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The history of judicial hanging in |
Please note! As this page contains images of real
executions which some may find disturbing they must be accessed manually by
clicking on the links.
Introduction.
In
Up to May 1868 all hangings were carried out in public and attracted large
crowds who were at least supposed to be deterred by the spectacle, but who more
probably went for the morbid excitement and the carnival atmosphere that
usually surrounded such events. The modern expression Gala Day is derived from
the Anglo-Saxon gallows day. After hangings retreated inside prisons,
large crowds would still often gather outside the gates to see the raising of
the black flag up to 1902, the posting of death notice up to abolition or to
protest the execution.
Execution statistics.
In the 230 year the period from 1735 to 1964 there were some 10,935
civilian executions in
|
Country |
|
|
Southern
Ireland under |
|
Channel
Islands & Isle of Man |
|||||
|
Period |
Male |
Female |
Male |
Female |
Male |
Female |
Male |
Female |
Male |
Female |
|
1735 -1799 |
6,069 |
375 |
209 |
26 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
|
1800 - 1899 |
3,365 |
172 |
275 |
15 |
529* |
26* |
- |
- |
13 |
1 |
|
1900 - 1964 |
748 |
14 |
33 |
1 |
12 |
1 |
16 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
* 1827 – 1899 figures for all of
78 executions (all male) were carried out for offences
under the jurisdiction of the High Court of Admiralty at Execution Dock between
1735 and 1830 and are included above.
Last executions in the
On the 26th of May 1868, Michael Barrett, a Fenian, (what would now be called
an I.R.A. terrorist) became the last man to be publicly hanged in England,
before a huge crowd outside Newgate prison, for causing an explosion at
Clerkenwell in London which killed Sarah Ann Hodgkinson and six other innocent
people. Three days later on
Ruth Ellis was the
last woman to suffer the death penalty in
The last hangings of all in Britain were two carried out simultaneously at 8.00
a.m. on August the 13th, 1964 at Liverpool's Walton prison and Strangeways
prison in Manchester, when Peter Anthony Allen
and Gwynne Owen Evans were executed for the murder of John West. Thus ended capital punishment in
Abolition.
On the 9th of November 1965, the Murder (Abolition of Death Penalty) Act
suspended the death penalty for murder in the
The gallows.
(Visit the Gallows Gallery for pictures of
British gallows up to the beginning of the 20th century)
A tree was the earliest form of gallows with prisoners being either hauled up
manually by the hangman or turned off from a ladder or the tail of a
cart. Two trees with a beam between them formed the gallows (see picture) for 33 year old Mary Blandy's
execution at
In other places more conventional gallows were built, having either a single
upright with a projecting beam cross braced to it or two uprights and a cross
beam where more than one person could be hanged at a time. Both types still
required the use of a ladder or a cart to get the criminal suspended. Many of
these gallows were not permanent and were dismantled after each execution. In some
cases, the gallows was erected near to the scene of the crime so that the local
inhabitants could see justice done.
In 1571, the famous "Triple Tree" was set up at Tyburn (see picture) to replace previous smaller
structures and was, at least once, used for the hanging of 24 prisoners
simultaneously. This was on
On Monday 21st of April 1760 a new design gallows was used to execute the Earl of Ferrers at
Tyburn. It comprised a scaffold covered in black baize reached by a short
flight of stairs. Two uprights rose from the scaffold, topped with a cross
beam. Directly under the beam there was a small box like structure, some
three feet square and 18 inches high, which was designed to sink down into the
scaffold and thus leave the criminal suspended. This was the forerunner of the
"New Drop" gallows.
The "New Drop" gallows.
The "New Drop" pattern was copied by the county gaols and soon
became universal, as executions were moved from their previous sites on the
outskirts of towns to the actual prison. The gallows was normally big enough to
accommodate two or three prisoners side by side and was erected for each
execution. The scaffold was between 3 and 5 feet high and shielded by either
wooden boards or black cloth drapes to conceal the legs and lower body of the
prisoner in their final struggles. The trapdoors were released either from
underneath by withdrawing bolts or latterly from on top of the platform by
pulling/pushing a lever. In some parts of the country, the gallows had far more
steps up to the platform (as in
After the passing of the Capital Punishment Amendment Act of 1868, all
executions had to take place within the walls of county prisons. The existing
gallows was generally used, set up in the prison yard rather than in public,
e.g. at
Prisons that had more frequent hangings mostly had execution sheds built in one
of their exercise yards to house the gallows, e.g. Newgate, see picture, Wandsworth, see picture of interior, Armley
(Leeds), Warwick and Strangeways (Manchester). The shed stood apart from the
main buildings and necessitated a fairly lengthy walk from the condemned cell.
In some cases the gallows were set up in the prison van’s shed, e.g. at
The gallows beam at Newgate was wide enough to accommodate four prisoners side
by side, as was needed for the execution of the "Lennie Mutineers" on
Prior to 1884, each county was responsible for providing the gallows for
carrying out the death sentences passed in that county, and therefore all sorts
of designs were in use, many of them being less than satisfactory. In 1885, the
Prison Commission of the Home Office commissioned Major Alten Beamish of the
Royal Engineers to design a standard gallows for use throughout the country.
This consisted of two uprights with a cross beam in 8 inch section oak. The
beam was long enough to execute up to four prisoners side by side and at
Newgate was set over a 12 feet long by 4 feet wide two leaf trap set level with
the surrounding floor. The trapdoors were made from 1 ½ inch thick oak and were
released by a metal lever on the platform.
The gallows now stood permanently in an execution chamber and was not
dismantled after each execution as it was neither visible nor subject to
weather damage. This was a great improvement over some of the designs then in
use and considerably speeded up the process. The beam had one or more iron
bands attached to it from which hung lengths of chain for attachment of the
rope using "D" shackles. This made the setting of the drop more
accurate. (See drawing of the interior of a Victorian
execution shed being tidied up after a hanging. The small trapdoor on the left
of the picture is for access to the pit below to examine and remove the body.)
The gallows in the execution shed at Wandsworth prison around 1900 (see picture), is one of the very few to have
been actually photographed - you can see the lever, open trap and one of the
plank bridges laid across the drop for the warders to stand on whilst holding
the prisoner.
In the thoughtful way of the Home Office, at least some of these gallows had
the Royal Coat of Arms displayed on the beam which must have been a great
comfort to the condemned!
As a result of the recommendations of the Aberdare Committee,
the single beam was replaced by two beams of 8 inch x 3 inch section oak,
running parallel to each other about two inches apart. Straddling the centre of
the beams, was a cast iron bracket drilled with holes offset at half inch
centres through which a metal pin was inserted and to which a length of chain
was attached. (See picture) This allowed very much more
accurate adjustment of the drop. This mechanism was further refined to allow
the drop to be set to within a quarter of an inch. The beams were 11 feet above
the trapdoors and were generally set into the wall at each end, there being no uprights. It is thought that the first gallows
incorporating the dual beams and all the other improvements was installed at
Kirkdale Gaol in
An official memo dated 1950 gave dimensions of 7 feet 6 inches by 4 feet 6
inches for the trap doors at Winchester prison and it was also noted that 23
prisons had execution facilities. The
trapdoors were reduced in length as multiple hangings were no longer favoured
and normally consisted of two leaves each of 4 to 8 feet in length and each 2’
to 2’ 6” wide. The trap door area was
delineated by a 3 inch wide white line round all four sides. This came about in 1929 after an accident had
occurred at
The trapdoor nearest the lever is conventionally hinged whilst the other has
extended hinges that run under the first leaf and are held on top of an iron
drawbar which has three slots. The trap was operated by a lever on top of the platform
which moved the drawbar. When the slots in the drawbar lined up with the ends
of the extended hinges of the opposing door, the hinge ends were no longer
supported and thus cause the trap to open allowing the prisoner to drop through
into the cell below. The doors were caught by rubber lined catches to stop them
bouncing back and hitting the criminal. It was normal for the hangman to make a
chalk T on the trap so that the prisoner's feet could be correctly positioned
exactly over the centre of the two leaves. The view from the underside of the
trap, showing the operating mechanism, is shown in this drawing.
