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Throughout history, the guillotine was used to behead individuals. Titus Manlius, a Roman politician and general, infamously ordered the execution of his own son for disobedience.
The "Maiden," a rudimentary yet efficient guillotine, was introduced by the Scottish in 1546 and played a significant role during Mary, Queen of Scots' reign, until its last use in 1716. Among its victims was James Douglas, 4th Earl of Morton. Interestingly, legend suggests that Morton himself, after witnessing the Halifax Gibbet, commissioned the creation of the Maiden. However, there is no evidence to support this assertion, though subsequent writers perpetuated the myth.
In 1577, 'Holinshed's Chronicles,' a comprehensive account of British history, was published in three volumes. It features a depiction titled "The execution of Murcod Ballagh near Merton in Ireland in 1307," which displays a similar execution device to the Halifax Gibbet. This implies that the use of such a machine can be traced back even earlier to Ireland. It is worth noting that the 'Chronicles' served as inspiration for William Shakespeare's plays 'The Tempest,' 'King Lear,' and 'Henry V.'
During the Middle Ages, Germany and Flanders utilized a beheading device known as the "planke," while the Italians referred to their primitive device from the Renaissance era as the "mannaia."
The French guillotine, as we know it today, originated in late 1789. It should be noted that French physician and politician Joseph-Ignace Guillotin did not invent the guillotine; however, his name became synonymous with the device.
Guillotin had a principled opposition to capital punishment. However, he acknowledged that using a swift machine for beheading would be a more humane and egalitarian method than using swords and axes. Consequently, he assisted in supervising the creation of the initial model.
French surgeon and physiologist Antoine Louis (pictured) is known for designing a prototype of the guillotine, which was built by Tobias Schmidt, a German harpsichord maker.
This photo shows Joseph-Ignace Guillotin and Antoine Louis demonstrating the operation of a small guillotine model. Guillotin was disturbed when he found out that the real machine would be named after him, and he made an effort to disassociate himself from the lethal device.
King Louis XVI of France, a notable guillotine victim, was executed on January 21, 1793, in Paris following his conviction for high treason by the Revolutionary Tribunal.
Maximilien Robespierre, a prominent Jacobin leader and a key individual in the French Revolution, was executed, along with several of his associates, on July 27, 1794, via the guillotine.
Public interest in the guillotine dwindled by the late 18th century, after the endless executions claimed thousands of lives. Nevertheless, France persisted with public beheadings until 1939.
On June 17, 1939, in Versailles, France, the final public execution took place. Eugen Weidmann, a German criminal and serial killer, was guillotined outside the Saint-Pierre prison.
The last surviving guillotine in France is pictured here exhibited at the Museum of Justice and Punishment, located near Avignon, more specifically in Fontaine de Vacluse.
During the Third Reich, Hitler's regime saw the guillotine as a swift and effective means of eliminating their enemies. This led to the establishment of the guillotine as a state method of execution in the 1930s. From 1933 to 1945, approximately 16,500 individuals were executed using this method. The guillotine memorial in the former Brandenburg-Görden Prison serves as a reminder of this dark history, with a sign indicating that between 1940 and 1945, 1,798 anti-fascists lost their lives at this location.
Hans and Sophie Scholl, who belonged to the White Rose, a non-violent resistance movement during Nazi Germany, were executed via guillotine by the Nazis in Munich on February 22, 1943.
During her trial for treason at the People's Court (Volksgerichtshof) in Berlin in November 1944, German lawyer Elisabeth Gloeden found herself standing before the judges. As part of their humanitarian efforts, Gloeden, along with her husband and mother, provided shelter and aid to Jewish individuals fleeing Nazi persecution. Their actions also extended to offering refuge to General Fritz Lindemann, one of the conspirators involved in the failed 20th July plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler. Unfortunately, the Gloedens' acts of compassion were betrayed, leading to their arrest and subsequent execution by guillotine at Plötzensee Prison on November 30, 1944. The Nazi regime publicized their fate as a warning.
Horst Fischer, a German doctor and member of the SS, was executed by guillotine in Leipzig on July 8, 1966, after being convicted by the Supreme Court of the German Democratic Republic for crimes committed at Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp during World War II.
A photograph taken on April 18, 1945, shows a guillotine at Dachau concentration camp near Munich, during its liberation by Allied troops.
Swiss criminal Hans Vollenweider was executed by guillotine on October 18, 1940, marking the final use of this method for death sentences in Switzerland. In fact, the death penalty was already slated to be abolished in January 1942.
On September 10, 1977, Hamida Djandoubi, a Tunisian national and convicted murderer, became the last person to undergo a lawful guillotine execution in the Western world. The execution took place at Baumettes Prison in Marseille, France.
During the early 1960s, Vietnam's Diem regime implemented mobile special military courts, aiming to intimidate the rural population. These courts were sent to the countryside, and the former French colonial power's guillotines were regularly employed for immediate executions. The photograph shows the guillotine used in the notorious Hoa Lo Prison, often referred to as the "Hanoi Hilton."
This is a photograph of the previous location of the French guillotine situated near the prison known in France as the Bagne de Cayenne, but more commonly referred to as Devil's Island. Devil's Island is the largest of the Islands of Salvation in the Caribbean Sea, located off the coast of French Guiana.
Sources: (History) (The British Library) (History Today) (Euronews)
See also: Who was Bluebeard, and why did he murder so many women?
The guillotine, employed during France's "Reign of Terror" in the 1790s, emerged as the favored execution method. Surprisingly, this macabre contraption, engineered for mechanical beheading, traces its roots back to the Middle Ages and even earlier. Astonishingly, the guillotine remained in use until 1977 for capital punishment.
Intrigued? Click through for a heads up on the history of the guillotine.
Louis Collenot d'Angremont, the leader of the Military Bureau of the Brigades of the National Guards of Paris and a strong supporter of the monarchy, gained notoriety for being the first person executed by guillotine for his political beliefs, this on August 21, 1792.
The French Revolution, which took place from 1789 to 1799, led to a period called the "Reign of Terror" during the mid-1790s. This period saw thousands considered "enemies of the French revolution" being executed by the guillotine. The image shows the execution of nine young immigrants, who were condemned to death by a revolutionary court in 1792.
During the Middle Ages, significant advancements were made in the design of the guillotine. It took on a distinct structure, featuring a tall, vertical frame with a slanted and weighted blade suspended at the top. One notable early iteration was the Halifax Gibbet, which can be seen in the picture. This device, utilized in the town of Halifax in West Yorkshire, England, during the 16th century, showcased a sliding ax head mechanism.
Nicolas Jacques Pelletier, a French highwayman, was the first person to be executed by guillotine. His beheading took place on April 25, 1792, in front of the Hôtel de Ville at the Place de Grève in Paris. This event solidified the guillotine as the sole method of civil legal execution in France until capital punishment was abolished in 1981.
Marie Antoinette, the wife of King Louis XVI, suffered a similar destiny; she was beheaded on October 16, 1793.
The Guillotine: The ultimate execution device
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The guillotine, employed during France's "Reign of Terror" in the 1790s, emerged as the favored execution method. Surprisingly, this macabre contraption, engineered for mechanical beheading, traces its roots back to the Middle Ages and even earlier. Astonishingly, the guillotine remained in use until 1977 for capital punishment.
Intrigued? Click through for a heads up on the history of the guillotine.