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Old 11-20-2008, 01:34 PM
 
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I watched a really good show on the National Geographic channel yesterday about the history of the Guillotine and the ''High Executioner'' of france who was the official chief executioner of all france who was created by King Louie XVI in 1788 who would ironically himself be executed in 1793 by the person he sanctioned to execute criminals in the first place.

His name was Charles Henri Sanson as he Guillotined around 3,000 people until he retired do to poor health as he really was sickened by all the executions he did but had to continue for years doing it or risk being executed himself.

Anyway i just wanted to pass along the info about Sanson and the Guillotine as it was interesting and maybe it will come on again soon for those who are interested to watch.
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Old 11-20-2008, 02:17 PM
 
Location: Parts Unknown, Northern California
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3000? Wow. I wonder who the American record holder is? My guess is probably George Maledon, "Mean George" as he was known. He was Judge Issac Parker's special deputy for executions at Fort Smith, Arkansas in the latter half of the 19th Century. "Hanging Judge" Parker's jurisdiction included the Indian Territory (today's Oklahoma) which was a favorite refuge for criminals from Missouri, Arkansas, Texas, Louisiana and Kansas. This kept his court well supplied with defendants and Maledon well supplied with people convicted of murder.

Maledon was a quiet, small, German immigrant, who was later nicknamed "Prince of Hangmen" and he totaled 60 criminals hanged and five shot dead by his hand while attempting escapes.

While not in Sanson's league, I suspect that Maledon must be the American champ. Anyone know of an American with 65 plus executions?
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Old 11-20-2008, 07:08 PM
 
Location: Wheaton, Illinois
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Sanson was often lax keeping his guillotine clean and caked blood would gather in the vertical grooves the blade slid down. This would cause the blade to drop slowly and sometimes it would then fail to slice through the victim's neck at which time Sansom would jump up and down on top of the blade and force it through.

Of course this hardly had the government's intended effect of the guillotine as a humane killing machine and government officials would then force Sanson to clean the machine.
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Old 11-21-2008, 10:48 AM
 
Location: in the southwest
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Sanson came from a family of executioners. They also had to perform duties such as cutting off hands or ears. In the early days, they were not even allowed to marry out of the profession, and by law their houses were painted red. Charles-Henri was a 4th generation executioner. Supposedly, his son Gabriel, who used to assist him, died at age 11 after falling off the scaffold while parading around the perimeter with someone's head. But another son, and his son after him, did carry on the duties before it all ended with the sixth generation.
The Terror was well-named. I read even Charles-Henri himself was arrested twice--but never convicted of treason or anything else.
Who would have executed the executioner? In those days, substitutes were not readily available.
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Old 11-21-2008, 11:46 AM
 
Location: Parts Unknown, Northern California
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I'm not positive of the date, I think it was late in '99 or '00. I came across a brief article in the paper which said that the Iranians had saved up a half year's worth of convicted criminals and they decided to stage their punishment as a public spectacle in a soccer stadium. In this particular case, they were punishing thieves, and those folks had been sentenced to have their hands cut off. 300 or so got the treatment before the crowd at the stadium.

It annoyed me greatly that the article did not go into further detail because I was tremendously curious about a number of aspects. What was the atmosphere like? Were the crowds cheering with each slice? Did they bring signs and banners..(did they sell those giant foam hands?)...were there play by play, or blow by blow I suppose, announcers? ("There's the snap! It's a handoff!")

Was this a free event, or did you have to buy tickets? Were there good and bad seats, as in "I got two on the 50 chop line!"? Were there vendors selling food? Were there scalpers outside turning a profit from those who waited too late? (Scalpers? Maybe there were literally scalpers, they may have been the half time show.)