In the
period after World War I (1918 on) there was a move to reduce the number of
"hanging prisons" and in those where executions were to continue,
purpose built condemned suites were constructed within a wing of the prison on
three floors. This process was largely completed by 1937. (Click here for a list
of 20th century "hanging prisons") One or two condemned cells were
created on the first floor within 15 -20 feet of the execution room. On the
ground floor was a cell into which the trap doors opened and in the three
Pentonville, Wandsworth and Holloway in
Here are photos of the incredibly accurate and detailed 1/6 scale model of the
last gallows at Wandsworth, built by Paul Gilmartin of PJG Design, who has
kindly made them available to me. 1, 2, 3, 4,
5, 6 & 7. These show the
gallows, with the ladder leading up to the beam above with the chain
blocks. The room ready for an execution,
a prisoner on the trap and hanging (the hangman, assistant and supporting
officers have been omitted for clarity). Finally there is a view of the
operating mechanism from the underside of the trapdoors.
Pinioning.
In
From 1856 on, the legs of all prisoners were bound, usually at the ankles,
after the problems that William Calcraft encountered with the hanging of
William Bousfield at Newgate on the 31st of March of that year. Previously, the
legs had been left free in short drop hangings, although it had been normal to
tie the legs of female prisoners to prevent their skirts billowing up and
exposing their underwear! In the 20th century male prisoner’s legs were
strapped above the ankles with a simple leather strap and female prisoners
either the same if they wore a long dress, or above the knees if they were
wearing a short skirt/dress. The
principal reasons for strapping the legs were to prevent the person moving on
the trap and to prevent them trying to bridge the trap when the doors fell.
The Noose.
Calcraft and his predecessors used a simple halter style noose,
consisting of a loop worked into one end of a piece of hemp rope, with the
other end passed through it.
This was improved on by passing the free end of the rope through a brass eyelet
instead of just a loop of rope, which made it more free running. One of James
Berry’s nooses is pictured here. Following the failure of a rope supplied by
the hangman, Thomas Askern, at the execution of John Henry Johnson, on 3rd
April, 1877 in Leeds, the Prison Commission of the Home Office decided that it
would provide future execution ropes which were required to be returned to it
afterwards to avoid them being sold as souvenirs. A contract was duly entered
into with John Edgington & Co of the Old Kent Road in London to manufacture
and supply the ropes. These became known as “Government ropes” and were formed
from a 12’ 6” (3.8m) length of 3/4" diameter four strand white Italian
hemp. (Early versions had no covering and a plain ¼” thick leather washer to
hold the noose in place. By 1899 the leather washer had been replaced by a
rubber one. A further improvement was
the use of a Chamois leather covering sewn over the rope which was intended to
reduce the marking of the skin. The ends of the rope, where they were spliced
together, had Gutta Percha coverings (Gutta Percha is a natural waxy resin and
was used as the filling for golf balls). The Gutta Percha tended to splinter
when cold and had to be heated with a candle to soften it and avoid cuts to the
prisoner’s neck. In 1942, the plain rubber washer was replaced with an
internally star shaped one which gripped the rope better. The Gutta Percha
covering the rope over the attachment eye to the chain was omitted in 1952. In
1955 it was omitted from the noose end and replaced with vulcanised rubber. See
picture of a later noose
with leg strap, wrist strap (white colour) and white hood). The rope was
stretched before use, by dropping a sandbag of approximately the same weight as
the prisoner through the trap and leaving it suspended overnight. This reduced
its diameter to about 5/8 inch. The purpose of this was to remove any tendency
of the rope to stretch during the actual hanging which would reduce the force
applied to the prisoner's neck. Hemp has always been the preferred material as
it is both soft and strong with a smooth surface. Marwood and
The positioning of the eyelet of the noose under the angle of the jaw (sub
aural) is very important as it is vital that the head is thrown backwards by
the rope so that the force is transmitted into the neck vertebrae rather than
being thrown forward and the force taken on the throat and base of the tongue
which tends to cause strangulation. In
The hood.
Over the last 250 years or so it has been customary to cover the
prisoner’s face so that their final agonies would not be seen. In Tyburn
and Newgate days the "hood" was actually a nightcap supplied by the
prisoner themselves, if they could afford it. When they had finished
their prayers, the hangman simply pulled it down over their face. In some
cases, women might choose a bonnet with a veil instead and in other cases the
prisoner possessed or chose neither. From the early 1800’s a white hood was
used and the earliest verifiable record of this was for the execution of three
men for High Treason in Derby in 1817. From around 1850, a white linen hood was
provided by the authorities which was similar to a small pillowcase and was
applied as part of the execution process. See photo As the nightcaps had generally been white
this became the traditional colour for British hoods, whereas in many other countries
they were/are black.
Typically the prisoner was hooded only at the last moment before the noose was
put round their neck and adjusted. Although they had been able to see the
gallows, the trap, the executioner and officials, and the noose dangling before
them, this was found to be better than hooding them earlier and trying to lead
them to the gallows as they were more frightened by not knowing what was
happening. Both ideas have been tried but hooding immediately prior to the
noose became the norm.
The "Short Drop" method.
Hanging using little or no drop was effectively universal up to 1872.
The prisoner could be suspended by a variety of means, from the back of a cart
or a ladder or later by some form of trap door mechanism. Where a person was
dragged off the tail of the cart they usually got only a few inches of actual
drop. It was not unusual for the relatives and friends of prisoners to
hang on their legs to shorten their suffering. With the standardisation
on the “New Drop” gallows in the early part of the 19th century the condemned
fell 12-18 inches and this was found to give a slightly quicker death than was
normal using the cart. However death was still typically by strangulation
and the prisoner could struggle in agony for several minutes after the drop
fell. After the “New Drop” was introduced the hangman sometimes still had
to pull down on the prisoner’s legs. The
last woman to suffer execution by the short drop was Mary Ann Barry at
Gloucester on Monday, the 12th of January, 1874. She was hanged by Robert
Anderson and struggled for some three minutes after the drop fell. Probably the
last short drop hanging in Britain was that of John Henry Johnson at Armley
prison Leeds for the murder
of Amos Waite, on the 3rd of April 1877, when he was executed by
Thomas Askern. Firstly the
rope broke and Johnson had to be recovered from the pit and was hanged again 10
minutes later. The Yorkshire Post newspaper
reported that Johnson struggled for four minutes. 24 year old James Williams was
executed at Stafford by George Incher on the 22nd of February 1881, for the
murder of his girlfriend. He was given a
drop of four feet and reportedly died without a struggle. It is not known whether this drop had been
calculated or whether Williams was just fortunate.
Surviving the gallows.
There are several recorded instances of revival in this country during
the 17th and 18th centuries. One of the most famous is that of John Smith,
hanged at Tyburn on Christmas Eve 1705. Having been turned off the back of the
cart, he dangled for 15 minutes until the crowd began to shout
"reprieve," whereupon he was cut down and taken to a nearby house
where he soon recovered.
He was asked what it had felt like to be hanged and this is what he told his
rescuers:
"When I was turned off I was, for some time, sensible of very great pain
occasioned by the weight of my body and felt my spirits in strange commotion,
violently pressing upwards. Having forced their way to my head I saw a great
blaze or glaring light that seemed to go out of my eyes in a flash and then I
lost all sense of pain. After I was cut down, I began to come to myself and the
blood and spirits forcing themselves into their former channels put me by a
prickling or shooting into such intolerable pain that I could have wished those
hanged who had cut me down."
Sixteen year old William Duell was hanged, along with four others, at Tyburn on
the 24th of November 1740. He had been convicted of raping and murdering Sarah
Griffin and was therefore to be anatomised after execution. He was taken to
Surgeon’s Hall, where it was noticed that he was showing signs of life. He was
revived and returned to Newgate later that day. The authorities decided to
reprieve him and his sentence was commuted to transportation. There are
several other instances where people, including at least two women, survived
their hanging. See also the “Half hanged”.
The "Long
drop" or measured drop method of hanging.
It would appear that the concept of using a longer drop than the one to two
feet that Calcraft used had its origins in Ireland in the 1850's. The Rev. Dr. Samuel Haughton (who gave
evidence to the Aberdare
Committee) reported on the Irish practice in 1866. Drops of up to 14 feet 6 inches had been used,
as was noted by Haughton in the execution of Patrick Kilkenny on
the 20th of July 1865 at Kilmainham Gaol in Dublin. Haughton realised that a broken neck is what
hanging should try to aim to produce, and he was the first person to try and
develop a formula for achieving this result.
