Historic replicas (1:6 scale) of the two main types of French guillotines: Model 1792, left, and Model 1872 (state as of 1907), right

The guillotine (pronounced /ˈgijətin/ or /ˈgɪlətin/ in English; [gijɔtin] in French) was a device used for carrying out executions by decapitation. Capital punishment, the death penalty or execution, is the Killing of a person by judicial process as Punishment. Decapitation (from Latin, caput, capitis, meaning head or beheading, is the cutting off of the head of a person or animal It consists of a tall upright frame from which a heavy blade is suspended. A blade is the flat part of a Tool, Weapon, or Machine (such as a fan) that normally has a cutting edge and/or pointed end typically made This blade is raised with a rope and then allowed to drop, severing the victim's head from his or her body. The device is noted for long being the main method of execution in France and, more particularly, for its use during the French Revolution. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. The French Revolution (1789–1799 was a period of political and social upheaval in the History of France, during which the French governmental structure previously an The guillotine also "became a part of popular culture, celebrated as the people's avenger by supporters of the Revolution and vilified as the preeminent symbol of the Terror by opponents. Saint justjpg|thumbnail|200px| Louis Antoine Léon de Saint-Just]] The Reign of Terror' (5 September 1793 &ndash 28 July 1794 or simply The Terror (la Terreur was "^[1]

Development

The guillotine became infamous (and acquired its name) in France at the time of the French Revolution; however, guillotine-like devices, such as the Halifax Gibbet and Scottish Maiden seen on the right, existed and were used for executions in several European countries long before the French Revolution, the earliest reference to the Halifax Gibbet dating back to 1286. Infamy, in common usage is notoriety gained from a negative incident or reputation (as opposed to fame) This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. The French Revolution (1789–1799 was a period of political and social upheaval in the History of France, during which the French governmental structure previously an The Halifax Gibbet in the town of Halifax, West Yorkshire, England, was an early Guillotine, or decapitating machine The maiden (also known as the Scottish maiden) was a Gibbet, in this case to mean an early type of Guillotine, used as a means of execution The first documented use of The (Irish) Maiden was in 1307 in Ireland,^[2] and there are accounts of similar devices in Italy and Switzerland dating back to the 15th century. Ireland (pronounced /ˈaɾlənd/ Éire) is the third largest island in Europe, and the twentieth-largest island in the world Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest Switzerland (English pronunciation; Schweiz Swiss German: Schwyz or Schwiiz Suisse Svizzera Svizra officially the Swiss Confederation Nevertheless, the French developed the machine further and became the first nation to use it as a standard execution method.

Portrait of Dr. Guillotin

The Scottish Maiden, an older Scottish design. The maiden (also known as the Scottish maiden) was a Gibbet, in this case to mean an early type of Guillotine, used as a means of execution Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. This example is an exhibit at the Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh

In August 1788 France’s High Executioner Charles-Henri Sanson, while attempting to execute a prisoner by breaking on the wheel, was assaulted by a mob who freed the prisoner, and destroyed the wheel. The Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh, Scotland, is a building which together with the adjacent Royal Museum, comprises the National Museum of Scotland Edinburgh ( ˈɛdɪnb(ərə Dùn Èideann) is the Capital of Scotland and is its second largest city after Glasgow. Charles Henri Sanson (1739 - 1806 public Executioner of Paris from 1788 to 1795 The breaking wheel (also known as the Catherine wheel) was a torturous Capital punishment device used in the Middle Ages and early modern times for Sensing the growing discontent Louis XVI banned the use of the wheel. Louis XVI ( 23 August 1754 – 21 January 1793) Louis-Auguste de France, ruled as King of France and Navarre ^[3] In 1791 as the French Revolution progressed, the National Assembly (at the suggestion of Assembly member Dr. The French Revolution (1789–1799 was a period of political and social upheaval in the History of France, during which the French governmental structure previously an The National Assembly is either a Legislature, or the Lower house of a Bicameral legislature in some countries Joseph-Ignace Guillotin) sought a new method to be used on all condemned people regardless of class. Dr Joseph-Ignace Guillotin (ɡijɔtɛ̃ May 28, 1738 &ndash March 26, 1814) was a French Physician who proposed on October Their concerns contributed to the idea that capital punishment’s purpose was the ending of life instead of the infliction of pain. ^[3] A committee was formed under Dr. Antoine Louis, physician to the King and Secretary to the Academy of Surgery. Antoine Louis ( February 13, 1723 - May 20, 1792) was a French Surgeon and Physiologist who was born in Metz. ^[3] Dr. Joseph-Ignace Guillotin, a professor of anatomy at the facility of medicine in Paris, was also on the committee. The group was influenced by the Italian Mannaia (or Mannaja), the Scottish Maiden, and the Halifax Gibbet. The maiden (also known as the Scottish maiden) was a Gibbet, in this case to mean an early type of Guillotine, used as a means of execution The Halifax Gibbet in the town of Halifax, West Yorkshire, England, was an early Guillotine, or decapitating machine While these prior instruments usually crushed the neck or used blunt force to take off a head, their device used a crescent blade and a lunette (a hinged two part yoke to immobilize the victim’s neck). ^[3] An apocryphal story claims that King Louis XVI (an amateur locksmith) recommended a triangular blade with a beveled edge be used instead of a crescent blade. ^[3]

