The guillotine french revolution who invented it

The French Revolution began in and was to last for 10 years until Following the storming of the Bastille on 14 July , the National Constituent Assembly became the effective government of France and the popular Dr. Guillotin became one of 10 Paris deputies. The man who invented the machine, that would become known as the Guillotine, was Antoine Louis - Antoine Louis, a member of the Academy of Surgery and a professor of physiology, became involved with the invention and improvement of various medical instruments and this work led him to design a prototype of the guillotine, which was initially called a "louisette".

Guillotin was aware of the "louisette" and suggested its use during a debate concerning capital punishments. Guillotin was a reformist, especially in relation to medical matters, and despite being opposed to the death sentence he proposed the idea of using a mechanical device to carry out executions. From his perspective a modern, mechanical device that could achieve the goal quickly and efficiently, inflicting less pain, and was far preferable to the use of the axe, the sword, the rope or the wheel.

The state executioner, Charles-Henri Sanson carried out various tests on live animals and corpses. As a result of the tests the curved blade of the guillotine was changed to a sloping, triangular shape and the height from which the blade dropped was increased. The design of the terrifying Guillotine was complete. The height of the posts of the guillotine were 14 feet high.

The metal blade weighed about The victims of the Guillotine had their hair roughly shorn and were forced to lie face down on a wooden plank with their head protruding over the end under the blade of the guillotine. The steel blade was released by pulling a cord, or operating a lever, mounted on one of the uprights.

After the execution the blade of the Guillotine was drawn up by a rope running through a brass pulley until it was caught by a spring release mechanism.

The cause of death to guillotined victims was due to shock and anoxia due to haemorrhage and loss of blood pressure. A convicted highwayman called Nicolas-Jacques Pelletier became the first person to be executed by the guillotine on April 25, The guillotine was painted bright red and the public execution took place at 3.

Charles-Henri Sanson was the executioner of Nicolas-Jacques Pelletier and the execution by the guillotine was over in just a few seconds. The crowd were disappointed that the execution by the Guillotine was over so quickly.

They were used to the old methods but the guillotine became the French instrument of death. Just months after the execution of Pelletier the French Revolution entered the period known in history as the Reign of Terror — The purpose of the Reign of Terror was to purge France of enemies of the Revolution.

The Guillotine was used to execute an estimated 40, people during the Reign of Terror. Charles-Henri Sanson alone performed 2, Guillotine executions, and at the height of the Terror he decapitated men and women in just three days. Tens of thousands of men, women, nobles, priests and well-known revolutionaries were executed by the guillotine, including Danton, Robespierre, Marat, Desmoulins and Saint-Just.

The Guillotine became a symbol of the French Revolution. The constant use of the Guillotine led to the blade becoming dull and in some cases the victim was only injured. In such circumstances the blade was cranked up and dropped again as the victim suffered horrific injuries.

A witness to many of the executions was a skilled wax worker called Madame Tussaud As we know, the benefit of hindsight is a wonderful tool to have, but is of little use, especially in this case. But in saying that, would the inventor of the guillotine have invented it if he knew he would be killed by guillotine? Yes he would. The guillotine is a gory, gruesome and highly efficient machine used to industrialize the process of executions.

When compared to other normal methods employed before more modern times, it offered both the condemned and the executioner the surety of a quick, clean death. Before its implementation executions were clumsy, and there was no guarantee of a quick, clean, and relatively painless death.

The normal methods used were hanging, decapitation by ax or sword, and even burning at the stake. All of these methods could not guarantee a clean kill, and also took a toll on the poor soul dishing out the harsh punishment.

The guillotine changed all of that. The inventor, or should I say inventors of the guillotine were a couple of men named Antoine Louis and Tobias Schmidt. The head may be a human head or an animal head. Courtesy of Larousse. After the protestors got the heads, they placed them on pikes, held them aloft, and marched through Parisian streets beating drums. A journalist and dramatist named Louis-Abel, Beffroy de Reigny was informed about the protests and left the safety of his home to investigate.

On January 21, , the former French king was sent to his death, by guillotine. There are many that believe that the execution of Louis XVI marked the start of the Reign of Terror, but there are other theories as well. A collection of quotes and thoughts by Louis XIV of France on king, revolution, beauty, struggle, war, royalty, grandeur, discovery, humbleness and France. My silences had not protected me.