He published his findings in an article entitled “On Hanging, considered
from a Mechanical and Physiological point of view", in The London,
Edinburgh and Dublin Philosophical Magazine and Journal of Science, vol.
xxxii, of, 1866. He came to the
conclusion that one should “divide the weight of the patient in pounds into
2240, and the quotient will give the length of the long drop in
feet." It is noteworthy too that
America was using longer drops than Britain.
From the photos of the execution of the
It is assumed that William Marwood had read about Haughton’s theories and in
1872 he introduced the "long drop" to
The long drop method was designed to break the prisoner’s neck by
allowing them to fall a pre-determined distance and then be brought up with a
sharp jerk by the rope. At the end of the drop, the body is still accelerating
under the force of gravity but the head is constrained by the noose. If the
brass eyelet is positioned under the left angle of the jaw it throws the head
backwards, which combined with the downward momentum of the body, causes
dislocation of the upper cervical vertebrae, (ideally between the C2 & C3
vertebrae), crushing or severing the spinal cord causing instant deep
unconsciousness and rapid death. In
medical terms this is known as hyperflexion of the neck. The Phrenic nerve which controls the
diaphragm emerges between the C3 and C4 vertebrae and thus if the dislocation
occurs above C4 the person's breathing immediately ceases.
It is only in the last six inches or so of the drop that the physical damage to
the neck and vertebrae occur as the rope constricts the neck and the force is applied
to the vertebrae. The duration of this
part of the process is between 0.02 and 0.03 of a second depending upon the
length of drop given. Generally the
internal circumference of the noose is found to have reduced some five to seven
inches after the drop.
The accurately measured and worked out drop removed most of the prisoner's
physical suffering and made the whole process far less traumatic for the
officials.
The drops given by Marwood were usually between 4 and 10 feet, depending on the
weight and strength of the prisoner. In
the late 19th century, there was a considerable amount of experimentation to
determine the exact amount of drop and James Berry, who succeeded Marwood, had
several unfortunate experiences. The
hanging of Robert Goodale at Norwich on the 30th of November 1885, resulted in
complete decapitation by the force of the drop.
Moses Shrimpton was very nearly decapitated at Worcester in 1885. Where the drop was inadequate, the prisoner
still died of asphyxia and after Goodale, James Berry reduced the drops in two
or three subsequent hangings each failing to break the prisoner’s neck. For more on the evolution of the “long drop”
have a look at http://www.capitalpunishmentuk.org/longdrop.html
and http://www.capitalpunishmentuk.org/longdrop2.html
Drop tables.
In 1886, Lord Aberdare was commissioned to report into hanging in
After further consideration and experimentation the Home Office issued another
table of drops in 1892 which were considerably shorter than Aberdare’s
provisional ones and resulted in a force of 840 ft. lbs. being developed. This
was done presumably to avoid the decapitation and near decapitations that had
occurred with old table. However there are a number of properly documented
instances of substantially longer drops being given during this period.
It will be seen that the drops specified in the 1913 table are longer than
those in the 1892 one, as in some cases, the prisoner’s spinal cord had not
been severed by the shorter fall. The official execution report on Alfred
Stratton, who was hanged at Wandsworth in 1905, records evidence of asphyxia
and states that the neck was not broken.
This was not unusual at the time. Thus a revised table was issued in
1913, designed to produce a striking force of 1000 ft. lbs. The Home Office
issued a rule restricting all drops to between 5 feet and 8 feet 6 inches as
this had been found to be an adequate range. The drop was worked out and set to
the nearest inch (see below) to ensure the desired outcome. From around 1939 it
became customary to add a further nine inches to the drop calculated from the
1913 table, which would result in a force of around 1100 ft. lbs.
|
Aberdare
Committee table |
1892 table |
1913 table |
||||||
|
Weight of
prisoner (lbs) |
Drop in feet
& inches |
Ft. lbs.
energy developed |
Weight of
prisoner (lbs) |
Drop in feet
& inches |
Ft. lbs.
energy developed |
Weight of
prisoner (lbs) |
Drop in feet
& inches |
Ft. lbs.
energy developed |
|
98 |
11’ 5” |
1119 |
105 &
under |
8’ 0” |
840 |
- |
- |
|
|
112 |
10’ 0” |
1120 |
110 |
7’ 10” |
862 |
- |
- |
|
|
126 |
9’ 6” |
1197 |
115 |
7’ 3” |
834 |
118 &
under |
8’ 6” |
1003 |
|
140 |
9’ 0” |
1260 |
120 |
7’ 0” |
840 |
120 |
8’ 4” |
1000 |
|
154 |
8’ 2” |
1258 |
125 |
6’ 9” |
844 |
125 |
8’ 0” |
1000 |
|
168 |
7’ 6” |
1260 |
130 |
6’ 5” |
834 |
130 |
7’ 8” |
996 |
|
182 |
6’ 11” |
1259 |
135 |
6’ 2” |
833 |
135 |
7’ 5” |
1001 |
|
196 |
6’ 5” |
1258 |
140 |
6’ 0” |
840 |
140 |
7’ 2” |
1003 |
|
210 |
6’ 0” |
1260 |
145 |
5’ 9” |
834 |
145 |
6’ 11” |
1003 |
|
224 |
5’ 7” |
1251 |
150 |
5’ 7” |
838 |
150 |
6’ 8” |
999 |
|
238 |
5’ 3” |
1250 |
155 |
5’ 5” |
840 |
155 |
6’ 5” |
995 |
|
252 |
5’ 0” |
1260 |
160 |
5’ 3” |
853 |
160 |
6’ 3” |
1000 |
|
266 |
4’ 8” |
1241 |
165 |
5’ 1” |
839 |
165 |
6’ 1” |
1004 |
|
280 |
4’ 6” |
1260 |
170 |
4’ 11” |
836 |
170 |
5’ 10” |
992 |
|
|
|
|
175 |
4’ 9” |
831 |
175 |
5’ 8” |
991 |
|
|
|
|
180 |
4’ 8” |
839 |
180 |
5’ 7” |
1005 |
|
|
|
|
185 |
4’ 7” |
848 |
185 |
5’ 5” |
1002 |
|
|
|
|
190 |
4’5” |
839 |
190 |
5’ 3” |
998 |
|
|
|
|
195 |
4’ 4” |
844 |
195 |
5’ 2” |
1008 |
|
|
|
|
200 & over |
4’ 2” |
833 |
200 & over |
5’ 0” |
1000 |
The weight is that of the clothed prisoner in pounds, the day before
execution.
Note: 1 pound is 0.454 Kg, 1 foot is 30.5 cm and an inch is 2.5cm.
Setting the drop.
It was necessary to know the prisoner’s height and weight accurately and
to this end they were weighed and measured in their clothes by the prison staff
the day before execution and this information passed to the hangman. The length of drop was determined from the
drop table based upon the person’s weight in their clothes, combined with the
hangman’s experience and his direct observation of the prisoner.
The hangman selected a rope from the execution box. A line was painted on the noose end of the
rope marking the point where the internal circumference was 18 inches (457mm)
which in the 1890’s was deemed to be equivalent to the circumference of the
neck plus the distance from the eyelet to the top of the head after the drop.
The 18 inch figure allowed for the subsequent constriction of the neck.
Presumably this was increased where the person had a very thick neck.
From the painted line the hangman measured along the rope and tied a piece of
thread at the calculated drop distance. The rope was then attached to the
D shackle at the end of the chain hanging down from the beam. The chain
was adjusted so that the thread mark was at the same height as the top of the
prisoner’s head. A sandbag of approximately the same weight as the
prisoner was now attached to the noose and dropped through the trap and left
hanging over night to remove any stretch from the rope. The following
morning it was removed, the trap doors re-set and the rope re-adjusted to get
the thread mark back to the correct height.
The rope was allowed to re-gain a little of its elasticity before use.
The Home Office issued the following instructions to executioners for
the correct setting up of the drop. (There were minor revisions to these
instructions over the years, the last in the late 1950’s)
"Obtain a rope from Execution Box B making sure that the Gutta Percha
covering the splice at each end is un-cracked by previous use.
Find the required drop from the Official Table of Drops making allowance for
age and physique.
At the noose end of the rope measure thirteen inches (allowance for the neck)
from the centre of the brass eye, mark this by tying round the rope a piece of
pack-thread from Execution Box B.
From this mark measure along the rope the exact drop required (this must be to
the nearest quarter inch), mark again by a piece of pack-thread tied to the
rope.
