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Salem witch trials: Giles Corey was crushed to death for refusing to enter a plea to charges of witchcraft, reportedly asking the sheriff for "more weight" during his execution.
Related Wikipedia articles
Salem witch trials
Legal proceedings in Massachusetts (1692–93)
The Salem witch trials were a series of hearings and prosecutions of people accused of witchcraft in colonial Massachusetts between February 1692 and May 1693. More than 200 people were accused. Thirty people were found guilty, nineteen of whom were executed by hanging. One…Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)
Giles Corey
English-born farmer (c. 1611 – 1692)
Giles Corey was an English-born farmer who was accused of witchcraft along with his wife Martha Corey during the Salem witch trials in the Province of Massachusetts Bay. After being arrested, Corey refused to enter a guilty or not guilty plea. He was subjected to torture in the…Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)
Peine forte et dure
Legal method of coercion, using torture
Peine forte et dure was a method of torture formerly used in the common law legal system, in which a defendant who refused to plead would be subjected to having heavier and heavier stones placed upon their chest until a plea was entered, or death resulted.Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)
Witchcraft
Practices believed to use supernatural powers
Witchcraft is the use of magic by a person called a witch. Traditionally, "witchcraft" means the use of magic to inflict supernatural harm or misfortune on others, and this remains the most common and widespread meaning. According to Encyclopedia Britannica, "Witchcraft thus…Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)