Applications of the Death Penalty: Decapitation
Nope, that's an entirely different one.
Breaking at the wheel (aka Catherine Wheel) was used until the 19th century in Prussia. The victim was tied to the spokes of a huge wagon wheel, then hit with a hammer hard enough to break limbs.
Have you ever heard of the saying coups de grâce? That's in the lexicon now, but it came from breaking at the wheel. It translates as blows of grace or blows of mercy, I believe. If that was ordered, then the executioners first hammer hit the victim's chest or neck, thus killing them.
If not, then it was starting at the shins and slowly breaking every bone in their body until they died. It sometimes took days.
Hence the guillotine being seen as the humane option.
JoHarrington, Jun 1, 2012
