A History of Torture: From Iron Maidens to Vlad's Impalin
For thousands of years man has been perfecting the gruesome art of torture. There have been many ways to execute and torture a person--some make the electric chair look like a paper cut.
This book describes some of the most infamous methods of torture ever devised, devices that will turn your stomach and make you thankful that they no longer exist.
This book describes some of the most infamous methods of torture ever devised, devices that will turn your stomach and make you thankful that they no longer exist.
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A History of Torture PDF and ePub |
Excerpt
The Judas Cradle
With the pervasive gruesomeness and atrocities committed during the Middle Ages, stating that it was not the ideal period to live would be a huge understatement. Most people during this time were poor, many were beleaguered by diseases and freedom was largely owned by the affluent landowners. Suffice it to say, the standard and quality of living during that time were deplorable and pitiful.
During this period, committing a crime would mean a chopped tongue or cut off lip, especially if you could not afford to pay the hefty fine. It was very common for offenders to be severely penalized, although contrary to the assumption of many, these punishments were not all about public dissections and beheadings.
A Different Approach to Impalement
The torture devices that were introduced during this period were not only frightening, they were plain gruesome. Among the most dreaded medieval torture ever conjured is the Judas Cradle, which is a pyramid-like seat designed to cause unspeakable pain and suffering to the victim.
Basically, the victim’s vagina, anus or the skin under the scrotum is positioned over the tip of the pyramid-shaped cradle. The victim is then lowered on it using the combination of ropes and a metal belt tied around the waist to hoist him/her up atop the pyramid.
The intention of this torture device is to stretch the anal or vaginal opening over an extended period of time or to slowly and painfully impale. The pressure and level of torture can be adjusted simply by raising or lowering the suspended victim. In some cases, oil is added to the device. Other variations of this torture include raising and rocking the victims before dropping them onto the tip of the pyramid-like seat.
Since the victim’s feet are tied to each other, moving a single leg would naturally force the other leg to move, which would only increase the pain. This type of torture, depending on the circumstances, would last for several hours and even stretch to a number of days.
This deliberate impalement would eventually prevent the victim from moving. Over the extended hours or days, muscles would ultimately tear, which would lower the victim towards the spike seat, piercing the lower organs and eventually causing death.
Widespread Popularity
While the device was first introduced and used in middle Europe, over the years the popularity, or more like notoriety, of the Judas Cradle apparently spread throughout different regions and nations. In German this device was called Judaswiege, in Italian it was referred to as the culla di Guida, while the French preferred to christen it la veille, which translates to ‘nightwatch’ or ‘the wake.’
Aside from inflicting unthinkable pain, the purpose of the Judas Cradle is to humiliate the victim since he/she is typically naked all throughout the process. Sometimes, weights are even placed on the legs in order to aggravate the pain and to also hasten death.
Aside from impalement, loss of blood is not the common cause of death with this kind of torture. Since the device is hardly ever washed, even if the victim is allowed to live, he/she would most likely be plagued with an agonizing infection, which of course could prove fatal during that era with limited access to health care and medicine.
The Judas Cradle was made with durable metal, which had been preserved for centuries. This device can be largely found and displayed in a number of museums across Europe.
How the Judas Cradle Came to Be
To trace the history on the use of Judas Cradle, let us backtrack a bit. This torture device as stated was first used in Europe, during the period of The Inquisition. This was the time when non-Christian behavior was pronounced as illegal.
When Theodosius came into power in AD 379 as the eastern emperor, he sought to rapidly settle the religious dissension that plagued the empire. He did this by declaring Christian heresies and pagan worship as illegal. A law of 380 was then passed to order all citizens to embrace Catholicism under the chairmanship and rule of Constantine the Great. The Judas Cradle was one of the devices of torture that was created and used against transgressors, to find heretics and to extract information when the need arose during The Inquisition.
The Use of the Judas Cradle Through the Years
At first, the device was essentially used as a method to deprive a person of sleep, with the adroit use of chains, pulleys and winch. When the victim falls to sleep, he/she is lowered to the tip of the pyramid, where the full weight of the body is placed on the vagina, the anus or the testicles.
