Beheadings in the Third Reich

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Paul53
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Re: Beheadings in the Third Reich

#2131

Post by Paul53 » 29 Jan 2009, 02:00

scan0041.jpg
Another look at the Brandenburg/Gorden Fallbeil
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Re: Beheadings in the Third Reich

#2132

Post by Paul53 » 29 Jan 2009, 02:10

scan0042.jpg
Pankraz.Room were the condemned were led in for the verdict to be read ,immediately before execution.Chairs for the officials,leading the execution.The 4 men of the execution commando were also present
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Re: Beheadings in the Third Reich

#2133

Post by Paul53 » 29 Jan 2009, 02:13

scan0043.jpg
Brandenburg/Gorden prison.Front entrance.
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Re: Beheadings in the Third Reich

#2134

Post by Paul53 » 29 Jan 2009, 02:22

scan0044.jpg
Plan of Brandenburg/Gorden
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Re: Beheadings in the Third Reich

#2135

Post by Paul53 » 29 Jan 2009, 02:23

In the lower right corner,the execution building(Hinrichtungsgarage)

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Re: Beheadings in the Third Reich

#2136

Post by Paul53 » 29 Jan 2009, 02:32

scan0045.jpg
Execution shed of Plotzensee during the war.The entrance to the execution room was around the corner on the left
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Re: Beheadings in the Third Reich

#2137

Post by Pete26 » 29 Jan 2009, 02:38

Paul53 wrote:
Pete26 wrote:Paul, the short lever in your fallbeil picture is probably the locking lever for the lunette and it also controls the drop of the same from the open position. The blade release rod is missing in the picture.
Yes,that could be.
No, that's not a lunette locking lever/pin. From the picture of the Brandengurg-Gorden fallbeil that you just posted it is clearly visible that the "pullrod" is not really a rod but "toilet style" pull handle with a cable attached to a short pivoting lever near the top. In the other picture the cable is not visible, which confused me. Thanks, Paul, these photos are answering quite a few of my question.

So, basically there are three different blade release mechanisms on these fallbeils:

1854 model: a pendulum style solid rod that swings sideways, rigidly connected to the blade release claw

Tegel: an overhead tank toilet flusher style handle with a cable attached to a pivoting lever, which activates the blade release mechanism in the frame upper crosspiece and is pulled straight down

Slim legged Tegel (aka Tegelette): a semi horizontal release lever mounted low on the left upright, connected with a cable to the blade release mechanism in the frame crosspiece.
Last edited by Pete26 on 29 Jan 2009, 02:49, edited 2 times in total.

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Re: Beheadings in the Third Reich

#2138

Post by Pete26 » 29 Jan 2009, 02:46

Paul53 wrote:
scan0045.jpg
Plotzensee execution shed:

The far back twin windows on right side of the building are those of the execution room, visible in many photos taken from the inside of the execution room. The doors and windows on the front wall of the buildings lead to the other room where bodies were taken after each execution. However, the bodies were carried through a small door connecting the execution room with the "morgue" through the inner dividing wall. The bodies were most likely carried out of the building through the two doors visible on the front wall of the building in the picture.

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Re: Beheadings in the Third Reich

#2139

Post by Pete26 » 29 Jan 2009, 02:54

Pankraz Tegels:

At first glance it is obvious that the bench on the original "stout" Tegel is much narrower than on the slim Tegel. The bench on the slim Tegel also appear to be lower than on the stout Tegel. Is this a fact or just an illusion?

There are stains on the floor in the vicinity of the each fallbeil. Are these blood stains?

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Wolfenbuttel execution room today

#2140

Post by Pete26 » 29 Jan 2009, 04:27


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Re: Beheadings in the Third Reich

#2141

Post by andreobrecht » 29 Jan 2009, 04:44

I think the "reversed photo" of the Brandenburg/Gorden execution room you posted earlier is actually not reversed but the fallbeil has been photo-shopped into a post-war picture of the empty room and only the image of the fallbeil has been reversed. This should have been noted by the publisher because it is rather misleading. If you look at the top of the frame above the blade shield where you should see the white wall behind the fallbeil, the area is black instead. The fallbeil rather looks like the fallbeil from the Pancraz photo on the same page... maybe the same machine.