Fasten the rope by pin and tackle to the chain suspended from the beams above,
and, using the adjusting bracket (see drawing) above so adjust the rope that
the mark showing the drop is exactly in accordance with the height of the
condemned man.
Take a piece of copper wire from Execution Box B, secure one end over the
shackle on the end of the chain, and bend up the other end to coincide with the
mark showing the drop.
Put the sandbag on the trap, making sure it is filled with sand of an
equivalent weight to the condemned man. (See photo)
Put the noose around the neck of the sandbag and drop the bag in the presence
of the governor.
The bag is left hanging until two hours before the time of execution the next
morning. At this time examine the mark on the rope and copper wire to see how
much the rope has stretched. Any stretch must be made good by adjusting the
drop.
Lift the sandbag, pull up the trapdoor by means of chains and pulley blocks,
set the operating lever and put in the three-quarter safety pin which goes
through the lever brackets to prevent the lever being accidentally moved.
Coil the rope ready and tie the coil with pack-thread leaving the noose
suspended at the height of the condemned man's chest. All is now ready."
After the drop fell.
In the 19th and 20th centuries, once the person was suspended they were
left hanging for one hour. This was to ensure total death (see surviving the
gallows above) and in the days of public hangings to provide a continuing
spectacle for the crowd. At the end of the hour the pinioning straps were
removed. A block and tackle were attached to the beam and a rope was placed
around the person’s body, under the arms and they were drawn up to enable the
removal of the noose and hood. The body
was then undressed, washed if necessary and lowered into a coffin or trolley
for inquest. In
The 1947 Royal Commission on Capital Punishment recommended that the practice
of leaving the body on the rope for an hour be discontinued and that the person
be removed once the prison doctor had certified death which normally took place
some 20 minutes after the drop had fallen. It is not precisely clear when this
practice started but it is thought to be in the later 1950’s. However in 1959 this was revised to require
the body to hang for 45 minutes after Joseph Chrimes showed signs of life after
being taken down after his heart had apparently stopped, at Pentonville on the
28th of April 1959. It was also the
practice, certainly as late as 1961, to determine the amount by which the
prisoner’s neck had been stretched by measuring the distance from their heels
to the top of the platform and comparing this with the drop given The two
figures were then written onto the
Post-mortem Punishments.
A survey of 1150 murder convictions between 1752 and 1832 revealed that 908
persons (79%) were dissected after execution, 147 (13%) were gibbeted or hanged
in chains, 93 (8%) were reprieved and 2 died in prison.
Dissection.
The 1751 "Act for the better preventing the horrid Crime of Murder",
usually known as the "Murder Act", mandated the dissection (also
known as anatomisation) of the bodies of executed murderers (including females
ones) or gibbeting for male murderers in particularly heinous cases. It came
into force on the 1st of June 1752 and seventeen year old Thomas Wilford, who
had stabbed to death his wife of just one week, was the first to suffer
dissection under this Act on the 22nd of June 1752, having been first hanged at
Tyburn. The words of his sentence were as follows : "Thomas Wilford, you
stand convicted of the horrid and unnatural crime of murdering Sarah, your
wife. This Court doth adjudge that you be taken back to the place from whence
you came, and there to be fed on bread and water till Wednesday next, when you
are to be taken to the common place of execution, and there hanged by the neck
until you are dead; after which your body is to be publicly dissected and
anatomised, agreeable to an Act of Parliament in that case made and provided;
and may God Almighty have mercy on your soul."
Fights often broke out beneath the gallows between the dissectionists and the
prisoners’ relatives over custody of the body. In
Gibbeting.
Prior to 1834, where the courts wished to make a particular example of a
criminal, e.g. a highwayman, mail robber or murderer, they could order the
additional punishment of gibbeting (also known as hanging in chains). After the
hanging, the prisoner would be stripped and their body dipped into molten pitch
or tar and then, when it had cooled, be re-dressed and placed into an iron cage
that surrounded the head, torso and upper legs. The cage was riveted together
and then suspended from either the original gallows or a purpose built gibbet.
The body was left as a grim reminder to local people and could stay on the
gibbet for a year or more until it rotted away or was eaten by birds,
etc. Gibbets were typically erected either in prominent places such as
crossroads or hill tops at or near the site of the crime. One of the earliest
recorded instances of gibbeting took place in August 1381. Gibbeting and
hanging in chains became increasingly used in the 17th and 18th centuries. The
first recorded hanging in chains in Scotland was in March 1637 when a man called
McGregor, who was a robber and murderer, was ordered to stay on "the
gallowlee till his corpse rot". Gibbeting was formally legalised in
Britain by the Murder Act of 1752 and was regularly used up to 1834.
William Jobling was gibbeted after his execution at Durham on the 3rd of August
1832, for the murder of a policeman during a riot. His gibbet was erected at
the place of the crime at Jarrow Slake and is described as being formed from a
square piece of oak, 21 feet long and about 3 feet in diameter with strong bars
of iron up each side. The post was fixed into a 1-1/2 ton stone base, sunk into
the slake. Jobling's body was hoisted up to the top of the post and left as a
warning to the populace. Twenty one year old James Cook became the last man to
suffer this fate when he was gibbeted at Leicester on the 10th of August 1832
for the murder of John Paas. From the prisoner’s point of view although
their death would be no worse, being gibbeted was a major additional punishment
as it was widely believed that one could not go to heaven without a body at
this time.
Burial.
From 1752 the bodies of executed murderers were not returned to their relatives
for burial. Murder was considered to be
a specially heinous crime and the government did not want the bodies of
murderers to have a full funeral, be buried in consecrated ground or to
"lay in state". Nor I suspect did they really want families to know
what had really happened to their loved ones once executions became private.
On balance it was
probably the sensible decision not to release the bodies. Many families
would have felt a great sense of shame about one their number being
executed for committing murder, many would have also been too poor to afford a
funeral and perhaps a few would have sought to profit from the situation by
exhibiting or selling the body or involving the press in some way. Also,
particularly where a full autopsy had been carried out (in 20th century London
executions) the body would hardly have been a pretty sight.
Up to 1832, except in a case of murderer where the court had ordered
dissection or gibbeting (see above), it was usual for the criminal's body to be
claimed by friends or relatives for burial. This burial could take place
in consecrated ground. In earlier times (pre 1752) it was not unusual for
murderers to be buried under the gallows on which they had suffered.
Dissection was removed from the statute book on the 1st of August 1832,
by the Anatomy Act. The same act directed that the bodies of all executed
criminals belonged to the Crown and were now to be buried in the prison grounds
in unmarked graves, often several to a grave to save space. Typically the
person was placed into a cheap pine coffin, or even a sack and covered with
quicklime which was thought to hasten the process of decomposition of the
body. This practice was stopped in 1923, as the quicklime was found to
have a preserving effect. The Capital Punishment Amendment Act of 1868
required that a formal inquest be held after an execution and that, in accordance
with their sentence the prisoner be buried within the “precincts” of the prison
unless directed otherwise by the sheriff of the county. This practice
continued up to abolition. After the inquest the body was placed into the
coffin which had large holes bored in the sides and ends. The burial
normally took place at lunchtime and was carried out by prison officers and
overseen by the chaplain who conducted a simple burial service. The
position of the grave was recorded in the Burial Register for the prison.
Prisons in major cities soon had quite large graveyard areas. Where prisons
were demolished for redevelopment the bodies were removed and buried elsewhere,
normally in consecrated ground. Here are the Home
Office instructions for the burial of executed prisoners.
Trace the progress of execution by hanging in
A typical execution in the mid 1750's at Tyburn.
Criminals were tried and then sentenced to death in groups at the Old
Bailey Sessions before being returned to Newgate prison to await their fate. A
few weeks later after the Recorder’s Report had been considered by the King and
Privy Council, there would be a “hanging day” when all those sentenced to death
for crimes other than murder and not reprieved would be executed. The execution
process began at around 7 o'clock in the morning when the condemned men and
women would be led in fetters (handcuffs and leg-irons) into the Press Yard in
Newgate. Here the blacksmith would remove the fetters and the Yeoman of the
Halter would tie the criminals' hands in front of them (so that they were able
to pray when they reached Tyburn) and place the rope (or halter, as it was
known) round their necks, coiling the free end round their bodies. They might
typically be seven men, not one convicted of murder or rape, but of crimes such
as highway robbery, theft or burglary and uttering, and perhaps one woman
convicted of privately stealing, highway robbery or theft from a dwelling
house. When the pinioning was completed, they were placed in open horse drawn
carts sitting on their coffins and the procession consisting of the Under
Sheriff, the Ordinary (Newgate's prison chaplain), the hangman and his
assistants, and a troop of javelin men started out for Tyburn about two miles
away. The streets would be lined with crowds, especially if the criminals were
particularly notorious, and there would often be insults and more solid objects
hurled at them and their escorts on the way. A stop was often made at St.
