© Shutterstock

Murder of Queen Brunhild, 613 -

Brunhild (c. 543–613) was queen consort of the Frankish kingdom of Austrasia by marriage to King Sigebert I. After her sister was murdered, Brunhild spent decades revenging her death, a period that brought her into conflict with the Church, the nobility, and other members of the Merovingian dynasty. Events came to a head after Brunhild's husband was assassinated. She was eventually defeated in battle and later brutally executed by being tied to the hooves of wild horses and pulled apart, limb by limb—an exceptionally barbaric way to die even by medieval standards. Image: De Casibus Virorum Illustrium, attributed to Maître François, Paris, c. 1475

© Public Domain 

Cadaver Synod of 897 -

In one of the most bizarre episodes ever recorded during the Middle Ages, Pope Stephen VI ordered the exhumation in Rome of Pope Formosus, who had been dead for several months, and put his corpse on trial for crimes allegedly committed while he was alive in what became known as the Cadaver Synod or Synodus Horrenda. After being found guilty as charged, Formosus' reign was invalidated and the corpse defiled. The cadaver was then reburied in a common grave. Image: Musée des Beaux-Arts, Nantes, 1870

© Public Domain

Murder of Charles the Good, 1127 -

Charles the Good (1084–1127), the Count of Flanders, was murdered on March 2, 1127 by a group of knights answering to the powerful and influential Erembald family as he knelt in prayer in the Church of St. Donatien in Bruges. His death provoked widespread public outrage and sparked a chain of events that threw 12th-century Flanders into turmoil. Henceforth regarded as a martyr and saint, Charles was not formally beatified until 1882.

© Getty Images

Murder of Imad al-Din Zengi, 1146 -

Imad al-Din Zengi, known as the atabeg of Aleppo, was the Iraqi ruler who founded the Zangid dynasty and led the first significant counterattacks against the Crusader kingdoms in the Middle East. Ambitious and power-hungry, Zengi fought to create a kingdom across much of the Levant, including Syria and Palestine, and may well have succeeded were it not for a disgruntled Frankish slave named Yarankash who bore him a personal grudge and assassinated Zengi in September 1146.

© Public Domain

Assassination of Thomas Becket, 1170 -

Thomas Becket was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1162 until his murder in 1170. His fate was sealed in the wake of prolonged conflict with King Henry II over the rights and privileges of the Church. On December 29, 1170, Becket was assassinated by four armed knights in Canterbury Cathedral. He is today venerated as a saint and martyr by the Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion.

© Getty Images

Death of Richard I, 1199 -

Known as Richard the Lionheart, Richard I was King of England from 1189 until his death in 1199. His passing was a result of a bolt fired from a crossbow that hit him in the shoulder as his army lay siege to a castle in Châlus-Chabrol, France. The wound later turned gangrenous, the stricken monarch ultimately succumbing to infection. Before he died, Richard met the boy who had targeted him. Instead of ordering his execution, the king pardoned him. Unfortunately, Richard's last act of chivalry proved fruitless when the infamous mercenary captain Mercadier had the boy flayed alive and hanged as soon as Richard died.

© Getty Images

Murder of Arthur of Brittany, 1203 -

Arthur I, Duke of Brittany (1187–1203) was just 16 years old when he met his end. The designated heir to the throne of England was murdered while imprisoned in Rouen Castle, France—very likely by the incumbent monarch himself, King John—after Arthur's failed rebellion against him. His body was eventually discovered dumped in the Seine river by a fisherman in 1203.

© Public Domain

Murder of Philip of Swabia, 1208 -

Philip of Swabia (1177–1208) was the first German king to be murdered during his reign. Recognized by Pope Innocent III as king and who also promised to crown him emperor, Philip was slain in a crime of revenge, killed by Otto of Wittelsbach, count Palatine of Bavaria, to whom he had refused to give one of his daughters in marriage.

© Getty Images

Roger Godberd (c. 1245–1276) -

The medieval outlaw known as Roger Godberd is one of the people thought to be the inspiration behind the Robin Hood legend. He certainly operated in Sherwood Forest, and was briefly detained in 1272 by Reginald de Grey, the Sheriff of Nottingham. Despite evading recapture with the help of local noblemen, Godberd was eventually caught and jailed in various prisons before facing trial at the Tower of London. Depending on what history book you read, the "Hood" was either released on a pardon from Edward I, or died incarcerated in Newgate Goal in 1276.

© Getty Images

Murder of Saint Peter of Verona, 1252 -

Peter of Verona was a Dominican friar who had a way with words. Indeed, in his time he became a celebrated preacher. His eloquence, however, proved his downfall. After denouncing heresy and also those Catholics who professed their faith by words but acted contrary to it in deeds, Peter was violently murdered by two assassins. He was canonized as a Catholic saint 11 months after his death, making this the fastest canonization in history.