On October 6, 1791, a law was passed that "every person condemned to death should be beheaded". Events 105 BC - Battle of Arausio: The Cimbri inflict the heaviest defeat on the Roman army of Gnaeus Mallius Maximus Year 1791 ( MDCCXCI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Guillotin's suggestion had by then been almost forgotten and there was some debate on how exactly such sentences were to be carried out. Charles-Henri Sanson, the High Executioner, gave the opinion that beheading with a sword was cruel and uncertain, and a report by Antoine Louis, the secretary to the Académie Chirurgicale (Academy of Surgeons), dated March 7, 1792 recommended a machine such as Guillotin had previously described, but without mentioning Guillotin himself. Antoine Louis ( February 13, 1723 - May 20, 1792) was a French Surgeon and Physiologist who was born in Metz. Events 161 - Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius dies and is succeeded by co-Emperors Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus Year 1792 ( MDCCXCII) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year ^[4]

Laquiante, an officer of the Strasbourg criminal court, made a design for a beheading machine and employed Tobias Schmidt, a German engineer and harpsichord maker, to construct a prototype. Strasbourg (Strasbourg stʁazbuʁ Alsatian: Strossburi,; Straßburg) is the capital and principal City of the Alsace région Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. An engineer is a person professionally engaged in a field of Engineering. A harpsichord is a Musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. Antoine Louis is also credited with the design of the prototype; however, it was Schmidt who suggested placing the blade at an oblique 45-degree angle and changing it from the curved blade. ^[5]

Although Guillotin did not actually contribute to the machine’s design, it was his name that it would carry throughout history, thanks to a comic song about Guillotin and his proposal which appeared in the Royalist periodical, Actes des Apôtres, shortly after the 1791 debate^[4]; the machine was originally called louison or louisette.

On April 25, 1792 the first victim of the device was a highwayman named Nicolas Jacques Pelletier. Events 1607 - Eighty Years' War: The Dutch fleet destroys the anchored Spanish fleet at Gibraltar. Year 1792 ( MDCCXCII) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year The word highwayman is first attested from the year 1617 The term "highwayman" is mainly applied to robbers who travelled on horseback as opposed to those who robbed on foot The crowds marveled at the machine’s speed and precision. ^[3]

The basis for the machine's success was the belief that it was a humane form of execution, contrasting with the methods used in pre-revolutionary, ancien régime (former regime) France. A humane society may be a group that aims to stop human or animal Suffering due to Cruelty or other reasons although in many countries it is now used mostly for societies Ancien Régime ( pronounced: /ɑ̃sjɛ̃ ʁeʒim/ refers primarily to the aristocratic social and political system established in In France, before the guillotine, members of the nobility were beheaded with a sword or axe, while commoners were usually hanged, a form of death that could take minutes or longer—other more gruesome methods of executions were also used, such as the wheel, burning at the stake, etc. Nobility is a government-privileged title which may be either hereditary (see Hereditary titles) or for a lifetime The breaking wheel (also known as the Catherine wheel) was a torturous Capital punishment device used in the Middle Ages and early modern times for Execution by burning has a long history as a method of Punishment for Crimes such as Treason, Heresy and Witchcraft In the case of decapitation, it also sometimes took repeated blows to sever the head completely. The condemned or the family of the condemned would sometimes pay the executioner to ensure that the blade was sharp in order to provide for a quick and relatively painless death.

