Guillotine: Why this method of execution was considered a symbol of “humanity and equality”
The guillotine is an execution instrument that became a symbol of the French Revolution, tragically famous for its mass public executions. However, despite its dark reputation, it was originally created as a tool for the humane execution of the death sentence.
History The guillotine is inextricably linked with the name of Joseph Ignace Guillotin, a French physician and member of the National Assembly who proposed using such a device for the sake of equality and minimizing the suffering of convicts.
Before the invention of the guillotine, executions in France and other European countries were carried out in a brutal manner: wealthy criminals were often beheaded, while commoners were subjected to hanging or breaking on the wheel.
Guillotin, being a doctor and a humanist, insisted that all people should be executed equally and quickly, regardless of class. In 1789, shortly after the start of the French Revolution, he proposed creating a device that could quickly and painlessly take a person's life.
Although the guillotine bears Guillotin's name, its design was devised by Antoine Louis, a physician and secretary of the Paris Academy of Surgery, in collaboration with piano maker Tobias Schmidt, who built the first prototype.
As early as 1792, the first public execution using the guillotine took place in Paris.
The main feature of this device is its mechanics: a heavy blade fell from a great height, ensuring an instant and maximally painless separation of the head from the body. This seemed more humane compared to the difficulties of manual decapitation or other painful methods. The guillotine was also considered a means of unifying justice: it was used for representatives of all classes, asserting equality in punishment.
Meanwhile, over time, the guillotine became a symbol of revolutionary terror: within a few years, executions using it reached horrific proportions. Moreover, it was used in France until 1977.
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