Later on, this torture device was eventually used to meter punishment for adulterers as well as coerce confessions from those who were accused of witchcraft.
Today, there are some unconfirmed reports that the Judas Cradle is still used in some Latin American countries for torture. However, the original design was said to have been modified by adding an electrically charged harnesses and significantly sharper tips on the pyramid-like chair.
While the widespread use of this device has greatly diminished, the use of the modified Judas Cradle is believed to be present in some countries as a tool to extract information as well as to elicit confessions through sleep deprivation. This is in view of the fact that the United Nations has officially condemned the use and practice of sleep deprivation and pronounced it as inhumane.
Torture During Medieval Times
It is true that the Middle Ages were known to be the golden age of torture techniques. However, torture was not exactly as common as many people have assumed, although authorities were known not to hold back if they wanted you to confess something.
According to historical records, back in the day, executioners were far from being regarded as sadistic agents of pain and death. In fact, they were expected to use sound judgment and exercise moderation. However, such information still remains to be largely questioned with no historical proof to back it up.
Recently, a book published by German researcher Wolfgang Schild called Torture, Pillory, Stake revealed that our perception of the rather sadistic treatment of criminals during the Medieval Age is only partly true. The scholar who studied medieval criminal law claims gruesome execution and torture were mainly designed to ensure salvation of the soul of the convicted person.
Schild also claims that the carrying out of what we view as inhuman sentences were actually a part of their everyday life. This is mainly because citizens of the Middle Ages were mostly fixated on the promise of afterlife and were not deeply concerned over a death sentence. People did not perceive the cruelty of the executions the same way we do today. They were widely open to torture as they were agitated by the deep sense of sin.
Back in the day, executions were mostly public events and surprisingly, people would angrily react if they thought the executioner was not diligently performing his job in carrying out justice as was expected from him. In fact, it was stated that in 1575, the drunk executioner of Chur was stoned to death by the public because of his poor attempts and failure to behead three convicted criminals.
Needless to say, torture was a punishment that was largely perceived as a totally acceptable and legitimate method of dispensing justice as well as extracting confessions or extorting information of a crime.
This new study certainly sheds a fresh new light on torture. People firmly believed and accepted, even embraced the purifying power derived from physical pain as a way to cleanse and soften the soul as well as liberate their hopes to attain eternal life.
With the pervasive gruesomeness and atrocities committed during the Middle Ages, stating that it was not the ideal period to live would be a huge understatement. Most people during this time were poor, many were beleaguered by diseases and freedom was largely owned by the affluent landowners. Suffice it to say, the standard and quality of living during that time were deplorable and pitiful.
During this period, committing a crime would mean a chopped tongue or cut off lip, especially if you could not afford to pay the hefty fine. It was very common for offenders to be severely penalized, although contrary to the assumption of many, these punishments were not all about public dissections and beheadings.
A Different Approach to Impalement
The torture devices that were introduced during this period were not only frightening, they were plain gruesome. Among the most dreaded medieval torture ever conjured is the Judas Cradle, which is a pyramid-like seat designed to cause unspeakable pain and suffering to the victim.
Basically, the victim’s vagina, anus or the skin under the scrotum is positioned over the tip of the pyramid-shaped cradle. The victim is then lowered on it using the combination of ropes and a metal belt tied around the waist to hoist him/her up atop the pyramid.
The intention of this torture device is to stretch the anal or vaginal opening over an extended period of time or to slowly and painfully impale. The pressure and level of torture can be adjusted simply by raising or lowering the suspended victim. In some cases, oil is added to the device. Other variations of this torture include raising and rocking the victims before dropping them onto the tip of the pyramid-like seat.
Since the victim’s feet are tied to each other, moving a single leg would naturally force the other leg to move, which would only increase the pain. This type of torture, depending on the circumstances, would last for several hours and even stretch to a number of days.
This deliberate impalement would eventually prevent the victim from moving. Over the extended hours or days, muscles would ultimately tear, which would lower the victim towards the spike seat, piercing the lower organs and eventually causing death.
