And let’s not forget witch killing hysteria.
I am working on a historical novel about serial/spree killers in 1799. In one year two brothers/cousins killed at least 40 people, and some before, and although one was caught and killed the other escaped to kill a few more before being killed 4 years later. They were called the Harpe brothers. They were apparently loyalists who rode with Banastre Tarleton, the cruel cavalry officer riding for the British portrayed in the Rev. War epic by Mel Gibson, The Patriot. As the war ended they moved to Kentucky and Tennessee. I would be grateful for any information regarding these men or their women’s descendents, especially Sally Rice, the preacher’s daughter.
Tarleton was an all around bad guy. After the atrocities in our War of Independence (which did include burning people alive in their own houses, as shown in the “Tavington” character in “The Patriot”), Tarleton went back to England and became a Member of Parliament. As an MP he was an ardent SUPPORTER of the slave trade, and one of the most vicious opponents of William Wilberforce’s efforts in ending it.