Sepulchre's Church and two public houses along the way where the criminals were
customarily given a drink. If the prisoner was wealthy, they might be permitted
to be driven to Tyburn in a morning coach, as happened with Earl Ferrers and
Jenny Diver, thus sparing them from the insults of the crowds. It was normal
for better off criminals to wear their best clothes for their execution.
On arrival at Tyburn, often some three hours later, the condemned were greeted
by a large unruly crowd who had come to watch the spectacle - it was considered
an excellent day out. The carts were each backed under one of the three beams
of the gallows and the prisoners were positioned at the tail of the cart and
tied up to the beam with only a small amount of slack left in the rope. The
Ordinary would pray with them and when he had finished, the hangman pulled
white night caps over their faces.
When everything was ready, the horses were whipped away leaving the prisoners
suspended. They would only have a few inches of drop and thus many of them
would writhe in agony for some moments. The hangman, his assistants and
sometimes the prisoners' relatives might pull on the prisoners' legs to hasten
their end. After half an hour or so, the bodies were cut down and claimed by
friends and relatives or in the case of murderers, sent for dissection at
Surgeons' Hall. For more detail on execution at Tyburn, go to Being hanged at Tyburn
or read about the case of Jenny Diver who
was hanged there with 19 others on the 18th of March 1741.
Multiple executions at Newgate in 1820.
In 1820, there were 42 hangings at Newgate, all carried out by James
Foxen. Not one of these was for murder. Twelve were for "uttering"
forged notes, twelve for robbery or burglary, and five for highway robbery. At
this time, murderers, rapists, arsonists, forgers, coiners and highwaymen were
virtually always executed and were seldom offered a pardon conditional upon
transportation to Australia. The largest multiple execution in this year was
that of eight men on the 11th of December and the smallest was of three men on
the 24th of October. Sarah Price was the only woman to suffer in 1820,
alongside six men, for "uttering" forged bank notes or coins on the
5th of December.
On the eve of a hanging, the gallows was brought out by a team of horses and
placed in front of the Debtor's Door of Newgate. Large crowds gathered around
it and it was guarded by Sheriff’s officers with pikes. Wealthy people could
pay as much as £10 for a seat in a window overlooking the gallows at the
hanging of a notorious criminal. At around 7.30 a.m., the condemned prisoners
were led from their cells into the Press Yard where the Sheriff and the
Ordinary (prison chaplain) would meet them. The hangman and his assistant bound
their wrists in front of them with cord and also placed a cord round their body
and arms at the elbows. The bell of St. Sepulchre’s church began tolling at
7.45 a.m. The prisoners were led across the Yard and the passages within
Newgate and then out through the Debtor's Door where they climbed the steps up
to the platform. There would be shouts of "hats off" in the crowd.
This was not out of respect for those about to die, but rather because the
people further back demanded those at the front remove their hats so as not to
obscure their view.
Once assembled on the drop, the hangman would put the nooses round their necks
while they prayed with the Ordinary and when they had finished he placed the
white hoods over them. Female prisoners would have their dress bound around
their legs for the sake of decency but the men's legs were left free. When the
prayers had finished, the Ordinary gave the signal and Foxen moved the lever
which was connected to a drawbar under the trap and caused it to fall with a
loud crash, the prisoners dropping 12-18 inches and usually writhing and
struggling for some seconds before relaxing and becoming still. If their bodies
continued to struggle, The dangling bodies were left to hang for an hour.
Execution Broadsides were sold among the crowd, purporting to give the last
confessions of the condemned. These were like tabloid newspapers of the day and
were often total fabrication, as they were printed prior to the execution. They
could be unused if a reprieve was granted after printing, not an uncommon
occurrence at this time. They would show a stylised wood cut picture of the
hanging and details of the crime and the confession of the criminal. Click the
link for further information on Newgate
prison.
A typical execution in the 1850's at Lancaster
Castle.
By this time, executions were conducted with more ceremony so as to
produce a grim and solemn reminder of the punishment for the most serious
crimes (almost all those hanged by now were murderers).
The gallows at Lancaster was of the balcony pattern and was erected for each
hanging outside the French windows on the first floor of what was known as the
"Hanging corner". Across on the bank of what was originally the
Castle moat would be anything up to 6,000 people who had come to watch,
including organised school parties! Between 1799 and 1865, a total of 215
people were executed here. 131 of these hangings were carried out by
Lancaster's own hangman, "Old Ned" Barlow.
A little before 8 o'clock the prison bell would start tolling and the criminal
would be led up from the cells into the "Drop Room" (preparation
room) where the Governor, the Sheriff, the chaplain, the hangman (usually
Calcraft at this time) and several warders would be waiting for him. Calcraft
pinioned the prisoner’s wrists and allowed him a few moments to pray with the
chaplain before the window was opened to reveal the gallows onto which he would
now be led by the warders.
Once on the drop, Calcraft placed a white hood over the condemned's head and a
simple noose around the neck (one of Calcraft's nooses is on show within the
castle (see picture.) The warders, standing on boards
positioned across the drop, held the prisoner whilst Calcraft went downstairs
and withdrew the bolt to release the trapdoors. Calcraft used very short drops
so the prisoner could take several minutes to go limp. It would have been
reported in the press that they "died hard".
A black flag was hoisted over the Castle and the body left to hang for a full
hour before being taken down and bought in through a first floor window beneath
the trap for burial within the prison grounds. In some cases, a plaster cast
would be made of the criminal's head for use in phrenological experiments. Some
of these still survive. Here
is a picture of the death mask of William Corder who was hanged at
Stephen Burke became the last person to suffer in public at Lancaster, on March
the 25th, 1865, when he was hanged for the murder of his wife.
Execution by the “long drop” at Wandsworth in 1879.
Kate Webster became the first and only woman to be executed at
Wandsworth prison in London. She was hanged by William Marwood on the
morning of Tuesday, the 29th of July 1879. At 8.45 a.m., the prison bell
started to toll and a few minutes before 9.00 a.m. the Under Sheriff, the
prison governor, Captain Colville, the prison doctor, two male warders and
Marwood formed up outside her cell. Inside Kate was being ministered to by
Father McEnrey and attended by two female wardresses. The governor entered her
cell and told her that it was time and she was led out between the two male
warders, accompanied by Father McEnrey, across the yard to the purpose built
execution shed, which was nicknamed the "Cold Meat Shed". As Kate
entered the shed, she would have been able to see the large white painted
gallows with the rope dangling in front of her with its simple noose laying on the
trapdoors. Marwood stopped her on the chalk mark on the double trapdoors and
placed a leather body belt round her waist to which he secured her wrists,
while probably one of the warders would have strapped her ankles with a leather
strap. She was not pinioned in her cell, as became the normal practice later.
She was supported on the trap by the two male warders standing on plank
bridges, set across it. This had been the normal practice for some years, in
case the prisoner fainted or struggled at the last moment. Marwood placed the
white hood over her head and adjusted the noose, leaving the free rope running
down her back. Her last words were, "Lord, have mercy upon me". He
quickly stepped to the side and pulled the lever, Kate plummeting down some 8
feet into the brick lined pit below. Kate's body was left to hang for the usual
hour before being taken down and prepared for burial. It is probable that two
newspaper reporters would have been allowed to attend - it was usual at this
time for the press to be admitted. They would have been expected to report that
the execution had been carried out "expeditiously". The whole process
would have taken around two to three minutes in those days and was considered
vastly more humane than Calcraft's executions.
The black flag was hoisted on the flag pole above the main gate, where a small
crowd of people had gathered and the prison bell tolled. They would have seen
and heard nothing and yet these rather pointless gatherings continued outside
prisons during executions until abolition. Later in the day, her body was
buried in an unmarked grave in one of the exercise yards. Click here for a
detailed account of Kate’s story
A typical execution in the early 1900's at Durham.
