Who was the first women to be tried as a witch?

Answer 1

Since this question is in the Colonial America category, I will start with the First supposed Witch known in Colonial America. According to the Connecticut Judicial Branch Legal Library, "Alse Young (sometimes referred to as Achsah or Alice) of Windsor, Connecticut was the first person executed for *Witchcraft in America. Alse was hanged at Meeting House Square in Hartford on what is now the site of the Old State House." According to Wikipedia "Very little is recorded of Alse Young; her existence is only known through her reputation as a *Witch. She is believed to have been the wife of John Young, who bought a small parcel of land in Windsor in 1641, sold it in 1649, and then disappeared from the town records. She had a daughter, Alice Young Beamon, who would be accused of *Witchcraft in nearby Springfield, Massachusetts, some 30 years later." Whether or not Alse Young, was an actual Witch or merely an accused innocent person, is speculative. The first actual Witch to have ever existed, is unknown. Some people have theorized that Joan-of-arc was an early example of a "broom-closet" Witch in the Christian faith. But anthropologically speaking, some Witchcraft customs pre-date her by several centuries... so she could not have been the first, even if she was a Witch. *It is proper to capitolize the terms Witch, Witchcraft, when speaking of real Witchcraft customs (or the perception of what may have been real Witchcraft customs.) These sources left the terms non-capitolized.

Answer 2

Ursula Kemp was the first woman to confess of being a witch by her son thinking she was a witch but wasn't. He thought that she was acting weird so he confessed that she was a witch. She only confessed because she could rather die then being told that she was a witch.

Answer 3

Typically it was people who were submitted to torture. Common methods included bleeding (pricking the suspected witch repeatedly with a pin in search of an impenetrable piece of flesh known as the Devil's mark), sleep deprivation, and stacking metal rods across the suspected witches legs until the weight became unbearable. Convicted witches would also often confess and repent of their sins before their execution, often naming other witches at the same time.

Answer 4

Tituba confessed at her examination in March.

Answer 5

Betty Pariss along with Abigail Williams.