What distinguished witchcraft in the 16th and 17th centuries from previous time periods?

16th century : - Most people accused of witchcraft in Wales, Scotland and England were poor, lonely, isolated and rather defenceless old ladies. These women were often blamed for anything that went wrong within the community – from crop failures, to sudden deaths and violent storms that caused damage and destruc,on.

17th century : - In seventeenth-century New England a witch was thought to be an individual who sold their soul to the devil. In return for this sacrifice, the devil was thought to provide this person with material possessions, a better life, power, etc.

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Prekshu ♡

the punishment for breaking the law would depend on the conditions or the seriousness of the law being broken, if he or she breaks the law while doing some great discovery or invention then it would classify as a scientific fraud. there are other words to describe the crime but scientific fraud would be the harshest one.