Show 61 - (Blitz) Painfotainment

Dan Carlin and other sources discuss the complex reactions of crowds at public executions, a practice that has occurred throughout history. The gatherings often drew enthusiastic and large attendances, seemingly insensitive to the suffering of the condemned.

Crowds at public executions were often large, enthusiastic, and seemingly insensitive to the suffering of the condemned.

Estimates of crowd sizes at major public executions in Europe ranged from thousands to tens of thousands of attendees.

Historical records and accounts by historians such as Richard Evans and Gerrit Fagen highlight the substantial to enormous crowds that public executions attracted. In Europe, from ancient Rome to 18th-century Germany and France, crowd sizes often varied from several thousand to over a hundred thousand. Some towns recorded attendances that exceeded their own populations, indicating that public executions were major events.

Spectators often exhibited a sense of excitement, curiosity, and even amusement rather than horror or empathy towards the condemned.

Carlin explores how people historically reacted to public executions with barely contained excitement, some even paying for better vantage points. This behavior ranged from eager anticipation to detachment and amusement. Even when the crimes were not considered grievous by the crowds, the responses varied from condemnation to support for the condemned, indicating a diverse range of reactions.

The behavior and reactions of the crowd were viewed as problematic by some intellectuals and authorities who felt the crowds were not responding with the proper moral outrage and fear.

Intellectuals and authorities of the time, such as Charles Dickens and Edmund Burke, reflected on the crowds' reactions critically, troubled by the lack of moral outrage or fear they believed should be elicited by such spectacles. The excitement and curiosity that characterized the crowds' engagement with executions indicated a disparity between the intended deterrent effect and the actual public reception.

The experience of public executions had a profound psychological impact on both the condemned and the spectators.

The condemned individuals faced tremendous fear, anxiety, and emotional turmoil as they approached their execution, often in front of massive crowds.

Carlin brings attention to the terror and emotional turmoil suffered by individuals facing public executions. The anticipation of a horrifying ordeal that sometimes took hours to conclude undoubtedly had a profound psychological effect on the condemned.

Some spectators found the executions to be an almost theatrical experience, viewing the condemned as characters in ...

The podcast transcript provided sheds light on the harrowing experiences of individuals condemned to public executions, detailing not only their psychological and physical pain but also the ritualistic and theatrical aspects that exacerbated their torment.

The psychological and physical anguish endured by those condemned to public executions was extreme.

Condemned individuals often exhibited profound fear, trembling, and emotional distress as they approached their deaths.

The intensity of the psychological and physical distress endured by condemned individuals is evident in descriptions that include trembling profoundly and experiencing violent convulsions due to fear. Survivors of failed hangings spoke of experiencing excruciating pain so severe that they almost preferred death. The use of methods like being broken on the wheel or burned at the stake subjected victims to extraordinary torture. The case of a German arsonist woman calling out to Jesus in desperation at her execution by burning is one example. Other executions involved brutal methods like having chunks of flesh torn out, with wounds filled with molten substances, and dismemberment through quartation.

The methods of execution, such as being broken on the wheel or burned at the stake, inflicted horrific levels of pain and suffering.

The execution of Madame Tiquette, who was beheaded with multiple strikes, and Jesse Washington, who was burned alive, serves as grim examples of the extreme pain and suffering inflicted on the condemned. The detailed descriptions of such gruesome deaths, including Robert Francois Demien's punishment with molten substances poured into his wounds, reflect the abject horror and agonizing pain experienced by the condemned.

Some condemned individuals maintained composure and even defiance in the face of their impending deaths, while others were completely overwhelmed by terror.

Many condemned individuals exhibited profound fear, some to the degree that they lost control of their bodily functions, while others required heavy sedation to endure the fear, particularly when touched by the executioner. There are reports of individuals like Elizabeth Godfrey in 1807, who approached the scaffold in a frenzy, and Greenacre in 1837, who appeared "totally unmanned" and needed support. Still, some, like Madame Tiquette, maintained a composed demeanor before suffering a traumatic death.

The ritual and spectacle surrounding the executions added to the psychological torment of the condemned.

Condemned individuals were frequently paraded through the streets before their executions, exposing them to large, hostile crowds.

Condemned individuals had to face the indignity and psychological strain of being displayed before j ...

Executioners played a complex and often despised role in early modern European societies, not only due to their work but also because of the deep social ramifications it had on their lives and those around them.