The guillotine was thus perceived to deliver an immediate death without risk of misses. Furthermore, having only one method of execution was seen as an expression of equality among citizens. The guillotine was adopted as the official means of execution on March 20, 1792. Events 1600 - The Linköping Bloodbath takes place on Maundy Thursday in Linköping, Sweden. Year 1792 ( MDCCXCII) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year The guillotine was from then on the only legal execution method in France until the abolition of the death penalty in 1981, apart from certain crimes against the security of the state, which entailed execution by firing squad. Capital punishment in France existed officially from the Middle Ages and was abolished in 1981 Execution by firing squad is a method of Capital punishment, particularly common in times of war

When Guillotin himself died, it was not on his namesake as legend would have it, but instead of natural causes on May 26, 1814. Events 451 - The Battle of Avarayr between Armenian rebels and the Sassanid Empire takes place Year 1814 ( MDCCCXIV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common

The guillotine in France

The Reign of Terror

The period from June 1793 to July 1794 in France is known as the Reign of Terror or simply "the Terror". Saint justjpg|thumbnail|200px| Louis Antoine Léon de Saint-Just]] The Reign of Terror' (5 September 1793 &ndash 28 July 1794 or simply The Terror (la Terreur was The upheaval following the overthrow of the monarchy, invasion by foreign monarchist powers and the Revolt in the Vendee combined to throw the nation into chaos and the government into frenzied paranoia. A monarchy is a Form of government in which supreme power is actually or nominally lodged in an individual who is the Head of state, often for life or The War in Vendée ( 1793 to 1796) was a Civil war in Vendée between Royalists and Republicans during the French Most of the democratic reforms of the revolution were suspended and large-scale executions by guillotine began. The first political prisoner to be executed was Collenot d'Angremont of the National Guard, followed soon after by the King's trusted collaborator in his ill-fated attempt to moderate the Revolution, Arnaud de Laporte, both in 1792. Arnaud II de La Porte (born Versailles 14 October 1737 guillotined Paris 23 August 1792 French statesman Minister of the Marine Intendant of the King's Civil List Former King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette were executed in 1793. Louis XVI ( 23 August 1754 – 21 January 1793) Louis-Auguste de France, ruled as King of France and Navarre Maria Antonia Josepha Johanna von Habsburg-Lothringen (November 2 1755 &ndash October 16 1793 known to history as Marie Antoinette ( pronounced /maʀi ɑ̃ntwanɛt/ Maximilien Robespierre became one of the most powerful men in the government, and the figure most associated with the Terror. Maximilien François Marie Isidore de Robespierre (maksimiljɛ̃ fʁɑ̃swa maʁi izidɔʁ də ʁɔbɛspjɛʁ ( 6 May 1758 – 28 July 1794) The Revolutionary Tribunal sentenced thousands to the guillotine. The Revolutionary Tribunal (Tribunal révolutionnaire was a Court which was instituted in Paris by the Convention during the French Revolution Nobility and commoners, intellectuals, politicians and prostitutes, all were liable to be executed on little or no grounds; suspicion of "crimes against liberty" was enough to earn one an appointment with "Madame Guillotine" (also referred to as "The National Razor"). The Nobility (la noblesse in France, in the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period had specific legal and financial rights and Estimates of the death toll range between 15,000 and 40,000.

Public guillotining in Lons-le-Saunier, 1897. Lons-le-Saunier is a commune of France, préfecture (capital of the Jura département. Picture taken on 20 April 1897, in front of the jailhouse of Lons-le-Saunier, Jura. Events 1303 - The University of Rome La Sapienza is instituted by Pope Boniface VIII. Year 1897 ( MDCCCXCVII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common The man who was going to be beheaded was Pierre Vaillat, who killed two elder siblings on Christmas day, 1896, in order to rob them and was condemned for his crimes on 9 March 1897. Events 590 - Bahram Chobin is crowned as king Barham VI of Persia. Year 1897 ( MDCCCXCVII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common