The press were still generally permitted to attend male executions up to
around the beginning of World War I in most prisons. Thus we have the report of
the hanging of Abel Atherton at Durham on the 8th of December 1909. Henry
Pierrepoint was the executioner. At 7.50 a.m. that Wednesday morning, the Under
Sheriff entered the prison with three newspaper reporters who were stationed in
front of the execution shed. Atherton was brought to the doctor's room by two
warders where his hands were pinioned and then led forward to the gallows in a
procession consisting of the Chief Warder, the Chaplain, Atherton, held by a
warder on either side, Pierrepoint and his assistant, William Willis, the
Principal Warder, the governor, the prison surgeon and finally another warder.
All but the Chaplain entered the shed and once Atherton was on the drop, Willis
dropped to his knees behind him to pinion his legs while Pierrepoint placed the
noose over his head and adjusted it before pulling the white hood over him.
(Pierrepoint was unusual in this - all other 20th century hangmen put the hood
on first followed by the noose.) As the nearby Assize Courts clock began
striking the hour Pierrepoint released the trap giving Atherton a drop of 7
feet 3 inches. The execution was over before the clock finished striking and
the press men who looked down into the pit reported that Atherton's death was
instantaneous and that he was hanging perfectly still. The prison bell
began tolling and the execution shed was locked up leaving Atherton suspended
on the rope for the customary hour. The official notice of the execution was
posted on the prison gate and an inquest carried out later in the morning. Click here for a history
of
A typical execution in the 1950's in a British county
prison.
Executions were normally carried out at 9 a.m. in London and 8 a.m. in
the rest of the country and followed a standard set of rules laid down by the
Home Office. A small number of people were required by law to be present,
notably the Governor of the prison, the Sheriff or Under Sheriff of the county,
the prison doctor, the prison chaplain or a priest of the prisoner’s religion,
two or more warders plus, of course, the hangman and his assistant.
An execution box containing two ropes (one new and one used), a white hood,
pinioning straps, etc. was sent by train from Pentonville prison in London.
The prisoner was weighed and their height measured the day before the execution
and the hangman would secretly view the person to enable him to calculate the
correct drop from their weight and physical appearance.
The length of the drop was carefully set and the gallows tested, whilst the
prisoner was out of their cell, using a bag of sand, of approximately the same
weight as them, which would be left on the rope overnight to remove any
stretch. Around 7 a.m., the executioners would re-set the trapdoors and make a
final adjustment to the length of the drop. The rope was coiled up and secured
with a piece of thread so that the noose was at chest level to prevent the
inmate falling over it.
The prisoner was given his or her own clothes to wear and would be attended by
a priest and if necessary, the prison doctor. If the condemned person appeared
to need it, the doctor would give them a glass of brandy to help them cope but
they were not given tranquillisers.
Just before the appointed hour the execution team formed up outside the
condemned cell and, on the signal from the Governor, the hangman entered the
cell and strapped the prisoner's hands behind their back with a double buckle leather
strap. The hangman went straight to the gallows and the prisoner followed,
supported by a warder on each side. They typically went through a second door
in the condemned cell which was normally hidden by a bookcase or wardrobe that was
slid back to reveal a door that opened into the execution room. The prisoner
was led onto the trapdoors which had a "T" chalked on them to
position their feet exactly over the middle of the trap. In case they fainted
at the last moment, they were supported by the two prison officers standing on plank
bridges (boards across the trap) and holding onto ropes attached to the gallows
beam with their free hands. The hangman pulled the white hood over the
prisoner's head and positioned the noose round the neck whilst the assistant
strapped their ankles. As soon as all was ready, the hangman removed the safety
pin from the base of the operating lever and pushed it to release the
trapdoors. The prisoner dropped through the trap and would be left hanging
motionless in the cell below, unconscious, and with their neck broken. The
whole process would have occupied about the same length of time as it has taken
you to read this paragraph - somewhere between 15 and 20 seconds. (Click here to see a photo
of a man about to be hanged - this is what you would have seen had you been in
the execution chamber, as the officials stood at the back just inside the
door). Everything was done to make the execution as speedy and humane as
possible so as to spare both the prisoner and the staff, who had to witness it,
from any unnecessary distress. Once the signal had been given by the governor
to enter the condemned cell, the hangman was in total charge of the proceedings
and did not have to wait for a further signal from the governor before the
releasing the trap, thus the prisoner did not to have to wait a moment longer
than was necessary, hooded and noosed.
When the prisoner was suspended, the prison doctor listened to their
chest with a stethoscope and would expect to hear an unusual rhythm and
progressively weakening heartbeat for a few minutes. When he was satisfied that
the person was dead, the execution cell was locked up for an hour before the
executioners returned to remove the body and prepare it for the autopsy. Up to
1961, the executioners had to measure how much the neck had been stretched by
the hanging. It was often 1- 2 inches, 25-50 mm. . An execution report (Form
LPC4) was prepared which recorded this detail together with drop given and
other details of the prisoner. Click here to see one.
The body would show marks of suspension, elongation of the neck and
occasionally traces of urine and semen.
There was usually a crowd outside the prison on the morning of a hanging and a
notice of execution was posted on the main gate of the prison once death had
been certified. (See
photo). The autopsy would be carried out after the body was removed from
the rope and the formal inquest usually took place later that morning. Click here to see
the autopsy report of Ruth Ellis. This is the inquest report on her "Thirteenth July 1955 at H. M. Prison,
Holloway N7": Ruth Ellis, Female, 28 years, a Club Manageress of Egerton
Gardens, Kensington, London - Cause of Death - "Injuries to the central
nervous system consequent upon judicial hanging." Her death was registered
on the14th of July 1955 (the day after the execution) on the basis of a
Certificate issued by J. Milner Helme, the then Coroner for the City of London,
following an Inquest held by him on the 13th of July 1955. Her death was
registered in the Registration District of Islington, Sub-district of Tufnell
as entry No. 25 for the September Quarter 1955. After the autopsy and inquest,
the prisoner was buried within the walls of the prison, usually at lunchtime on
the day of execution.
Capital crimes.
At the beginning of the 19th century, there were no fewer than 222
capital crimes, including such terrible offences as impersonating a Chelsea
pensioner and damaging London Bridge! One reason why the number of capital
crimes was so high was due to the way that particular offences were broken down
into specific crimes. For instance stealing in a shop, a dwelling house, a warehouse
and a brothel was each a separate offence. Similarly with arson, burning down a
house was distinguished from burning a hayrick. It should be noted that
in practice, there were only about seventeen general offences for which a death
sentence was generally carried out in the 18th and early 19th centuries. These
included murder, attempted murder, arson, rape, sodomy, forgery, uttering
(passing forged or counterfeit monies or bills) coining, robbery, highway
robbery (in many cases, this was the offence of street robbery, that we would
now call mugging), housebreaking, robbery in a dwelling house, returning from
transportation, cutting and maiming (grievous bodily harm) and horse, cattle or
sheep stealing. For all the other capital offences, transportation to America
or Australia was generally substituted for execution.
From the 1820’s, the number of capital crimes began to be rapidly
reduced and were down to sixteen by 1837. Post 1837 only five people were
to hang for a crime other than murder, they had been convicted of attempted
murder. The Criminal Law Consolidation Act of 1861 reduced the number of
capital crimes to four, viz., murder, High Treason, arson in a Royal Dockyard,
and piracy. In reality all executions from September 1861 were for murder,
except in time of war. This situation continued until 1957 when the
Homicide Act of that year divided murder into two offences - capital and
non-capital.
The role of the judges.
The judiciary were sent out on the six Court Circuits in
You may have heard the term “Hanging Judges” but this is really rather
misplaced - the law simply did not allow judges the option of passing a lesser
sentence. We have never had discretionary death sentences in British law. It is possible that some judges were less
likely to recommend a reprieve than others but that is about all. However they never had the final say – it was
always left to others.
The sentence of death.
For crimes for
which the death sentence was mandatory e.g. for the huge number of capital
crimes prior to 1838 and for persons found guilty of murder from 1861 to 1957,
the prisoner would be asked if they had anything to say why sentence of death
should not be pronounced upon them. A woman might "plead her belly,"
i.e. that she was pregnant and up to 1827, men could demand "benefit of
clergy" which was a wonderful excuse cooked up by the church to ensure
that clerics could not be executed for most offences. However, if neither of
these excuses were available, the judge (or his chaplain) would place the
"black cap" a nine inch square of black silk, on his head and proceed
to pronounce sentence. Click
here for a picture of a judge wearing the "black cap".
