The last widely televised execution was that of Saddam Hussein in Iraq on December 30, 2006, captured on video by the government and leaked mobile phone recordings, sparking controversy, while in the U.S., the last public execution was Rainey Bethea in 1936, and the last federal execution televised (or widely reported) was in the U.S. much later.
The last execution in Australia was that of Ronald Ryan, who was hanged on February 3, 1967, at Pentridge Prison, Victoria, following his conviction for murdering a prison guard during an escape attempt. His execution sparked significant public protest and contributed to the eventual abolition of capital punishment across Australia, with federal legislation banning it entirely by 2010.
On his way there he stopped briefly in Paris, where he stayed with the journalist Webb Miller, a friend of Rose, and witnessed Eugen Weidmann's execution by guillotine – the last public execution performed in France. Arriving in Menton, he stayed with the Russian Mazirov family, living among exiled princely families.
The last and most recent federal execution was of Dustin Higgs, who was executed on January 16, 2021.
Use of the guillotine continued in France in the 19th and 20th centuries, and the last execution by guillotine occurred in 1977. In September 1981, France outlawed capital punishment altogether, thus abandoning the guillotine forever. There is a museum dedicated to the guillotine in Liden, Sweden.
The guillotine cut first gained popularity among subculture-ascribing women in the second half of the 1790s, taking hold after the Reign of Terror, during which 17,000 recorded executions — mostly by guillotine — took place. Beheading required that victims' hair be cut short, allowing easy access to the neck.
The guillotine is best known for its use in France, particularly during the French Revolution (1789-1799), where the revolution's supporters celebrated it as the people's avenger and the revolution's opponents vilified it as the pre-eminent symbol of the violence of the Reign of Terror.
Guillotin's main reason for this was that decapitation using the guillotine would be more humane. The inclined blade would fall so rapidly that death would be almost painless. This was not a new system of execution; it was already in use in other countries, be it with a straight or round blade.
These are China, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Iran, Nigeria, Pakistan, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, South Sudan, Sudan, the United States, and Yemen. In the United States, this ended in 2005 with the Supreme Court case Roper v. Simmons, in Nigeria in 2015 by law, and in Saudi Arabia in 2020 by royal decree.
The world's longest-serving death row inmate was Iwao Hakamada from Japan, who spent 46-47 years on death row before being exonerated in 2024 for a 1966 quadruple murder, a case marked by coerced confessions and fabricated evidence, leading to a record compensation payout for his wrongful conviction. Other notable long-stayers include Raymond Riles in the U.S., who spent 45 years on death row, and Richard Jordan, who was executed after a very long legal battle in Mississippi in 2025.
Sir Christopher Lee spent his final night watching The Lord of the Rings, the film that helped define his legacy. While in hospital, one of the movies came on TV. Lee asked the nurses to watch it with him so he could explain how it was made, a role he loved and lived. He passed away peacefully the next morning at 93.
Louis then turned to the crowd and exclaimed 'Peuple je meurs innocent' [People, I die innocent]. Sanson's account continues by recording the last words of the former King of France: … ensuitte se retournant vers nous, il nous dit: “Messieurs, je suis innocent de tout ce dont on m'inculpe.
Eight months after her husband's execution, Marie Antoinette was herself tried, convicted by the Convention for treason to the principles of the revolution, and executed by guillotine on 16 October 1793.
KAZAKHSTAN and SIERRA LEONE abolished the death penalty for all crimes. PAPUA NEW GUINEA, the CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC, EQUATORIAL GUINEA, and ZAMBIA abolished the death penalty for all crimes. ZIMBABWE abolished the death penalty for ordinary crimes.
Marion Bowman Jr. Jessie Dean Hoffman Jr. Norman Mearle Grim Jr.
Ryan was hanged at 8 a.m. on 3 February 1967 in Pentridge gaol. Calm and composed on the scaffold, he addressed his last words to the hangman, possibly recalling the injunction of Jesus to Judas before the betrayal: 'God bless you. Whatever you do, do it quickly'.
The shortest time on death row before execution in modern U.S. history, particularly in Texas, is Joe Gonzales, who spent 252 days (about 8 months) before his execution in 1996, while another notable short time was Steven Renfro at 263 days; these are significantly shorter than the average of over a decade, showcasing how quickly some cases can proceed due to streamlined appeals, though many cases take decades.
Although 46 crimes are eligible for the death penalty, Chinese courts typically hand down death sentences only for murder and drug-related crimes. State-run Chinese media reported 160-200 drug-related executions annually between 2018 and 2019, with these figures likely understating the true scope.
In 1973, when the CrPC was amended further, life imprisonment became the norm and the death penalty was to be imposed only in exceptional cases, particularly if a heinous crime committed deems the perpetrator too dangerous to even be 'considered' for paroled release into society after 20 years and required 'special ...
When clearing Robespierre's neck, executioner Charles-Henri Sanson tore off the bandage that was holding his shattered jaw in place, causing him to produce an agonised scream until his death. He was guillotined at the same place where King Louis XVI, Danton and Desmoulins had been executed.
Many women wore red chokers or ribbons around their necks, to symbolize the slice of the guillotine's blade. Men and women alike had their hair cropped short at the neck, as the victims did before execution to ensure the blade would sever the head without any complications.
The higher functions of the brain cease activity once the blood supply, and therefore oxygen transport, is interrupted. Usually there is about 4 or 5 seconds of consciousness following the complete cessation of the circulation.
in 1794, during the French Revolution, sixteen Carmelite nuns were guillotined for refusing to accept state control over the Catholic Church in France. One of the nuns, 78 year old Sister Mary of Jesus Crucified, was heard to say to her executioners, "I forgive you, my friends.
Guillotine Facts
The guillotine metal blade weighs about 88.2 lbs. The average guillotine post is about 14 feet high. The falling blade has a rate of speed of about 21 feet/second. The time for the guillotine blade to fall down to where it stops is a 70th of a second.
Most aristocrats escaped - especially those of notable rank, or those who had been targeted in leaflets or were known to be hated by the revolutionaries.