At this time, Paris executions were carried out in the Place de la Revolution (former Place Louis XV and current Place de la Concorde) (near the Louvre); the guillotine stood in the corner near the Hôtel Crillon where the statue of Brest can be found today. Louis XV (15 February 1710 &ndash 10 May 1774 ruled as King of France and of Navarre from 1 September 1715 until his death in 1774 The Place de la Concorde is one of the major squares in Paris, France. The Louvre Museum (Musée du Louvre located in Paris is the world's most visited art museum a historic monument and a national museum of France

For a time, executions by guillotine were a popular entertainment that attracted great crowds of spectators. Vendors would sell programs listing the names of those scheduled to die. Regulars would come day after day and vie for the best seats. Parents would bring their children. By the end of the Terror the crowds had thinned drastically. Excessive repetition had staled even this most grisly of entertainments, and audiences grew bored.

Eventually, the National Convention had enough of the Terror, partially fearing for their own lives, and turned against Maximilien Robespierre. In July 1794 he was arrested and executed in the same fashion as those whom he had condemned. This arguably ended the Terror, as the French expressed their discontent with Robespierre's policy by guillotining him. ^[6]

The guillotine retired

The last public guillotining was of Eugène Weidmann, who was convicted of six murders. Eugen Weidmann ( February 5, 1908 &ndash June 17, 1939) was the last person to be publicly executed in France. He was beheaded on June 17, 1939, outside the prison Saint-Pierre rue Georges Clémenceau 5 at Versailles, which is now the Palais de Justice. Events 1462 - Vlad III the Impaler attempts to assassinate Mehmed II ( The Night Attack) forcing him to retreat Year 1939 ( MCMXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Versailles (vɛʀsaj in French) formerly de facto capital of the kingdom of France, is now a wealthy suburb of Paris and is still an important The allegedly scandalous behaviour of some of the onlookers on this occasion, and an incorrect assembly of the apparatus, as well as the fact it was secretly filmed, caused the authorities to decide that executions in the future were to take place in the prison courtyard. Jules-Henri Desfourneaux, the presiding "number one" executioner at this time was variously reported as slow, possibly drunk and indecisive, certainly a far cry from his well regarded immediate predecessor Anatole Deibler. Jules-Henri Desfourneaux ( 17 December 1877 - 1 October 1951) was the last French Executioner to officiate in public He was also prone to arguing with his cousin and "number two" André Obrecht which led to the latter's resignation on two separate occasions, the last involving a fist-fight between the pair after an execution. André Obrecht (9 August 1899 Paris - 30 July 1985 Nice was the official Executioner of France from 1951 until 1976

The guillotine remained the official method of execution in France until France abolished the death penalty in 1981. The last guillotining in France was that of torture-murderer Hamida Djandoubi on September 10, 1977. Hamida Djandoubi ( حميدة جندوبي) (c 1949 &ndash 10 September 1977) was the last person to be Guillotined in France, at Events 506 - The Bishops of Visigothic Gaul meet in the Council of Agde. Also 1977 (album by Ash. Year 1977 ( MCMLXXVII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays

The guillotine outside France

German Fallbeil of 1854, Munich
Historic replica 1:6 scale

As has been noted, there were guillotine-like devices in countries other than France before 1792. A number of countries, especially in Europe, continued to employ this method of execution into modern times.

In Antwerp, Belgium, the last beheaded was Francis Kol. ||-||-||-||} Antwerp ( Dutch:, French: Anvers) is a City and Municipality in Belgium and the capital of the The Kingdom of Belgium is a Country in northwest Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts its headquarters as well as those Convicted for robbery with murder, he received his punishment on 1856-05-08. Year 1856 ( MDCCCLVI) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap year Events 589 - Reccared summons the Third Council of Toledo 1450 - Jack Cade's Rebellion: Kentishmen During the period 1798-03-19 until 1856-03-12, the town of Antwerp counted 19 beheadings^[7]

