Shorter by a Head - Some Guillotine Trivia!

King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn from 'The Tudors.'
For Mother's Day I was lucky enough to be receive The Tudors DVD box set (and I didn't even hint that hard!) So this morning you would have found me ironing along to Season Two…with tears streaming down my face. Anne Boleyn was executed. Say no more. An extremely moving episode, which is perhaps why, when it came time to write my blog post, my mind turned to thoughts of beheading… and the guillotine.
Where was the guillotine invented?
a)      18th century Revolutionary Franceb)      Medieval Halifax in Yorkshire, England.c)      Medieval Scotland. 'The Maiden' - medieval decapitation in Scotland.
The correct answer (although all options have some merit- read on) is B) – Halifax.
The Halifax Gibbet.
Records show that between 1286 and 1650, at least 53 people were executed in Yorkshire using 'The Halifax Gibbet.' This device consisted of two 15 foot upright poles, with a weighted cross beam on which an axe was mounted. The wealth of medieval Halifax came from textiles. As part of the manufacturing process valuable cloth was left drying on outdoor frames and a suitably fearsome deterrent was needed to change the mind of would-be thieves.A similar device called 'The Maiden' was developed around the same time in medieval Scotland.

Doctor Guillotin - his humane intention backfired badly.
Poor Dc Guillotin.Synonymous with 18th century Revolutionary France, the guillotine as we recognize it with a diagonal blade was actually designed in 1792 by Dc Antoine Louis. He picked up the initial idea from Dc Guillotin, and modified it. Dc Louis' device was called 'Louisette' but for some reason, despite protests from Dc Guillotin's family, the name 'Guillotine' stuck. Poor Dc Guillotin! His intention was never to create a machine for mass murder, but to develop a humane way of execution. His aim was to make a "Truly democratic device," that cleanly beheaded. Prior to this, if you were condemned to death, your suffering was largely determined by your wealth. The rich could afford a swordsman, to painlessly smite your head from your shoulders, whilst the poor suffered at the hands of an inept axe man or a prolonged death by hanging. Guillotin's initial design (modified by Louis) meant a guaranteed clean death regardless of rank.

Anne Boleyn (from 'The Tudors') about to be executed.
Historical Urban Myth.Finally, contrary to popular myth, Dc Guillotin did not die by the device he helped conceive. Instead he died in 1814 due to septicaemia from an infected carbuncle on his shoulder.
On a lighter note, what is your favourite 'ironing' programme, and does it make you cry?
The last moments of Anne Boleyn.
[With thanks to makers of 'The Tudors' for the images.]