Torture Techniques of the Middle Ages English 7-8

Heretic’s Fork This was used to get a confession by restricting neck and head movement. This wouldn’t kill a person, just make it very uncomfortable.

Judas Cradle The victim would sometimes have weight added to their legs to increase the pain. If they didn’t die within a few hours, they would inevitably die from infection.

Lead Sprinkler This was used to poor hot, liquid metal into the device and it would slowly pour out onto the victim. Sometimes they would pour molten silver on their eyes to speed up the execution.

Rat Torture The victim would be tied down and a rat placed on their stomach inside a metal box. As the box heated up, the rat would try to dig a way out through the body.

Ducking Stool This is a chair that the victim would be strapped into over a body of water. The victim would be immersed in the water, and potentially drowning them.

Burning At The Stake The victim would be tied to a pole, which was set on fire. The victim would die of smoke inhalation or burn to death.

The Chair A chair with 500 – 1,000 spikes would hold a victim and not allow them to escape. The spikes would puncture the skin of the victim, but miss vital organs to allow them to die much slower.

The Boot The victim’s feet would be chained inside the boot. Hot water, molten metal or simply beating on the boot would cause tremendous pain until they died or passed out.

Foot Roasting Feet were placed in the stockade which prevented them from being moved away from the torture. When they needed a confession, they would put hot coals on the feet to get them to talk.

Pear of Anguish This would be inserted into a hole in the victim’s body. As the handled was turned, the device would open up and spread out inside the victim, causing mutilation and possibly death.

Neck Violin The victim’s neck would be locked in the device and their arms tied up. They would stay in this device until their argument was settled.

Knee Splitter A knee was put in between the device and then crushed. It could also be used on other parts like an elbow, but usually didn’t kill the victim.

The Head Crusher The head would be squeezed together by turning the lever at the top. This would crush the teeth, then the jaw and finally make the eyes pop out of the socket.

The Rack The victim would be strapped down and essentially pulled apart. They would have dislocated arms and legs, sometimes even making it so they were useless forever.

Spanish Donkey The victim is stripped naked (usually) and tied to a wooden triangle elevated off the ground. Weights were added to the legs to cause major pain in the groin area.

Brazen Bull The victim is placed inside the metal or fireproof bull. It was sealed and heated until the victim was cooked alive.

Coffin Torture Victims were placed inside the device with little room to move. Depending on the crime, the victim could spend hours, days or even die with birds and bugs living off of their flesh.

Tongue Tearer The victim’s tongue would be clamped down on the device. Once it was firmly in place, it would slowly rip out the tongue completely.

Scaphism The victim would be placed in a box where their head and legs would be hanging out. They would be force fed milk and honey so they would poop on themselves, thus causing insects to come and eat at them until they died.

Flaying Arms were tied above the victim’s head and feet were tied below. The torturer would use a small knife to cut layers of skin at a time, usually starting with the face.

Gridiron The victim would be strapped down to something with slats. Then there would be a fire lit underneath them until they burned to death. This is like grilling on a barbecue.

Breast Ripper This was used to rip apart women’s breast. Often a woman who has miscarried a child or committed adultery would have their breast mutilated by this device.

Crushing With Rocks The victim would lie on the ground with a piece of wood across their chest. Rocks would be applied to the wood until they were crushed to death.

Catherine Wheel A victim would be tied to a wheel and beaten. Often times their bones would break and ligaments would tear apart.

Crucifixion A victim would be hung in the air on two pieces of cris- crossed wood. They would be held up only by nails through the hands and feet, and sometimes whipped until they died.

Spanish Tickler A victim was attached to a pole. The torturer would use a long stick with a sharp end that looked like a claw to peel apart the skin a little at a time.

Neck Torture The device would be put around the victim’s neck. This would be left for days, restricting movement and causing a lot of pain.

Saw Torture A person would be hung upside down to cause the blood to run to their head. Then, they would be sawed in half from the groin region in order to die a slower death.

Thumb Screw Torture The victim’s fingers were placed in the device and slowly crushed. This wouldn’t kill a person and it could also be used to crush the toes.