The Middle Ages was the heyday of sophisticated torture and devices for inflicting terrible pain. Modern “legalized” torture is designed to inflict psychological or emotional suffering and has limited physical impact. But the gadgets used in the Middle Ages were really creepy. And there were quite a few people in those days who took pleasure in inventing the most horrific devices.
1. Impalement: a sharpened stick is thrust end up into the victim's body
If you were Vlad Tepes (better known as Dracula) in 15th century Romania, you would simply force your victims to sit on a thick, pointed stick. Then the stick was raised high, and under the influence of its own weight, the victim sank lower and lower on the stake. The stake was also stuck into the chest so that its tip was under the chin to prevent further slippage. The victim died after about three days. Thus, Vlad executed 20,000 to 30,000 people. According to eyewitnesses, Vlad liked to watch the impaling while eating.
2. Cradle of Judas: the anus of the victim is painfully stretched, the flesh comes off
It is possible that Cradle of Judas was less sadistic than impalement, but no less creepy. The victim's anus or vagina was pushed onto the end of the cradle, then the person was lifted above it with the help of ropes. The device was intended for prolonged opening of the hole or for slow insertion. Usually the victim was completely naked, thus humiliation was added to the torture itself, and sometimes additional weight was tied to her legs, which increased pain and hastened death. This torture could last from several hours to several days. The device was rarely washed, so often the victim also contracted some kind of infection.
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3. Coffin of torture: in a metal cage the victim was pecked by birds of prey
The torture coffin was used during the Middle Ages and is often seen in films of that time (for example, Monty Python and the Holy Grail). The victim was placed in a metal cage made to resemble a human body. The executioners would either put the overweight people in a smaller device, or they would make the "coffin" slightly larger than the victim's body to make them feel uncomfortable. Often the cage was hung on a tree or gallows. Serious crimes such as heresy or blasphemy were punishable by death in such a coffin, when the victim was placed in the sun and allowed birds or animals to eat its flesh. Occasionally, onlookers would throw stones or other objects at the victim to further increase their suffering.
4. Hump: designed to dislocate all joints in the victim's body
Who can not remember the fearsome rack, which is considered the most terrible device for medieval torture? It consists of a wooden frame with four ropes, two attached to the bottom and two attached to the handle at the top. When the executioner turned the handle, the ropes were pulled, dragging the victim's arms with him, causing her bones to dislocate with a loud crunch. If the executioner continued to turn the handle (sometimes it was skidded), then the limbs simply came off the body. In the Late Middle Ages, a new version of the rack appeared. Thorns were added that dug into the back of the victim as soon as she lay down on the table. When limbs were torn off, the same thing happened with the spinal cord, thus increasing not only physical, but also psychological pain, which came from the victim's realization that even if she managed to survive,he or she will permanently lose the ability to move.
5. Breast cutter: painfully tears off or mutilates a woman's breasts
Used as a terrible punishment for women. The breast cutter was used to inflict pain and mutilation on the breast. Commonly applied to women accused of abortion or adultery. Hot tongs were placed over the victim's bare chest, the thorns digging into the skin for a better grip. Then the executioner pulled them towards himself in order to rip or mutilate the chest. If the victim was not killed, she was permanently mutilated, as her chest was completely torn off. The most common version of this device was called the "Spider" and was soldered to the wall. The woman's chest was attached to the forceps, the executioner pulled the victim away from the wall, while her chest either came off or was severely crippled. This was a very severe punishment that often resulted in the death of the victim.
6. Pear: breaks openings, displaces the jaw bones
This gruesome device has been used to torture abortion women, liars, blasphemers, and gay people. The instrument, shaped like a pear, was thrust into one of the victim's orifices: a woman's vagina, a homosexual's anus, the mouth of a liar or blasphemer. The device consists of four petals, which slowly detached from each other while the executioner turned the screw at its base. At a minimum, the device tore the skin, but when expanded to the maximum, it mutilated the victim's hole, could displace or break the jaw bones. The pears that have come down to us are distinguished by engraving or ornaments. According to them, the executioners distinguished between anal, vaginal or oral pears. This torture rarely led to death, more often other methods of torture were used along with it.
7. Crushing wheel: used to mutilate the victim's limbs
Also called Catherine's wheel. This device always killed the victim, but it did it very slowly. Human limbs were tied to the spokes of a large wooden wheel. Then the wheel began to spin slowly, while the executioner hit the limbs with an iron hammer, crushing bones in several places. Once all the bones of the victim were broken, she was left to die on the wheel. Sometimes the wheel was placed on a long stick so that the birds could peck at the flesh of a still living person. It could take two or three days before the victim died of dehydration. Sometimes, out of pity, the executioner was ordered to strike a blow to the victim's chest or stomach, known as coups de grâce (translated from French: "blow of mercy"). These blows inflicted mortal wounds and led to the death of the victim.
8. Saw: cuts the victim in half
The saw was the most common instrument of torture, as it could be found in almost every home, and there was no need to invent complex devices to use it. This is a fairly simple way to torture and kill a victim accused of witchcraft, adultery, murder, blasphemy, and even theft. The victim was tied upside down to increase blood flow to the brain. This allowed the victim to remain conscious for as long as possible, reduced blood loss, and contributed to maximum humiliation. The torture could last for hours. Some victims were cut in half, but most were cut only to the abdomen in order to postpone the moment of death.
9. Press for the head: squeezes the skull, crushes teeth, squeezes out the eyes
The head press was a popular instrument of torture used by the Spanish Inquisition, among others. The chin was placed on the lower bar, and the head was placed under the cap located at the top. The executioner slowly turned the bolt, while the beam began to press on the cap. The head was slowly compressed, at first the teeth were crushed, and only after a while the victim died of excruciating pain. Some models of this device had special eye containers that were squeezed out of the victim's eye sockets. This device was effective for extracting confessions, since the torture, at the request of the executioner, could be prolonged indefinitely. If the torture was stopped halfway, then irreparable damage was done to the brain, jaw, or eyes.
10. Knee Crusher: Separates the knees and other limbs
Another weapon preferred by the Spanish Inquisition for its versatility is the knee grinder. It is a sturdy contraption made of two slats with sharp spikes. The executioner turned the handle - and the planks began to slowly contract, penetrating the skin and crippling the knee bones. It rarely caused death, but as a result of its use, the knee remained completely inoperative. It has also been used for other parts of the body such as elbows, arms, and even legs. The number of thorns varied from three to twenty. Sometimes the spiked planks were heated in advance to increase the pain, or planks with hundreds of thin needles were used, which penetrated the skin more slowly and were more painful.