© Getty Images 

Starvation of Ugolino della Gherardesca, 1289 -

Italian nobleman Ugolino della Gherardesca (c. 1220–1289) endured a slow and unpleasant end, imprisoned by the Archbishop of Pisa for treason in Torre della Muda with his sons, Gaddo and Uguccione, and grandsons, Nino and Anselmuccio, and where they were left to starve to death. The fate of the unfortunate Gherardesca features prominently in Dante's 'Divine Comedy.'

© Getty Images 

Murder of John Comyn III of Badenoch, 1306 -

Scotsman John Comyn, also known as Red Comyn due to his copper-colored hair, was a wealthy Scottish baron with links to both the Scottish and English royal families. He played a major role in the First War of Scottish Independence, but by doing so won many enemies. One such foe was Robert the Bruce, King of the Scots. The Bruces and the Comyns  had been at loggerheads ever since John Comyn attacked Carlisle, defended for King Edward by Robert Bruce, father of the future king, in 1296—an act that precipitated the struggle for independence. Robert the Bruce avenged his father by murdering Comyn in Greyfriars Church, Dumfries, on February 10, 1306. During the attack, Sir Robert Comyn, rushing to aid his nephew, was killed by a blow to the head by Bruce's brother-in-law, Christopher Seton.

© Getty Images

The Despensers, 1317 -

The Despensers were one of the most notorious of England's corrupt courtiers. Favorites of Edward II, they used their royal connections to amass substantial wealth and power. In 1317, Hugh Despenser the Younger ingratiated himself enough into the monarch's inner circle to actually be in a position to control access to the king. This infuriated Edward II's wife Queen Isabella and her lover Roger Mortimer, who together later successfully plotted to overthrow Edward. Hugh the Elder and Hugh the Younger were eventually executed, their bodies disemboweled and fed to wild dogs. Pictured is Hugh Despenser the Younger. Image: Founders and Benefactors Book of Tewkesbury Abbey, c. 1525; Bodleian Library, Oxford

© Public Domain 

Isabella of France, murderer? 1325 -

The aforementioned Queen of England and wife of King Edward II, Isabella of France (1295–1358) overthrew her husband in 1325, around the time she began an affair with nobleman Roger Mortimer. Both had wanted to see Edward removed from power. The ousted monarch died imprisoned at Berkeley Castle during the night of September 21, 1327. His death is hotly contested by historians, and there are many theories. Most believe he was murdered on the orders of the new regime. Others say Isabella killed Edward herself with a hot poker. Eight hundred years later, the jury is still out. Image: Jean Froissart's Chronicles, c. 1475

© Public Domain 

The Coterel gang (c. 1328–1333) -

Led by James Coterel and his brothers, Nicholas and John, this motely bunch of thugs was based in Derbyshire in the East Midlands of England. By 1330, the gang ran a lucrative protection racket. Soon afterwards, the Coterels were being hunted down for murder, extortion, and a string of high-profile kidnappings. Eventually rounded up, James, Nicholas, and John, escaped the hangman's noose by agreeing to fight for the king at the outbreak in 1332 of the Second War of Scottish Independence.

© Getty Images

John FitzWalter, 2nd Baron FitzWalter (1315–1361) -

Englishman John FiztWalter was a wealthy Essex landowner from a noble and ancient lineage who used his wealth and privilege to fund a series of criminal activities, particularly in and around the city of Colchester. His gang terrorized the local community by engaging in cattle-rustling and extortion, and stealing goods from merchants. Justice finally caught up with him in 1351, and FitzWalter spent time in the Tower of London. He was later fined and eventually freed after being issued with a royal pardon. Pictured is the seal of John's great-grandfather, Robert FitzWalter, 1st Baron FitzWalter, who died in 1235.

© Getty Images 

Victims of the Jacquerie, 1358 -

The Jacquerie is one of the most infamous peasant uprisings of the Middle Ages. Taking place in northern France in the early summer of 1358 during the Hundred Years' War, the rebellion, known as "the Jacquerie" because the nobles derided peasants as "Jacques" or "Jacques Bonhomme" for their padded surplice, called a jacque, was characterized by exceptional levels of brutality perpetrated by both sides, atrocities that included widespread lynching, the immolation of live victims, and sexual violence. Many hundreds died during the uprising, with a further 20,000 anonymous peasants killed in the reprisals that followed.

© Getty Images 

Adam the Leper (died c. 1360s) -

The exploits of the 14th-century gang leader known as Adam the Leper intrigued south-east England in the 1330s and 1340s. He and his gang specialized in theft, and especially the liberation of sparkling jewels from the nobility. The gang's most notorious heist was the looting of gems belonging to Philippa of Hainault, queen consort of Edward III, which were seized by force. Adam and his cohorts were never caught, and he appeared to have lived for another 20 years or so, probably dying in the early 1360s.