A notable example is Germany, where the guillotine is known in German as Fallbeil ("falling axe"). Year 1798 ( MDCCXCVIII) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Events 1279 - A Mongolian victory in the Battle of Yamen ends the Song Dynasty in China. Year 1856 ( MDCCCLVI) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap year Events 538 - Witiges, king of the Ostrogoths ends his siege of Rome and retreats to Ravenna, leaving ||-||-||-||} Antwerp ( Dutch:, French: Anvers) is a City and Municipality in Belgium and the capital of the Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. It has been used in various German states since the 17th century, becoming the usual method of execution in Napoleonic times in many parts of Germany. Napoleon Bonaparte (15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821 was a French military and political leader who had a significant impact on the History of Europe. Guillotine and firing squad were the legal methods of execution in German Empire (1871-1918) and Weimar Republic (1919-1933). The German Empire is the name commonly used in English to describe Germany from 1871 to 1918 when it was a semi- Constitutional monarchy: beginning with the Unification The term Weimar Republic ( ˈvaɪmarɐ repuˈbliːk is used by historians to signify the democratic and Republican period of Germany from 1919 to 1933

The original German guillotines resembled the French Berger 1872 model but eventually evolved into more specialised machines largely built of metal with a much heavier blade enabling shorter uprights to be used. Accompanied by a more efficient blade recovery system and the eventual removal of the tilting board (or bascule) this allowed a quicker turn-around time between executions, the victim being decapitated either face up or down depending on how the executioner predicted they would react to the sight of the machine. Those deemed likely to struggle were backed up from behind a curtain to shield their view of the device.

In 1933 Hitler had a guillotine constructed and tested. Hi and welcome to Wikipedia! Please understand that this article is frequently vandalized and vandalism is reverted immediately He was impressed enough to order 20 more constructed and pressed into immediate service. ^[3] Nazi records indicate that between 1933 and 1945 16,500 people were executed in Germany by this method. ^[3] In Nazi Germany beheading by guillotine was the usual method of executing convicted criminals as opposed to political enemies, who were usually either hanged or shot. By the middle of the war, however, policy changed: the six members of the White Rose anti-Nazi resistance organisation were beheaded in 1943, as were a hundred or more conscientious objectors from that date, including Franz Jagerstatter, beheaded in Berlin on 9 August 1943. Also see Die weiße Rose (opera and Sophie Scholl – Die letzten Tage The White Rose (die Weiße Rose was a non-violent Year 1943 ( MCMXLIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. A conscientious objector (CO is an individual who on religious moral or ethical grounds refuses to participate as a combatant in war or in some cases to take any role that would support Franz Jägerstätter ( May 20 1907 &mdash August 9 1943; born as Franz Huber) was an Austrian Conscientious objector Events 48 BC - Caesar's civil war: Battle of Pharsalus - Julius Caesar decisively defeats Pompey at Pharsalus Year 1943 ( MCMXLIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The last execution in Germany, other than in East Germany, took place on 11 May 1949, when 24 year old Berthold Wehmeyer was beheaded in Moabit prison, West Berlin, for murder and robbery. The German Democratic Republic ( GDR; Deutsche Demokratische Republik DDR; commonly known in English as East Germany) was a Socialist state Events 330 - Byzantium is renamed ''Nova Roma'' during a dedication ceremony but is more popularly referred to as Constantinople Year 1949 ( MCMXLIX) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Moabit is an Inner city locality of Berlin. Since Berlin's 2001 administrative reform it belongs to the newly regrouped governmental borough West Berlin was the name given to the western part of Berlin between 1949 and 1990 When West Germany was formed in 1949, its constitution forbade the death penalty; East Germany abolished it in 1987, and Austria in 1968. West Germany ( Inf German: Westdeutschland or West-Deutschland) was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany ( Year 1949 ( MCMXLIX) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany (Grundgesetz für die Bundesrepublik Deutschland is the Constitution of Germany. Year 1987 ( MCMLXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar) Austria (Österreich ( officially the Republic of Austria (Republik Österreich Year 1968 ( MCMLXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar.