Up to 1948 the judge would say "(full name of prisoner) you will be taken
hence to the prison in which you were last confined and from there to a place
of execution where you will be hanged by the neck until you are dead and
thereafter your body buried within the precincts of the prison and may the Lord
have mercy upon your soul". Listen to these unique
words here. A slight modification was made in 1902, removing the words “the
prison in which you were last confined” and substituting “lawful prison”. Around 1947 the judiciary decided that the
sentence be modified by the substitution of the words "suffer death by hanging"
for "be hanged by the neck until dead" and this sentence continued to
be used for those convicted of capital murder up to 1956. Here is the modified version
being pronounced. One can hardly imagine what the prisoner must have felt
hearing these dread words.
The wording was further modified after 1957 to substitute “suffer death in the
manner authorized by law” and the reference to hanging as the method and to
burial were removed. Note that the sentence did not change with the ending of
public execution or the introduction of the measured drop. The requirement for
burial within the precincts of the prison was introduced by the Criminal Law
Consolidation Act of 1861. Prior to that
the bodies of non murderers could be returned to their families for burial.
The Murder Act of 1752 specified that execution take place two days after
sentence, unless the third day was a Sunday in which case it would be held over
until the Monday. From 1834, a minimum of two Sundays had to elapse before the
sentence was carried out, and from 1868 onwards, three Sundays. From 1902, this
was reinforced by the Home Office, which suggested Tuesday as the day for
execution. In some cases, 20th century prisoners spent longer in the condemned
cell due to waiting for their appeal hearing, but many condemned chose not to
appeal and their execution was frequently carried out within the three week
period.
The role of the King and Privy Council.
Once a death sentence had been passed the trial judge had to notify the
Privy Council by letter. In this letter he was able to make his private
recommendations as to whether the person should hang or not. The King
presided over what were known as “hanging cabinets” where together with members
of the Privy Council, the fate of each condemned person was decided. They
could be offered a conditional pardon (reprieve) on condition of transportation
to
This only applied to those convicted of felonies, other than murder. Murderers were to be hanged within 48 or 72
hours under the provisions of the Murder Act of 1751.
The Home Office takes over.
When Queen Victoria ascended to the throne in 1837 it was not considered
acceptable for a 19 year old girl to preside over “hanging cabinets” and so the
duty was delegated to the Home Secretary who administered the Royal Prerogative
of Mercy on her behalf. This situation continued until abolition. The trial
judge continued to submit his report on each capital case and this was
considered by Home Office officials and was available to the Home Secretary.
The Home Secretary was advised by his permanent officials but was allowed to
read the case papers for himself and had the final say. It is notable that
reprieves were very rare in cases of murder by poisoning or shooting. If
there was to be no reprieve the Home Secretary would endorse the prisoner’s
file with the words “The law must take its course”. There was no formal
death warrant issued post 1837, the judge’s sentence being deemed
sufficient. Where there was no reprieve
the prison governor had to communicate the news to the prisoner verbally.
In the 20th century, 1,485 death sentences were passed in England and Wales of
which 755 were carried out. The ratio of death sentences to executions was
therefore 1.95:1. Those who were reprieved had their sentences commuted to
"life in prison" although this normally did not mean that they served
the rest of their lives behind bars. In reality few served more than 12 years
in practice but were subject to supervision upon release for the rest of their
lives.
The Home Office exercised increasing control over the conduct of executions
after the passing of The Prison Act of 1877 and regularly circulated instructions
to prison governors on all aspects of the subject. The Prison
Commissioners were responsible for providing the execution equipment from 1891
on for maintaining the list of approved executioners from which the Sheriff of
the county was able to choose and assistants whom the governor could appoint.
Where there was a question as to the prisoner’s sanity the Home Secretary was
required by the Criminal Lunatics Act of 1884. to order a medical examination
of the person by two qualified medical practitioners and this was frequently
done in the 20th century and could include the taking of an
electro-encephalograph if necessary.
Places of execution.
Please click
here for a full listing of execution sites and prisons. Here is a list of
20th century the places of execution used in the 20th century
The Condemned Cell/Condemned Suite.
Once a person had been sentenced to death they were housed in the
condemned cell of the County prison in which they had been previously been
confined. Here is a drawing of the condemned cell in Newgate
prison in the late 1800's. One can see that it comprises two standard cells
knocked into one and has fairly minimal facilities. The average time a prisoner
would have spent here was three weeks, and they would have been looked after
round the clock by teams of two or three warders. In some prisons the Victorian
condemned cell would be the largest and most comfortable and often the only one
with a fireplace.
From around 1917 till the early 1930’s those prisons which were still to have
executions had condemned suites constructed.
At the same time a number of county prisons lost their execution
chambers as modern transport facilities rendered it unnecessary for every
county to have an execution facility. By
the end of World War II there would be just seventeen prisons in
In
The drawing of the later 20th century condemned suite at Holloway shows
the arrangement of the prisoner's living quarters, visitor's area and proximity
to the gallows. (Click here) The living area was normally two or three
standard cells knocked into one and was usually no more than 15 feet from the
gallows itself. Having the condemned cell on the first floor obviated the need
for the pinioned prisoner to climb steps to the gallows. The wardrobe concealed
the door to the execution chamber and was pushed out of the way by a warder at
the last moment. Not all British prisons had the condemned cell in such close
proximity to the gallows, however.
The warders did their best to look after the prisoner during their time in the
condemned cell and would play cards and games such as dominos with them to pass
the time. Condemned inmates were allowed
cigarettes or tobacco and even a small ration of beer. They were also allowed reading materials
although any reference to their case was removed from newspapers.
The role of the sheriff of the
county.
Each county had a High Sheriff who was appointed for a year and had the
responsibility, amongst other things, of carrying out the punishments ordered
by the courts. In capital cases it was the sheriff’s responsibility to
organise the execution and appoint the hangman from the approved list, although
this was usually delegated to an Under Sheriff. He had to be present at
the execution and also had to pay the hangman and later the assistant(s) and
then claim the money back through “sheriff’s cravings” from the Home
Office. The sheriff would proceed with the foregoing, irrespective of the
fact that there may be a reprieve, even at the last minute.
The Capital Punishment (Amendment) Act of 1868 required that the High Sheriff
or the Under Sheriff be present at the execution. From 1891 the sheriff appointed the hangman
from the Home Office list. Prior to that the hangman for London was
generally used, i.e. James Berry, William Marwood and William Calcraft.
Before Calcraft some counties still had their own hangman. The sheriff
had the authority to admit witnesses and newspaper reporters to executions
after they became private in 1868. This practice had ceased in most
places by the early 1900’s and entirely by 1934. After the execution it
was the sheriff’s duty to notify the Home Secretary that the execution had
taken place.
The role of the prison doctor.
The Capital Punishment (Amendment) Act of 1868 required that the prison
doctor be present at the hanging and examine the body of the prisoner after
execution to determine that death had occurred and then sign a certificate to
that effect. He would look after the
prisoner’s physical wellbeing up to the time of execution and could also have a
say on the length of drop to be given to a particular prisoner. He could
prescribe them a special diet in the condemned cell and also a glass of brandy
immediately before the hanging.
The role of the prison governor and
prison officers.
The governor of the prison had responsibility for the security of the
prisoner between sentence and execution and for preventing their suicide as far
as possible by ensuring that there were adequate officers to look after
them. It was normally the governor’s painful duty to tell the person that
there had not been a reprieve and thus the execution was to take place on such
and such a day. The governor appointed the assistant executioner(s) and
had to be present at the hanging. Not all governors found this an easy task,
the governor of Bristol Gaol fainted during the execution of 17 year old Sarah
Thomas on
On the 30th of July 1847, Mary Ann Milner committed
suicide in the condemned cell at
In his book "At Her Majesty's Pleasure",
Robert Douglas recalls his duties as a Capital Charge Officer when he was sent
from HMP Birmingham to HMP Bristol to look after Russell Pascoe in the weeks
before his hanging in 1963. Seemingly it was standard procedure to send out for
warders from elsewhere on such occasions.
The role of the chaplain or
Ordinary at Newgate.
