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The study of punishment and torture is horrible. Mankind has always been a cruel and unusual species of animal, and when Kings and the law of their courts required a confession in order to exact guilt (and thereby place a sentence of death), torture was the first thing that came to mind. Its probably of no surprise that the majority of historical tortures have been undertaken to curb religious differences, and for other religious reasons. As old as civilization itself, the torturing of an individual by another has a primordial satisfaction to it. Physical human suffering strikes a cord of bloodlust into most people whether they admit it or not, so to create the quintessential spectacle of pain and agony would be a near sexual experience for viewers and, most especially, the torturers. (Montanaro, 1)
Execution has been a common punishment throughout the world since the Middle Ages, and was inflicted for a large number of crimes including petty offenses involving property. In England, during the 18th century, death was the punishment for several hundred specific offenses. (Bobit, 1) Most death sentences involved torture, such as
Burning at the Stake
Burning at the stake was a popular death sentence and means of torture, used mostly for heretics, witches, and suspicious women. Burning dates back to the Christian era, where, in 64, an edict declared it illegal to burn witches. However, the increased persecution of witches throughout the centuries resulted in millions of women being burned at the stake. The first major witch-hunt occurred in Switzerland in 147. Throughout the 1500 and 1600s, witch trials became common throughout Germany, Austria, Switzerland, England, Scotland, and Spain during the Inquisition. Soon after, witch trials began to decline in parts of Europe, and in England the death penalty for witches were abolished. The last legal execution by burning at the stake came with the end of the Spanish Inquisition in 184. (Bobit, 1)
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The Rack
In England the rack was often used. This method of torture was used to stretch the body until the bones were pulled from their sockets. (Unknown, 1)
The Wheel
The wheel as a method of torture and execution could be used in a number of ways. A person could be attached to the outer rim of the wheel and then rolled over sharp spikes, or down a hill, to their death. Also, the wheel could be laid on its side, like a turntable, with the person tied to it. The wheel would turn, and people would take turns beating the victim with iron bars, breaking bones and eventually causing death. This method was used throughout Europe, especially during the Middle Ages. (Bobit, 1)
Bastinado
Also referred to as caning, the bastinado is a form of punishment still used throughout the Middle and Far East. The accused would be stripped bare, then bound in a way convenient to receive numerous blows to the backside, soles of the feet, or the back of the legs with a heavy shaft of bamboo or rattan. This procedure often broke bones in the feet or pelvis. Occasionally after the caning, the wounds would be further aggravated with hot coals, scalding water, itching dust, or even the bites of red ants.
The Garrote
Originally, the garrote was simply hanging by another name. However, during medieval times, executioners began to refine the use of rope until it became as feared and as vile as any punishment of that dark era. European executioners first used the garrote to end the suffering of men broken on the wheel, but by the turn of the 18th century the seed of an idea involving slow strangulation was planted in the minds of Europe’s lawmakers. At first, garrotes were nothing more than an upright post with a hole bored through. The victim would stand or sit on a seat in front of the post, and a rope was looped around his or her neck. The ends of the cords were fed through the hole in the post. The executioner would pull on both ends of the cord or twist them tourniquet-styled, slowly strangling the victim. Later modifications included a spike fixed into the wood frame, at the back of the victims neck, parting the vertebrae as the rope strangled. (Montanaro, )
The Iron Maiden
The Iron Maiden of Nuremberg was a tomb-sized container with folding doors. Upon the inside of the door were vicious spikes. As the prisoner was shut inside he would be pierced along the length of his body. The talons were not designed to kill outright, however, and the pinioned prisoner was left to slowly perish in the utmost pain. (Montanaro, 4)
Knotting
This form of torture was specific to women. It involved tying a stick into a woman’s hair and twisting it tighter and tighter. When the Inquisitor no longer had the strength to twist, he would hold the victim’s head or fasten it in a holding device until burly men could take over the chore. Not only would the hair be ripped out, but also the scalp would often be torn open, exposing the skull. As expected, only women with thick or long hair were chosen for this torture. (Montanaro, 4)
The Pear
The pear had more than one implementation, with the most popular being the oral use. The pear was also used in the rectum and in the vagina. The pear was expanded by force of the screw to the maximum aperture of their segments. The inside of the cavity in question is irremediably mutilated, nearly always fatally so. The pointed prongs at the end of the segments serve better to rip into the throat or the intestines. When applied vaginally, the spikes wreaked havoc on the woman’s cervix. The vaginal use was devised for women who had been found guilty of sexual union with the Devil or his familiars. (Montanaro, 5)
Scalding
It was often believed, in Catholic countries, that the soul of a heretic or witch was corrupted, filthy, and bedeviled by all manner of foulness. To cleanse them before punishment, sometimes the victims were forced to consume heated or scalding consumables (scalding water, fire brands, coals, even soaps). The modern day ‘washing the mouth out with soap’ is a direct descendant. (Montanaro, 5)
Stoning
Stoning is well documented as a punishment from Biblical times onward, where a victim would be executed by a stone-throwing mob. (Montanaro, 6)
Strangulation
Strangulation was used either on its own or as the merciful partner to burning at the stake. Because being burnt alive evoked sympathy from the crowds, victims were generally dispatched of before being consigned to the flames. (Montanaro, 6)
The Strappado
The strappado was one of the easiest and, therefore, one of the most common torture techniques. All one needed to set up a strappado was a sturdy rafter and a rope. The victim’s wrists were bound behind her/his back, and the rope would be tossed over the beam. Then, the victim was repeatedly dropped from a height, so that her/his arms and shoulders would dislocate. Sometimes weights were attached to the feet (known as Squassation), to ensure more dislocations and greater pain. Weights of up to 500 pounds have been recorded. (Montanaro, 7)
The Turcas
A device called the turcas was used to tear out fingernails. In 150-151 John Fian was subjected to this and other tortures in Scotland. After his nails were ripped out, needles were driven into the quirks.
Headmans Axe
This form of execution was quite popular in Germany and England during the 16th and 17th centuries, where decapitation was thought to be the most humane form of capital punishment. An executioner, usually hooded, would chop off the persons head with an axe or sword. The last beheading took place in 1747, and the axe used is on display at the Tower of London. (Bobit, )
During the Middle Ages the influence of the Roman Catholic Church contributed to the adoption of torture by civil tribunals. The Italian municipalities adopted torture early, but it did not appear in other European countries until France legalized its use in the 1th century. Ultimately, torture became part of the legal system of every European nation except Sweden and England. Although torture was never recognized in the common law of England, it was practiced by exercise of the royal prerogative. In the American colonies torture was illegal; the few instances of its use were in forms of execution. (Unknown, 1)
Today, with a greater interest in humanitarianism, capital punishment has become less gruesome than the beheadings and torture that were commonplace centuries before. Lethal injection, electrocution, and lethal gas have become the preferred methods of execution in the United States, mostly because these methods appear to be less offensive to the public, and more humane for the prisoner. (Bobit, )
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