In Sweden, where beheading was the mandatory method of execution, the guillotine was used for its last execution in 1910 in Långholmen prison, Stockholm. "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. Year 1910 ( MCMX) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting The Långholmen Prison, officially the Långholmen Central Prison (Långholmens centralfängelse was historically one of the biggest prison facilities in Sweden ('stɔkhɔlm is Sweden 's Capital and its largest City. It is the site of the national Swedish government, the parliament, and the

Although the guillotine has never been used in the United States as a legal method of execution (it had been considered in the 19th century before introduction of the electric chair), in 1996 Georgia state legislator Doug Teper proposed the guillotine as a replacement for the electric chair as the state's method of execution to enable the convicts to act as organ donors. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Execution by electrocution (usually referred to after its method of implementation as the Electric Chair) is an execution method originating in the United States in which the Execution by electrocution (usually referred to after its method of implementation as the Electric Chair) is an execution method originating in the United States in which the Organ donation is the removal of the tissues of the Human body from a person who has recently Died, or from a living donor for the purpose of transplanting The proposal was not adopted.

Living heads

Execution of Languille in 1905

From its first use, there has been debate as to whether the guillotine always provided as swift a death as Dr. Guillotin hoped. With previous methods of execution, there was little concern about the suffering inflicted. As the guillotine was invented specifically to be "humane", however, the issue was seriously considered. Furthermore, there is the possibility that the very swiftness of the guillotine only prolonged the victim's suffering. The blade cuts quickly enough so that there is relatively little impact on the brain case, and perhaps less likelihood of immediate unconsciousness than with a more violent decapitation, or long-drop hanging. Hanging is the lethal suspension of a person by a ligature The Oxford English Dictionary states that hanging in this sense is "specifically to put to death

Audiences to guillotinings told numerous stories of blinking eyelids, speaking, moving eyes, movement of the mouth, even an expression of "unequivocal indignation" on the face of the decapitated Charlotte Corday when her cheek was slapped. Marie-Anne Charlotte de Corday d'Armont ( July 27, 1768 – July 17, 1793) known to history as Charlotte Corday, was a figure of the Anatomists and other scientists in several countries have tried to perform more definitive experiments on severed human heads as recently as 1956. Inevitably the evidence is only anecdotal. What appears to be a head responding to the sound of its name, or to the pain of a pinprick, may be only random muscle twitching or automatic reflex action, with no awareness involved. At worst, it seems that the massive drop in cerebral blood pressure would cause a victim to lose consciousness in several seconds. ^[8]

The following report was written by a Dr. Beaurieux, who experimented with the head of a condemned prisoner by the name of Henri Languille, on June 28, 1905:

Here, then, is what I was able to note immediately after the decapitation: the eyelids and lips of the guillotined man worked in irregularly rhythmic contractions for about five or six seconds. Events 1098 - Fighters of the First Crusade defeat Kerbogha of Mosul. Year 1905 ( MCMV) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting This phenomenon has been remarked by all those finding themselves in the same conditions as myself for observing what happens after the severing of the neck. . .

I waited for several seconds. The spasmodic movements ceased. [. . . ] It was then that I called in a strong, sharp voice: 'Languille!' I saw the eyelids slowly lift up, without any spasmodic contractions – I insist advisedly on this peculiarity – but with an even movement, quite distinct and normal, such as happens in everyday life, with people awakened or torn from their thoughts.

Next Languille's eyes very definitely fixed themselves on mine and the pupils focused themselves. I was not, then, dealing with the sort of vague dull look without any expression, that can be observed any day in dying people to whom one speaks: I was dealing with undeniably living eyes which were looking at me. After several seconds, the eyelids closed again[. . . ].

It was at that point that I called out again and, once more, without any spasm, slowly, the eyelids lifted and undeniably living eyes fixed themselves on mine with perhaps even more penetration than the first time. Then there was a further closing of the eyelids, but now less complete. I attempted the effect of a third call; there was no further movement – and the eyes took on the glazed look which they have in the dead. ^[9]

See also

• Henri Désiré Landru
• Eugen Weidmann
• Marcel Petiot
• Bals des victimes
• Decapitation
• Flying guillotine (weapon)
• Plötzensee Prison
• Use of capital punishment by nation

References

• Gerould, Daniel (1992). Guillotine; Its Legend and Lore. Blast Books. ISBN 0-922233-02-0.  

External links

• The Guillotine Headquarters with a gallery, history, name list, and quiz.
• L'art de bien couper a French site with a quite complete list of guillotined criminals, pictures, history.
• Bois de justice History of the guillotine, construction details, with rare photos (English)
• Fabricius, Jørn. The Guillotine Headquarters.