Franz Schmidt (executioner)
Encyclopedia
Franz Schmidt also known as Meister Franz, was executioner in the region of Bamberg
from 1573 to April 1578, and from 1 May 1578 till the end of 1617 executioner of Nuremberg
.
In 1617, he resigned from his post. This removed from him the social stigma of being “unehrlich” (dishonest or disresputable) which applied at that time to executioners, prostitutes, and beggars (but also to millers, shepherds, and actors), including their families, preventing them from e.g. entering a guild
or receiving an “honest” burial.
His journal of punishments executed by him has survived and contains 361 executions and 345 minor punishments (floggings, ears or fingers cut off).
The individual entries contain date, place, and method of execution, name, origin, and station in life of the condemned and – in later years more verbose than in the earlier ones – details of the crimes on which the sentence was based.
Meister Franz executed criminals by rope, sword, breaking wheel
, burning
, and drowning
. The wheel was reserved for severely violent criminals, burnings (for homosexual intercourse and counterfeiting money) occurred only twice in his whole career, and drowning – prescribed by the Carolina
for a woman committing infanticide
– was commuted regularly in the Nuremberg of Schmidt’s time into execution by sword, partly upon the intervention of Schmidt and some clergy.
Schmidt’s journal is unique as a source of social history and history of law. The autograph is no longer extant, but – according to the preface of a modern edition – libraries at Nuremberg
and Bamberg
owned, as late as 1913, four handwritten copies made between the 17th and the start of the 19th century. The first printed edition appeared in 1801.
Bamberg
Bamberg is a city in Bavaria, Germany. It is located in Upper Franconia on the river Regnitz, close to its confluence with the river Main. Bamberg is one of the few cities in Germany that was not destroyed by World War II bombings because of a nearby Artillery Factory that prevented planes from...
from 1573 to April 1578, and from 1 May 1578 till the end of 1617 executioner of Nuremberg
Nuremberg
Nuremberg[p] is a city in the German state of Bavaria, in the administrative region of Middle Franconia. Situated on the Pegnitz river and the Rhine–Main–Danube Canal, it is located about north of Munich and is Franconia's largest city. The population is 505,664...
.
In 1617, he resigned from his post. This removed from him the social stigma of being “unehrlich” (dishonest or disresputable) which applied at that time to executioners, prostitutes, and beggars (but also to millers, shepherds, and actors), including their families, preventing them from e.g. entering a guild
Guild
A guild is an association of craftsmen in a particular trade. The earliest types of guild were formed as confraternities of workers. They were organized in a manner something between a trade union, a cartel, and a secret society...
or receiving an “honest” burial.
His journal of punishments executed by him has survived and contains 361 executions and 345 minor punishments (floggings, ears or fingers cut off).
The individual entries contain date, place, and method of execution, name, origin, and station in life of the condemned and – in later years more verbose than in the earlier ones – details of the crimes on which the sentence was based.
Meister Franz executed criminals by rope, sword, breaking wheel
Breaking wheel
The breaking wheel, also known as the Catherine wheel or simply the wheel, was a torture device used for capital punishment in the Middle Ages and early modern times for public execution by bludgeoning to death...
, burning
Execution by burning
Death by burning is death brought about by combustion. As a form of capital punishment, burning has a long history as a method in crimes such as treason, heresy, and witchcraft....
, and drowning
Drowning
Drowning is death from asphyxia due to suffocation caused by water entering the lungs and preventing the absorption of oxygen leading to cerebral hypoxia....
. The wheel was reserved for severely violent criminals, burnings (for homosexual intercourse and counterfeiting money) occurred only twice in his whole career, and drowning – prescribed by the Carolina
Constitutio Criminalis Carolina
The Constitutio Criminalis Carolina is recognised as the first body of German criminal law...
for a woman committing infanticide
Infanticide
Infanticide or infant homicide is the killing of a human infant. Neonaticide, a killing within 24 hours of a baby's birth, is most commonly done by the mother.In many past societies, certain forms of infanticide were considered permissible...
– was commuted regularly in the Nuremberg of Schmidt’s time into execution by sword, partly upon the intervention of Schmidt and some clergy.
Schmidt’s journal is unique as a source of social history and history of law. The autograph is no longer extant, but – according to the preface of a modern edition – libraries at Nuremberg
Nuremberg
Nuremberg[p] is a city in the German state of Bavaria, in the administrative region of Middle Franconia. Situated on the Pegnitz river and the Rhine–Main–Danube Canal, it is located about north of Munich and is Franconia's largest city. The population is 505,664...
and Bamberg
Bamberg
Bamberg is a city in Bavaria, Germany. It is located in Upper Franconia on the river Regnitz, close to its confluence with the river Main. Bamberg is one of the few cities in Germany that was not destroyed by World War II bombings because of a nearby Artillery Factory that prevented planes from...
owned, as late as 1913, four handwritten copies made between the 17th and the start of the 19th century. The first printed edition appeared in 1801.
Sources
- A Hangman’s Diary: Being the Authentic Journal of Master Franz Schmidt, Public Executioner of Nuremberg 1573–1617. Translated by C. Calvert and A.W. Gruner. Edited, with an Introduction, by Albrecht Keller. Published by D. Appleton, second impression October, 1928.