25th April 1792: First execution using the guillotine

The 25th April 1792 saw the world’s first use of the guillotine as a method of execution.  Nicolas Jacques Pelletier, a French highwayman found guilty of killing a man during one of his robberies, was the guillotine’s first – but by no means last – victim. Pelletier’s status as a common criminal was significant.  Prior to the French Revolution, beheading as a form of execution had been reserved for the nobility.  Commoners were usually subjected to longer and arguably more painful deaths thro...