Table of Contents
What was the death penalty in France?
The guillotine
The guillotine remained the official method of execution in France until the death penalty was abolished in 1981.
How were people executed in France prior to the revolution?
Execution by guillotine began with the execution of the king in January 1793. A total of 2,639 people were guillotined in Paris, most of them over nine months between autumn 1793 and summer 1794. Many more people (up to 50,000) were shot, or died of sickness in the prisons.
What cruel form of punishment was used during the French Revolution?
During the French Revolution, the guillotine became the primary symbol of the Reign of Terror and was used to execute thousands of people, including King Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette.
When did capital punishment become illegal in France?
Capital punishment in France (French: peine de mort en France) is banned by Article 66-1 of the Constitution of the French Republic, voted as a constitutional amendment by the Congress of the French Parliament on 19 February 2007 and simply stating “No one can be sentenced to death” (French: Nul ne peut être condamné à mort).
What was the punishment for treason in the French Revolution?
Criminals could also be stripped, whipped, or otherwise tortured prior to the actual execution. One priest convicted of treason was hung by his foot for a day prior to being hanged. In this instance, the bystanders participated in the punishment by stoning the priest while he was upside down.
When was the guillotine abolished in the French Revolution?
To fit his head in the window for the guillotine, the executioner had to first rip off his bandages. Although most of us associate the guillotine with the violence and excesses of the French Revolution, it continued to be the method of execution in France until capital punishment was abolished in 1981.
How did people get executed in the French Revolution?
Some people condemned for more heinous crimes were broken on the wheel. This entailed attaching the criminal to a large wheel and then beating him or her with iron bars over a period of time until the criminal died. Regicides were tortured and then drawn and quartered.