I would still love to know more if anyone remembers this and happens to have specifics. I'm guessing a lot of the stars of the show were guys nicknamed "Lefty", although they came into the performance without nicknames.
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Old 11-21-2008, 11:53 AM
 
8,584 posts, read 9,055,220 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Grandstander View Post
I'm not positive of the date, I think it was late in '99 or '00. I came across a brief article in the paper which said that the Iranians had saved up a half year's worth of convicted criminals and they decided to stage their punishment as a public spectacle in a soccer stadium. In this particular case, they were punishing thieves, and those folks had been sentenced to have their hands cut off. 300 or so got the treatment before the crowd at the stadium.

It annoyed me greatly that the article did not go into further detail because I was tremendously curious about a number of aspects. What was the atmosphere like? Were the crowds cheering with each slice? Did they bring signs and banners..(did they sell those giant foam hands?)...were there play by play, or blow by blow I suppose, announcers? ("There's the snap! It's a handoff!")

Was this a free event, or did you have to buy tickets? Were there good and bad seats, as in "I got two on the 50 chop line!"? Were there vendors selling food? Were there scalpers outside turning a profit from those who waited too late? (Scalpers? Maybe there were literally scalpers, they may have been the half time show.)

I would still love to know more if anyone remembers this and happens to have specifics. I'm guessing a lot of the stars of the show were guys nicknamed "Lefty", although they came into the performance without nicknames.
Hats off to you for a well written satirical. Off the top of my head, I do not recall the story.
Anyway, didn't the inventor of the guillotine himself get executed by his own invention?
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Old 11-21-2008, 12:01 PM
 
Location: Parts Unknown, Northern California
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Well, what can you say about a nation which invites the public to watch people getting their hands cut off, but finds it immoral for women to show any skin in public?
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Old 11-23-2008, 11:34 AM
 
Location: in the southwest
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jmking View Post
Anyway, didn't the inventor of the guillotine himself get executed by his own invention?
I think that was a myth. Several sources say so, anyway.
The Guillotine's Inventor
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Old 11-27-2008, 06:00 AM
 
3,728 posts, read 4,852,176 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Grandstander View Post
3000? Wow. I wonder who the American record holder is? My guess is probably George Maledon, "Mean George" as he was known. He was Judge Issac Parker's special deputy for executions at Fort Smith, Arkansas in the latter half of the 19th Century. "Hanging Judge" Parker's jurisdiction included the Indian Territory (today's Oklahoma) which was a favorite refuge for criminals from Missouri, Arkansas, Texas, Louisiana and Kansas. This kept his court well supplied with defendants and Maledon well supplied with people convicted of murder.

Maledon was a quiet, small, German immigrant, who was later nicknamed "Prince of Hangmen" and he totaled 60 criminals hanged and five shot dead by his hand while attempting escapes.

While not in Sanson's league, I suspect that Maledon must be the American champ. Anyone know of an American with 65 plus executions?
Robert Elliott was the executioner or "state electrictian" for New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Vermont, Connecticut, and he also did a few in Ohio as well. He carried out all the executions in those states from the mid 1920s to the late 1930s. He would bring his own head electrods with him that he made himself. He carried out a few hundred executions.


Oddly enough, he was described as a very mild mannered and sweet individual and he was also an ardent (and rather public) opponent of capital punishment. He even wrote his autobiography during his career lambasting the practice.
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Old 11-27-2008, 09:14 AM
 
Location: Parts Unknown, Northern California
48,564 posts, read 23,973,143 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Frank_Carbonni View Post
Robert Elliott was the executioner or "state electrictian" for New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Vermont, Connecticut, and he also did a few in Ohio as well. He carried out all the executions in those states from the mid 1920s to the late 1930s. He would bring his own head electrods with him that he made himself. He carried out a few hundred executions.


Oddly enough, he was described as a very mild mannered and sweet individual and he was also an ardent (and rather public) opponent of capital punishment. He even wrote his autobiography during his career lambasting the practice.

Good find. I looked him up and he seems to be credited with 387 executions, which makes Maledon a second string piker. I think we have to question the logic behind an opponent of capital punishment making his living as an executioner. That would be like an abortion doctor being pro life.
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