Buzz
Fashionable women adorned guillotine-inspired earrings, while children played with toy replicas of the device. Known as 'the widow,' it captivated the public, evoking both fascination and dread. While many clamored for its use, others debated whether it inflicted undue suffering.
The guillotine spawned a unique industry. Crowds of tens of thousands flocked to watch executions, boosting local economies as they spent generously at shops and inns. From the chief executioner to street thieves, everyone profited from these grim spectacles.
10. Execution Gone Wrong
Facing execution is horrifying enough, but imagine the terror if the process is botched. This was the fate of Kenatra (sometimes referred to as 'Konatra' in historical records) in 1905.
While Kenatra was a convicted murderer who had killed another inmate, the French president aimed to use his execution as a public warning. The event certainly left a memorable impact.
The regular executioner had died, and his replacement was inexperienced. Nervous in front of a crowd exceeding 1,000 spectators, the new executioner's first attempt only scalped the prisoner.
On the second try, the blade jammed. Finally, on the third attempt, the head was severed but was launched into the air, landing roughly 1 meter (3 feet) from the body instead of dropping into the basket. The gruesome ordeal lasted a full 15 minutes.
9. The Audience
For many, guillotine executions were a macabre form of entertainment. A 1909 account describes how crowds began gathering in a square in Bethune, France, hours before an execution. By midnight, 2,000 spectators had assembled, eagerly anticipating the grim event.
Trains arrived, packed with individuals eager to witness the spectacle. Hotels and cafes overflowed as people drank to while away the hours. By 4:00 AM, the scheduled time of the execution, the crowd had swelled to approximately 30,000 people.
Spectators perched in trees, and some men brought ladders for an unobstructed view. Troops were deployed to manage the massive crowd. Everyone was determined to witness the execution of four notorious bandits and murderers.
8. Preparing the Condemned
Historical records of guillotine executions often describe how prisoners were unaware of their execution date until about 30 minutes before the event. Awoken abruptly, they were forced to dress while their hands and feet were bound. They were permitted to confess to a priest and receive communion.
Afterward, the prisoner was led to a small chamber, known as the toilet room, to await the final moment. To calm their nerves, they were frequently offered brandy or wine. Their hair was trimmed short, and their shirt collars were torn away.
As the execution moment arrives, the crowd erupts in eager anticipation. Two assistants of the executioner guide the condemned individual to the guillotine or onto a cart that will transport him to the device.
7. Journey to the Turnip Field
Once the prisoner’s head was severed, it fell into a sawdust-lined basket. The body was placed in a willow basket or coffin, with the head positioned between the legs. The remains were then taken to the cemetery, where a brief funeral was held before burial in the 'turnip field,' a designated area for criminals.
If no one claimed the body, it was either exhumed and sent to a medical school for research or, in some cases, given last rites and transported directly to the medical school without even a symbolic burial.
6. A Man’s Head and a Dog’s Blood
Anatole Deibler, France’s High Executioner in 1907, was questioned about whether beheading was painless. He recounted a disturbing experiment conducted on a guillotined prisoner’s remains to address the inquiry.
Two physicians were granted permission to perform an experiment on a recently severed head. ‘They tied off the left carotid artery, connected a tube made of [natural rubber] to the right carotid, and linked the other end to the central terminal of the left carotid artery of a strong, healthy dog.
A valve controlled the flow of blood. Once everything was set, they opened the valve. The dog’s blood surged through the tube, pumping vigorously and reviving the vascular system of the head. The pale, lifeless face regained color; its expression shifted as if awakening; the eyes opened wide in surprise; the lips quivered, as if attempting to speak.’
5. The Debate Over Pain
Although crowds of thousands gathered to watch guillotine executions, some questioned whether decapitation was truly painless. In the early 19th century, experiments were conducted on numerous cows, calves, and sheep to determine if the animals experienced suffering after being beheaded.
Following extensive and gruesome experimentation, it was determined that animals endure significant suffering after being decapitated:
In the initial minute after execution, the facial muscles twitched violently with horrifying convulsions. The mouth repeatedly opened and shut, the respiratory organs in the face functioned, and the creature seemed to undergo extreme pain and an overwhelming urge to breathe.
4. Physicians on the Execution Platform
A report from 1862 mentioned that several physicians were permitted to stand on the execution platform during the beheading of three prisoners. Their goal was to demonstrate that the brain retained life after being separated from the body.
As each head was severed, it was passed to a doctor. The first head, with its tongue protruding, was left untouched for eight minutes before the tongue was prodded. The head responded by retracting the tongue and contorting in pain.
The second head, belonging to a woman, had tears streaming from its eyes. After 14 minutes, the victim’s name was called, and the eyes shifted toward the sound. The third head was slapped post-severance, and it reacted with an expression of fury.
3. The Drama of Decapitation
While Hamlet famously mused over Yorick’s skull, this brother had no kind words to offer.
In 1909, a man disguised himself among medical students and infiltrated the Lille Faculty of Medicine. There, he discovered his brother’s head on display in the amphitheater, ready for scientific study.
As he approached his brother’s head, he shouted, ‘You disgrace! Is this how I find you? You’ve brought shame upon our entire family!’ Overcome with emotion, he attempted to strike the head but collapsed to the ground. It had been four years since he last saw his brother, and he had only just learned that his sibling had been executed for murder.
2. The Real-Life Addams Family
Sanson was the custodian of a permanently installed guillotine in France. Consequently, he frequently hosted English visitors eager to see the device up close. He always accommodated them, even keeping hay bales nearby for demonstration purposes.
On one occasion, an English family visited with their three young daughters. Sanson demonstrated the guillotine’s mechanism, but the youngest daughter wanted more than just a show. After answering her many dark questions, the girl requested to be placed inside the guillotine.
Sanson obliged, but she then demanded to be bound like a condemned prisoner. He complied, and she further insisted on being positioned in the neck restraint and strapped down. Sanson glanced at her parents, who simply said, ‘Since she’s taken a liking to it, go ahead.’
Sanson secured the girl in the device, fearing she might ask for the blade to be released. Thankfully, she didn’t. However, the 1888 article failed to mention her name, leaving us to wonder what became of her later in life.
1. The Town Fool
There’s always someone who feels the need to experiment firsthand, like the medical student who doubted the guillotine’s yoke could restrain a resisting prisoner. While visiting Madame Tussaud’s wax museum, he seized the opportunity to test the guillotine in a display when no one was watching.
The student lowered the yoke and, to his shock, discovered his theory was incorrect. He found himself completely trapped, unable to free himself. With the blade poised above him, he dared not risk sending his own head tumbling into the sawdust-filled basket below.
A pair of visitors noticed the student and he pleaded for assistance. However, they assumed it was a staged performance tied to the exhibit. Fortunately, a staff member eventually noticed his predicament and freed him from the yoke.