Widespread Popularity
While the device was first introduced and used in middle Europe, over the years the popularity, or more like notoriety, of the Judas Cradle apparently spread throughout different regions and nations. In German this device was called Judaswiege, in Italian it was referred to as the culla di Guida, while the French preferred to christen it la veille, which translates to ‘nightwatch’ or ‘the wake.’
Aside from inflicting unthinkable pain, the purpose of the Judas Cradle is to humiliate the victim since he/she is typically naked all throughout the process. Sometimes, weights are even placed on the legs in order to aggravate the pain and to also hasten death.
Aside from impalement, loss of blood is not the common cause of death with this kind of torture. Since the device is hardly ever washed, even if the victim is allowed to live, he/she would most likely be plagued with an agonizing infection, which of course could prove fatal during that era with limited access to health care and medicine.
The Judas Cradle was made with durable metal, which had been preserved for centuries. This device can be largely found and displayed in a number of museums across Europe.
How the Judas Cradle Came to Be
To trace the history on the use of Judas Cradle, let us backtrack a bit. This torture device as stated was first used in Europe, during the period of The Inquisition. This was the time when non-Christian behavior was pronounced as illegal.
When Theodosius came into power in AD 379 as the eastern emperor, he sought to rapidly settle the religious dissension that plagued the empire. He did this by declaring Christian heresies and pagan worship as illegal. A law of 380 was then passed to order all citizens to embrace Catholicism under the chairmanship and rule of Constantine the Great. The Judas Cradle was one of the devices of torture that was created and used against transgressors, to find heretics and to extract information when the need arose during The Inquisition.
The Use of the Judas Cradle Through the Years
At first, the device was essentially used as a method to deprive a person of sleep, with the adroit use of chains, pulleys and winch. When the victim falls to sleep, he/she is lowered to the tip of the pyramid, where the full weight of the body is placed on the vagina, the anus or the testicles.
Later on, this torture device was eventually used to meter punishment for adulterers as well as coerce confessions from those who were accused of witchcraft.
Today, there are some unconfirmed reports that the Judas Cradle is still used in some Latin American countries for torture. However, the original design was said to have been modified by adding an electrically charged harnesses and significantly sharper tips on the pyramid-like chair.
While the widespread use of this device has greatly diminished, the use of the modified Judas Cradle is believed to be present in some countries as a tool to extract information as well as to elicit confessions through sleep deprivation. This is in view of the fact that the United Nations has officially condemned the use and practice of sleep deprivation and pronounced it as inhumane.
Torture During Medieval Times
It is true that the Middle Ages were known to be the golden age of torture techniques. However, torture was not exactly as common as many people have assumed, although authorities were known not to hold back if they wanted you to confess something.
According to historical records, back in the day, executioners were far from being regarded as sadistic agents of pain and death. In fact, they were expected to use sound judgment and exercise moderation. However, such information still remains to be largely questioned with no historical proof to back it up.
Recently, a book published by German researcher Wolfgang Schild called Torture, Pillory, Stake revealed that our perception of the rather sadistic treatment of criminals during the Medieval Age is only partly true. The scholar who studied medieval criminal law claims gruesome execution and torture were mainly designed to ensure salvation of the soul of the convicted person.
Schild also claims that the carrying out of what we view as inhuman sentences were actually a part of their everyday life. This is mainly because citizens of the Middle Ages were mostly fixated on the promise of afterlife and were not deeply concerned over a death sentence. People did not perceive the cruelty of the executions the same way we do today. They were widely open to torture as they were agitated by the deep sense of sin.
Back in the day, executions were mostly public events and surprisingly, people would angrily react if they thought the executioner was not diligently performing his job in carrying out justice as was expected from him. In fact, it was stated that in 1575, the drunk executioner of Chur was stoned to death by the public because of his poor attempts and failure to behead three convicted criminals.
Needless to say, torture was a punishment that was largely perceived as a totally acceptable and legitimate method of dispensing justice as well as extracting confessions or extorting information of a crime.
This new study certainly sheds a fresh new light on torture. People firmly believed and accepted, even embraced the purifying power derived from physical pain as a way to cleanse and soften the soul as well as liberate their hopes to attain eternal life.