Certainly by the 16th century it was normal for the church to play a
part in executions. It was the practice, least from the 18th century, that when
a person was sentenced to death, the judge would finish the sentence with the
words, "May the Lord have mercy upon your soul" to which the chaplain
would add "Amen".
Whereas the prison doctor looked after the prisoner’s physical health it was
for the chaplain to look after their spiritual health and prepare them to meet
their Maker. Confession and repentance was seen as vitally important for
their spiritual wellbeing in the next world, as they could still go to Heaven
if they genuinely repented. The prison chaplain, or in the case of
Newgate, the Ordinary, as its chaplain was known, would spend time ministering
to the person’s spiritual needs in the condemned cell and trying to extract a
confession. Sometimes the chaplain would make persistent efforts to obtain a
confession right up to the last moment.
The Royal Commission on Capital Punishment confirmed that there was no
requirement for the chaplain to divulge any confession he might hear to the
Home Office but that he should inform the Home Office of anything the prisoner
said to him that might lead to a reprieve.
In the centre of the chapel in Newgate was the Condemned Pew, a large black
painted enclosure with seats for the prisoners, just in front of the pulpit. On
the Sunday preceding their execution, prisoners under sentence of death had to
endure the "Condemned Sermon" and hear the burial service read to
them. Wealthy visitors could come and attend this service. Several Lords were
present at the service held in 1840 for Francis Courvoisier, a Swiss valet, who
had murdered his employer, Lord William Russell. It is unclear when this
practice died out.
Religious tracts were often sent to prisoners by well meaning people in the
19th century.
Old drawings of 19th and early 20th century executions often show a robed
chaplain reading from a prayer book. They would read the words of the burial
service during the procession to the gallows and continue to pray with the
prisoner(s) until the drop fell.
In the 20th century, the prisoner could request a minister of their own
religion to visit them in the condemned cell and pray with them and also to be
present at the execution. The priest’s were often the only words spoken
during a modern private British hanging. The executioner and officials
typically said nothing at all on the gallows and the prisoner was not invited
to speak.
Up till the 1950's, the Anglican church largely supported capital punishment
and saw a role for themselves in the administration of it. It was not
unusual for the prisoner to take up religion in their last weeks on this earth
and it is probable that many prisoners valued the support of a priest through
their ordeal, as someone who was "on their side". Charlotte Bryant was said to be
much comforted by the ministrations of Father Barney during her period in
The role of the hangman and his assistants.
In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries the hangman was often a condemned
criminal themselves who had been reprieved on condition that they executed the
others condemned at that assize. Thus the names of very few provincial
hangmen are known for this period.
Prior to the resignation of James Berry in 1892, anyone could apply to a prison
governor to carry out at an execution. Thus, for instance, William
Marwood simply applied to the governor of Lincoln Gaol to hang William Frederick Horry.
Prior to Marwood there was very little science applied to hanging and it was
really a question of the hangman having the stomach for the job rather than any
specific skill. When Berry departed the Home Office decided that prospective
hangmen should attend for interviews with prison governors. Several were
interviewed at London’s Millbank prison to be Berry’s successor. The
Aberdare Committee had recommended that there be a qualified assistant at every
execution who could take over if required. This didn’t really get
implemented until after
Up to 1888 the hangman supplied his own rope and pinioning straps and after the
execution was also allowed to take the prisoner’s clothes and retain the rope.
In notorious murder cases these items could be sold for a considerable sum to
Madame Tussauds wax works or to morbid members of the public.
From 1901 proper training was given to applicants, firstly at Newgate
and then after it closed in 1903, at Pentonville prison. This lasted a
week and taught the correct procedures for working out the drop and conducting
a hanging. At the same time the officials were also able to assess the
applicant’s personality and their motives for wanting the job. Once qualified
they would be added to the official list and work initially in the role of
assistant until they had amassed sufficient experience to take over as
principal. Not all assistants ever did graduate to principals however,
perhaps they had no wish to.
Those who did were solely responsible for setting up the drop, pinioning the
prisoner and carrying out the hanging. They were required to be at the
prison by 4.00 p.m. on the day prior to the execution. Once there they
would arrange to take a look at the prisoner to assess their physical features
and obtain their weight and height from the prison doctor to enable them to
calculate the drop. The assistant’s duties were to help the hangman set
up the equipment and the drop and to strap the prisoner’s legs. The hangmen did
everything else and was in full charge from the moment he entered the condemned
cell. After the execution the hangman and assistant were normally
responsible for taking the body down and preparing it for inquest where
required. Having tidied the gallows and packed the rest of the equipment
back into the execution boxes they were then free to leave the prison.
They had to sign the Official Secrets Act and were not allowed to divulge any
details of the execution to the public or the press. For more details on the
individual hangmen click
here.
The paperwork
and administration of judicial hanging.
When a person was sentenced to death post 1868 a written copy of the sentence,
signed by the Clerk of the Court was sent to the prison, along with the
prisoner, as the warrant to admit the prisoner and place them in the condemned
cell. This document gave no date for the execution. It should be noted that
there was no other formal death warrant issued post 1837.
On the 5th of January 1902 the Home Office issued another set of rules
for carrying out executions, which read as follows. (The use of upper case letters
is as in the original document)
For the sake of uniformity it is recommended that Execution should take place
in the week following the third Sunday after the day on which the sentence was
passed, on any week day but Monday, and at 8 a.m. The mode of execution and the ceremonial
attending it is to be the same as heretofore in use. A public notice, under the hand of the
Governor of the Prison, of the date and time appointed for the execution to be
posted on the Prison Gate not less than twelve hours before the execution and
to remain until the inquest has been held.
The Bell of the Prison, or if arrangements can be made for the purpose,
the Bell of the Parish or neighbouring church to be tolled for 15 minutes after
the execution. The person or persons
engaged to carry out the execution should be required to report themselves at
the Prison not later than 4 o’clock on the afternoon proceeding the completed
the execution and until permission is given them to leave.
The document finished with “Approved by the Secretary of State”
The requirement for the prison or nearby church bell to be tolled before
and during an execution was thus amended to require it only to be rung after
the hanging had been carried out. The
practice of raising a black flag on the prison flag pole ceased. Those who gathered outside prisons on the
morning of execution now had to content themselves with the posting of the
official notices on or by the main gate after the prisoner’s death had been
certified.
After 1907 if there was no appeal or the appeal was dismissed, the High
Sheriff of the county wrote to the governor of the prison setting the time and
date of the execution. The sheriff also
wrote a letter of appointment to the chosen hangman from the Home Office List.
A “Memorandum of Instructions for Carrying out an Execution” was sent to the
prison for each hanging. (Click here to
see the final version) The day before the execution a notice (Document No. 278) was posted
on the prison gate giving the name of the prisoner and the time of the
execution. After the execution Documents
No. 279 and 280, respectively the Certificate of Surgeon and the Declaration of
Sheriff were posted on the gate. The
first simply certified death (Click here to see
one) and the second, signed by the sheriff or under sheriff, the governor and
the chaplain declared that “Judgement of Death was this day executed on
(prisoner’s name) in Her Majesty’s Prison of (named) in our presence.” Click here to see
one. An LPC4 form was completed by the
governor and sent to the Prison Commissioners. Click here to see one.
The Coroner’s
inquest and the burial.
The Capital Punishment (Amendment) Act of 1868 required that the Coroner
for the county in which an execution had taken place should hold a formal
inquest as soon as possible after the hanging.
He sat with a jury and they were usually allowed to view the body and
hear evidence from the prison’s governor and surgeon and any other relevant
witnesses and were expected to reach a formal verdict that the prisoner had
died by judicial hanging. The inquest
was necessary to establish the identity of the prisoner and the cause of death
i.e. judicial hanging. From about 1938,
London Coroner, Bentley Purchase, decided that a full autopsy should be carried
out prior to the inquest. It does not
seem that this happened in all of the Shire counties and was presumably up to
the discretion of individual coroners.
After the inquest a Coroner’s
Order for Burial (Part B) was issued allowing for the prisoner to be buried
within the prison grounds. The
prisoner’s clothing “with the exception of a shirt or similar garment” was
removed and was to be burned. “The body placed in a coffin made of 1/2” wood,
either deal or pine”. From 1926 graves
could be and indeed were re-used in sequence in
For a detailed account of the processes and physiology of judicial
hanging go to The process of judicial hanging Timeline of a modern hanging
Back to Contents page British Hangmen Earlier hangmen Timeline of capital punishment in Britain.
