovered that his farmhand, Jacob Goodale, had stolen apples from his storage area.
How long did Corey and his wife go to jail?
Corey and his wife languished in prison for months awaiting a full trial in September. By the time the court got around to the Coreys, a dozen witnesses prepared to testify against him. Corey had enough of this absurdity. He knew his fate was sealed, no matter what he said, so he continued to say nothing.
Who was Giles Corey?
Giles Corey was an English-born American farmer. He along with his wife was accused of witchcraft during the ‘Salem Witch Trials.’. He died while being ‘pressed,’ an effort to force him to plead in the trials. Born in Northampton, England, he spent his initial years in England and later moved to Massachusetts, America.
Where was Giles Corey born?
Giles Corey was born in 1611, in Northampton, England, to Giles and Elizabeth Corey. He was baptized on August 16, 1611, in the ‘Church of Holy Sepulchre.’. Later he moved to North America and records indicate that he was a resident of Salem town in 1640. It is believed that he had married his first wife, Margaret, in England, ...
What was Corey's behavior in 1659?
Initially Corey lived in Salem Town, but shifted to Salem Village in 1659 to work as a farmer. Court entries indicate that his behavior was not absolutely perfect as he had been fined for stealing grains and goods. Later in 1676, he was brought to trial in Essex County, Massachusetts, for severely beating one of his farmhands, Jacob Goodale, who later died due to the beating. Goodale was caught stealing apples from Corey’s brother-in-law, so Corey had beaten him with a stick. He was not charged with murder, but was fined for using ‘unreasonable’ force. The death of Jacob Goodale affected his reputation.
What did Sheriff Corwin say to Corey?
It is said that during his torture, Corey cursed his tormentor Sheriff Corwin by shouting, ‘Damn You! I curse you and Salem!’ Reportedly, the Salem sheriffs have either died or resigned due to heart or blood disease. In 1991, the sheriff’s office was moved from Salem to Middleton and the curse is said to have broken. Also, as per a local legend, an apparition of Corey is seen walking in his graveyard whenever an adversity is about to strike the city.
Why did Giles Corey's tongue get pushed out?
At one point, when Corey’s tongue was pushed out due to pressing, the tormentor Sheriff George Corwin pushed it back in with his stick. Giles Corey died on September 19, 1692, after two days of ‘pressing.’. Judge Jonathan Corwin ordered to bury him in an unmarked grave.
What happened to Salem's wife?
When Salem was caught up in witch panic, he along with his wife, Martha Corey, was accused of practicing witchcraft. He refused to plead guilty or non-guilty. So no trial could be conducted as he did not enter plea. As a result of this, he was ‘pressed’ so that he could plead.
How did Jacob Goodale's death affect his reputation?
He had 4 children (Martha, Margaret, Deliverance and Elizabeth) from his first wife, Margaret, who died in 1664. On April 11, 1664, he married a London immigrant , Mary Bright. The couple had a son named John.
Overview
Giles Corey (c. August 1611 – September 19, 1692) was an English-born American farmer who was accused of witchcraft along with his wife Martha Corey during the Salem witch trials. After being arrested, Corey refused to enter a plea of guilty or not guilty. He was subjected to pressing in an effort to force him to plead—the only example of such a sanction in American history—and died afte…
Pre-trial history
Giles Corey was born in Northampton, England. He was baptized in the church of the Holy Sepulchre on August 16, 1611. Giles was the son of Giles and Elizabeth Corey. His birth is recorded in the parish records. His name is quite often spelled "Corey", but the baptismal record is "Cory". It is not certain when he arrived in North America, but there is evidence he was living in Salem Town as early as 1640. He originally lived in Salem Town but later moved to nearby Salem Village (now Da…
Arrest, examination, and refusal to plead
Martha Corey was arrested for witchcraft on March 19, 1692. Corey was so swept up by the trials that he initially believed the accusations against his wife, until he himself was arrested based on the same charge on April 18, along with Mary Warren, Abigail Hobbs, and Bridget Bishop. The following day, they were examined by the authorities, during which Abigail Hobbs accused Giles of being a wizard. Corey denied the accusations and refused to plead (guilty or not guilty), was sent…
Death by pressing
According to the law at the time, a person who refused to plead could not be tried. To avoid people cheating justice, the legal remedy for refusing to plead was "peine forte et dure". In this process, prisoners were stripped naked, and heavy boards were laid on their bodies. Then rocks or boulders were laid on the plank of wood. This was the process of being pressed:
Aftermath
Corey's wife Martha was hanged three days later on September 22, 1692. She had a son from a previous marriage named Thomas; he showed up as a petitioner for loss and damages resulting from his mother being executed illegally during the witch trials. He was awarded £50 on June 29, 1723.
The gruesome and public nature of Corey's death may have caused residents of Salem to rethin…
Legacy
According to a local legend, the apparition of Giles Corey appears and walks his graveyard each time a disaster is about to strike the city. Notably, he was said to have appeared the night before the Great Salem Fire of 1914. The position of Sheriff of Essex County was also said to have suffered from the "curse of Giles Corey", as the holders of that office, since George Corwin, had either died or re…
Further reading
• Upham, Charles (1980). Salem Witchcraft. New York: Frederick Ungar Publishing Co., 2 vv, v. 1 pp. 181–91, 205, v.2 pp. 38, 44, 52, 114, 121, 128, 334–43, 480, 483.
External links
• Media related to Giles Corey at Wikimedia Commons
• Giles Corey Pressed to Death, September 16, 1692, The Salem Witchcraft Papers, University of Virginia