© Getty Images 

Death at the Bal des Ardents, 1393 -

One of the most infamous medieval feasts was that hosted by the Queen of France at the royal residence, Hôtel Saint-Pol, in 1393. A troupe of dancers attired in costumes soaked in pitch onto which were stuck frayed flax strands to make them appear as monsters was entertaining the royal entourage, which included Charles VI. Unfortunately, the flames from a torch ignited the linen used to the dress the entertainers, the flammable resin erupting into a blazing inferno and engulfing four members of the hapless troupe. The tragedy became known as the Bal des Ardents, or the "Ball of the Burning Men."

© Getty Images

Geoffrey Chaucer, murdered? 1400 -

Geoffrey Chaucer (c. 1340s–1400) is widely considered to be one of the greatest and most influential poets of the Middle Ages, and is often called the "father of English literature." But was the author of 'The Canterbury Tales' murdered? Rumors as to the manner of his demise have persisted for centuries, with some theorizing he was killed because his writings suggested heresy about King Richard II. Chaucer was buried in Westminster Abbey in London, interred in the area now known as Poets' Corner.

© Getty Images 

Assassination of John the Fearless, 1419 -

John I, second Duke of Burgundy, earned the moniker Fearless during a crusade he attempted to lead against the Turks in Nikopol in 1396. A rash, ruthless, and unscrupulous politician, John was behind the killing of King Charles VI's brother, the Duke of Orléans. This savage act ultimately led to his own demise, assassinated by Charles' men on September 10, 1419. His death prolonged the Hundred Years' War for decades.

© Getty Images 

Assassination of James I of Scotland, 1437 -

James languished as a prisoner in the Tower of London for 20 years before being released in 1423 and crowned King James I of Scotland. During his 13-year reign, he established the first strong monarchy Scotland had known in nearly a century. But that didn't prevent him being assassinated on February 21, 1437 in a failed coup by his uncle Walter Stewart, Earl of Atholl.

© Getty Images 

Assassination of Galeazzo Maria Sforza, 1476 -

As the fifth Duke of Milan, Galeazzo Maria Sforza (1444–1476) wielded a lot of power. But he was cruel, lustful, and tyrannical into the bargain. The fact that he lived as long as he did was testament to the fear he instilled in his public and his enemies. But on December 26, 1476 in an effort to destabilize the relationship between Milan and Florence, three high-ranking officials at the Milanese court—Carlo Visconti, Gerolamo Olgiati, and Giovanni Andrea Lampugnani—stabbed Sforza to death inside Milan's Basilica di Santo Stefano Maggiore, the same church in which, nearly 100 hundred years later, the great Italian painter Caravaggio would be baptized.

© Getty Images 

Johnnie Armstrong (died 1530) -

Scottish raider turned folk hero, Johnnie Armstrong led a gang of marauders that harassed and ransacked settlements in both northern England and southern Scotland for 10 years between 1520 and 1530. The thieves operated out of two forts located either side of the lawless border. Armstrong's luck ran out when James V became King of Scotland. The monarch reneged on a promise to offer the bandit protection and promptly had him hanged, together with 24 of his followers. Armstrong's over-romanticized life is the theme of one of the 305 traditional ballads from England and Scotland anthologized by Francis James Child during the second half of the 19th century and published as various editions from 1904 onwards. Pictured is Johnnie Armstrong's former hideout, c 1870—Gilnockie Tower in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, the ruins of which still stand today.

© Getty Images 

Execution of György Szerémi Dózsa, 1514 -

The grisly manner by which Hungarian nobleman György Dózsa (1470–1514) met his end took medieval depravity to new lows. Caught with other rebels after leading a peasants' revolt, Dózsa was tortured with red hot pliers after which his fellow conspirators were ordered to eat the ripped flesh. Those who refused were immediately executed. Dózsa's corpse was quartered as a final indignity. His death, and the brutal suppression of the peasants, greatly aided the 1526 Ottoman invasion and suppression of the Kingdom of Hungary.

© Getty Images

Death of Margaret Clitherow, 1586 -

The Jesuits, etc. Act of 1584 outlawed Catholic religious ceremonies and made sheltering a priest a criminal offense, punishable by death. That didn't dissuade Margaret Clitherow from harboring and maintaining priests, very likely in The Black Swan, a public house in York, England. In March 1586, the premises were searched and the priests' hiding place discovered. Clitherow was executed in the most gruesome method: she was pressed to death by the door of her own home, weighed down with additional rocks and stones so her spine would eventually snap. She was canonized in 1970 by Pope Paul VI and today is regarded as a martyr of the Roman Catholic Church. The Black Swan, incidentally, still stands where a plaque reminds passersby of what took place over 400 years ago.

© Public Domain 

Tyburn gallows -

The Tyburn gallows (known colloquially as the "Tyburn Tree"), were the principal site for execution of London criminals and convicted traitors, including many religious martyrs, from the 16th century until 1759. The gallows stood where Marble Arch now stands, in central London. The exact spot is marked with an engraving.

Sources: (Southam College) (Britannica) (National Geographic) (History Today)

See also: Who are the most infamous mobsters and gangsters? 

© Getty Images