Medieval Torture A pictorial journey

Why torture? During the Middle Ages, torture was a very common way to punish offenders. Following are the most common torture devices used during the Middle Ages. Viewer discretion is advised.

Indeed…why torture? Torture was frequently employed during the Middle Ages to punish criminals and extract confessions. Hundreds of devices were used including The Rack and The Chair.

Did torture work? Even though thousands died in unimaginably painful ways, torture wasn't as frequent as most of us believe. During the Inquisition only 1 or 2 percent of the heretics or criminals were subject to long periods of torture - the rest were simply incarcerated or punished in other ways.

Who determined torture? Most medieval towns had a council to determine a person's guilt. Only in the most severe of cases, such as murder or treason, was the victim tortured. In the majority of cases he was incarcerated or simply vanished from the town and never allowed back.

In bigger cities such as London the law was more harshly enforced. Many castles had torture chambers, usually located in the dungeon or tallest tower, where many could be tortured at the same time. Burning at the stake and other methods were not the Sunday spectacle we think. When they happened, they often occurred inside the castle - away from the population. When a town was becoming rebellious, open acts of torture frequently occurred.Burning at the stake

The Middle Ages were not a period one would like to live in, but they were not extremely unfair and bloodthirsty either. Many towns never tortured a person, resorting to banishment instead. On the contrary, many leaders used torture extremely frequently such as Vlad the Impaler.Vlad the Impaler

The Spanish Tickler The victim was naked and tied making him or her completely defenseless. Then the torturers began the (sometimes public) act of mutilating the victim. They often began with the limbs and slowly moved into the chest, back, neck and finally the face. In short, the Spanish Tickler or Cat's Paw, is nothing but an extension to the torturer's hand. The spikes were sharp enough to tear anything in their path.

Judas Cradle The triangular-shaped end of the judas cradle was inserted in the victim's anus or vagina. This torture could last, depending on some factors discussed below, anywhere from a few hours to complete days. The time it took someone to die varied enormously from individual to individual. Torturers would sometimes add weight to the victim's legs as to increase pain and hurry the victim's death. Other torturers would place oil on the device which increased pain considerably. This device was rarely, if at all, washed. If the victim did not die quickly enough, or their painful execution was interrupted, they would invariantly die from an infection. The victim was sometimes rocked or made fall repeatedly onto the "pyramid". This was done so torturers could acquire vital information from the victim. If he or she refused to talk, the torturer would either add more weight to the victim or make him or her fall repeatedly on the device.

Coffin Torture The victim was placed inside the "coffin". Torturers were well-known for forcing overweight victims into the device, or even making the "coffin" slightly larger than normal to make the victims more uncomfortable. The period of time a victim was to be kept inside the coffin was determined by his or her crime. Very serious crimes, such as blasphemy, were punished by death inside the coffin where the victim was to be kept inside under the sun with animals eating his or her flesh.

The Rack Torture The torturer turned the handle causing the ropes to pull the victim's arms. Eventually, the victim's bones were dislocated with a loud crack. If the torturer kept turning the handles, some of the limbs were torn apart, usually the arms. Sometime this method was limited to dislocating a few bones, but the torturer often went too far and rendered the legs or arms (sometimes both) useless. In the late Middle Ages, some new variants of this instrument appeared. They often had spikes that penetrated the victim's back - as the limbs were pulled apart, so was his spinal cord increasing not only the physical pain, but the psychological one of being handicapped at best, too.

The Wheel Torture (Breaking Wheel) The device consists of a large wooden wheel with many spokes. The victim's limbs were tied to the spokes and the wheel itself was slowly revolved. Through the openings between the spokes, the torturer usually hit the victim with an iron hammer that could easily break the victim's bones. Once his bones were broken, he was left on the wheel to die, sometimes placed on a tall pole so the birds could feed from the still-living human. This device was used as a capital punishment during the Middle Ages. Reserved for hated criminals, The Wheel always killed its victim, but did so very slowly.

Thumbscrew Torture The victim's fingers were placed inside the instrument and slowly crushed as the torturer turned the handle on top. This method was primarily used to extract confessions as it was both painful and very lasting. The same instrument was also used to crush victim's toes.

The Rat Torture The victim was completely restrained and tied to the ground or any horizontal surface. A rat was then placed on his stomach covered by a metallic container. As the container was gradually heated, the rat began to look for a way out - through the victim's body. Digging a hole usually took a few hours of agonizing pain for the victim. This almost invariantly resulted in death.

Saw Torture The victim was tied to an inverted position. This had several "benefits": first, it assured sufficient blood diverted to the brain, second, it slowed down the loss of blood and third, it humiliated the victim. While some victims were cut completely in half as a symbolical gesture, most had only up to their abdomen cut, this was done to prolong the time of death.