Executioners occupied a unique and often reviled social position in early modern European societies.

Executioners were perceived as cursed and untouchable, occupying an extraordinarily reviled position. Social isolation was part of their day-to-day reality; they were required to distinguish themselves with particular clothing that stood out from their official robes, so the public could identify them and keep away. Their touch was believed to have the power to dishonor, and they were made to sit alone in church and dine in solitude, further underlining their ostracism. They often took on tasks seen as unclean like cleaning latrines and collecting dead animals. Despite potentially earning a decent living, their wealth could not shield them from societal disdain.

Executioners were seen as profane, cursed, and untouchable figures who were shunned and ostracized by respectable society.

Executioners were not simply unwanted; they were considered social pariahs. Authorities and citizens alike wanted to ensure the executioner was clearly marked, so respectable individuals could avoid even accidental contact. The executioner’s sinister image was perpetuated by the nature of his work and the mandated solitude in public spaces like churches or inns.

Executioners' families were also stigmatized, with their children often barred from learning honorable crafts or trades.

This deep-seated dishonor extended to their families, creating an “executioner class” from which it was nearly impossible to escape. Towncrafters ostracized the immediate family members; even the children faced barriers to learning respectable trades. As a result, executioners often intermarried within their social circle, creating a de facto familial dynasty which only enhanced their strange and other-worldly image to outsiders.

Executioners had to develop a certain psychological detachment and skill set to carry out their duties, which added to their perceived strangeness.

The psychological burden on executioners was significant; they had to develop detachment to repeatedly perform executions and live with the aftermath. This, coupled with the specialized, grisly skill set they had to master, further compounded their strangeness and separation from regular society.

The role of the executioner was critical to the success and impact of public executions.

Executioners did not just carry out deaths; they had to manage the dramatic and deterrent aspects of public executions, requiring a precise psychological and physical approach to their work.

Executioners had to carefully manage the condemned individual's final moments to ensure the execution went according to plan and met the desired dramatic and deterrent effects.

Their role called for them to be both the "supporting actor" and the orchestrator of the proceedings. They had to perform precisely and, in some cases, engage with the condemned to prepare them psychologically for the end, which sometimes included ...

Throughout history, public executions have served an intrinsic societal function in various cultures, but societal attitudes and policies towards this practice have undergone significant transformations, particularly from the 17th to the 19th centuries.

Attitudes towards public executions began to shift among the educated classes in the 17th and 18th centuries.

Educated intellectuals and reformers began to view the spectacle of public executions as morally abhorrent and detrimental to public morals. This shift was shaped partly by the behavior of crowds at these events, which was seen as callous and bloodthirsty. During the Age of Enlightenment, an era marked by the quest for reason and social progress, the grotesquely medieval torture executions started to fall out of favor with educated people, as they seemed incongruent with emerging enlightened values. The reactions of crowds during religious and secular executions, the transition of broadsheets from a religious perspective to one of curiosity and salaciousness, and the changing discourse around who should witness such events reflected this complex evolution of societal perspective. By the 1690s, the appropriateness of women and children enjoying or attending executions was increasingly questioned, marking the beginning of a trend that would eventually lead to a complete reevaluation of the public's engagement with state-sanctioned deaths.

Authorities also started viewing public executions as problematic due to their potential for inciting unrest and questioning state legitimacy. As criticisms and concerns grew, a "revolution in sensibilities" emerged among the ruler and literate class, paving the way for changes in execution practices and policies.

Governments and authorities gradually moved to restrict and eventually abolish public executions in the 19th century.

As cultural moods shifted, so too did policies. Rulers like Frederick the Great of Prussia attempted to make executions less brutal by limiting the suffering of the condemned. The private strangulation of those condemned to torturous medieval executions, unbeknownst to the watching crowds, reflected this emerging compassion. Over time, states began to transition to more private, controlled forms of capital punishment—beheading, for example—to reduce the public spectacle, while the guillotine, with its swift and less theatrical operation, became an instrument to minimize the spectacle of death as public entertainment.

The decline of public executions was principally driven by changing sensibilities toward the spectacle, heightened concerns about social unrest, and the growing realization that such spectacles did not effectively deter crime. Despite the popularity of public executions, the fascination with the condemned, and the festive atmosphere that surrounded these events, there was growing intellectual pushback against their supposed benefits. With public intellectuals and the literate c ...