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Re: Beheadings in the Third Reich

#2142

Post by mick55 » 29 Jan 2009, 05:29

Paul53 wrote:
scan0040.jpg
That axe is pretty substantial. The width of it would suggest that it might be used as a "knife" in the process. Perhaps the executioner would aim to sever the spinal cord with the section of blade closest to himself, then pull the axe towards himself in a knife like action severing the remaining flesh. This would not require a huge swing and subsequent loss of accuracy and explain why German executioners generally achieved separation with one stroke. Incredible that such a device was used by an advanced country up until the late 1930s, still from a victim's point of view preferable to the electric chair, gas chamber and botched hanging.

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Re: Beheadings in the Third Reich

#2143

Post by Pete26 » 29 Jan 2009, 06:41

mick55 wrote:
Paul53 wrote:
scan0040.jpg
That axe is pretty substantial. The width of it would suggest that it might be used as a "knife" in the process. Perhaps the executioner would aim to sever the spinal cord with the section of blade closest to himself, then pull the axe towards himself in a knife like action severing the remaining flesh. This would not require a huge swing and subsequent loss of accuracy and explain why German executioners generally achieved separation with one stroke. Incredible that such a device was used by an advanced country up until the late 1930s, still from a victim's point of view preferable to the electric chair, gas chamber and botched hanging.
It looks like the upper part of the handle is broken off, or it was deliberately shortened by the executioner. The handle looks a bit too short for a large axe like this, which was designed to be swung with both hands. This richtbeil is identical to this one:

http://www.aefl.de/ordld/AK%20Elbring/H ... htbeil.jpg

Notice how much longer the handle is on this one.

This richtbeil was owned by Martin Schesmer Sigimund, the last executioner of Elbing. He lived in the late 18th and early 19th century.

As for using the richtbeil like a knife, I have my reservations. I do not think you can really sharpen an axe to be as sharp as a good butcher's knife. The reason for the wide blade is that this makes the blade much heavier without making it taller. Unlike the English execution axe which had a very tall blade and was poorly balanced, this German Richtbeil was a much better instrument and it was also substantially heavier than the English axe. Keep in mind that less axe swing is required for a heavier axe to accomplish the same result. England stopped beheadings with an axe late in the 18th century. Germans continued this gruesome business into 1950's (according to Gustav Volpell).

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Re: Beheadings in the Third Reich

#2144

Post by mick55 » 29 Jan 2009, 07:02

You can get an axe as sharp as a razor. In Australia wood chopping with an axe is a competitive sport. A good axeman can cut a 1.5 foot or 45cm diameter log in half in well under a minute. The axes used are sharp enough to shave with, the germans make very good knives and steel, so I am sure they could make that axe very sharp indeed.

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Re: Beheadings in the Third Reich

#2145

Post by fredric » 29 Jan 2009, 07:55

Pete26 wrote:Piotr, your picture clearly shows the tipping board in a perfectly horizontal position on top of the bench. So that question is answered. From the picture we also see that the frame is unbolted from the bench. This is probably how they transported these guillotines. They simply unbolted the frame from the bench. The frame could be easily carried by four men and placed flat on the floor of the truck bed and the bench next to it. No excessive height would be required. Very valuable photo Piotr.
The dismantled fallbeil is in storage, not prepared for transport. When shipped by rail to prisons, the metal parts along with tools and guages were packed in a crate. The bench and tipping board probably were taken apart and shipped in the same way. Piotr's wonderful discovery of the fallbeil shows it stored in Wolfenbuettel. The memorial director says it is not on display because it would upset relatives of the victims. You can access and even purchase this photo from the photo house whose name is ghosted over the picture.

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