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PRESSING
Pressing, also known as peine forte et dure, was both a death
sentence and a means of drawing out confessions. Adopted as
a
judicial measure during the 14th century, pressing reached its
peak during the reign of Henry IV. In Britain, pressing was
not
abolished until 1772.
Margaret the martyr was one unfortunate victim of pressing.
She was a devout Catholic in a time when being a Catholic was
as
dangerous as being accused of being a witch. On 25 March 1586
Margaret, wearing a flimsy gown, was taken to die at the
Tollbooth, six yards outside the prison. She and the womenfolk
accompanying her begged that she should die in the white gown
she had bought into prison for the purpose. The request was
turned down. She laid down on the ground, covered her face with
a
handkerchief, her privacy only protected by the gown laid across
her. Both hands were tied to posts to make her body the shape
of a cross. A stone the size of a fist was put under her back.
She once again refused to change her views and the first weight
was
laid on her. By nine o'clock that morning, about eight hundred-weight
(0.4 tonnes) was in place. The stones crushed her ribs
which pierced the skin. Within 15 minutes she was dead (Farrington
37-39). Giles Corey, an elderly farmer in Salem,
Massachusetts, was also killed via pressing. His torment was
the only recorded incident of pressing to death in the United
States.
After eighty years in the settlement, most of them spend in
hard work on his farm, he was still hale and healthy when the
madness of 1692 started. He was subject to superstitions, as
were most people in his day, and mentioned that he had observed
his wife, his third, reading books. That was enough to bring
her to the attention of the witch-hunters. His efforts to stop
the
insane persecution landed him in front of the judges. Giles
was a crafty sort; he knew that his property might be confiscated
by
the state if he was condemned as a wizard. To avoid this and
to ensure that his sons would inherit his land, he refused to
plead.
When asked whether he was guilty or not guilty, he stood mute.
Under English law, he could be thrice asked to plead. After
standing mute, he could not then be tried, but he could be,
and was, subjected to the old punishment of peine
forte et dure.... When the law was used against Giles Corey,
he behaved with dignity. His last words were: "Put on more
weight"
STONING
A group event! When you were a child did you ever have the insatiable
need to chuck things and small animals? Well try to
imagine a person as chipmunk or squirrel and you'll understand.
Or in some circumstances a squirrel in a large pit while rocks
are being dropped on him
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