Meister Frantz Schmidt of Nuremberg was for 45 years a professional executioner and personally put to death 394 individuals and tortured, flogged or disfigured many hundreds more. But Schmidt was not a cold-hearted sadist but a man whose father was forced to be an executioner (an individual who was so low on the social scale that he could not go to mass and his children could not be educated at any of the schools).
This book examines his psychology, outlook and actions in context of the times he lived. Why were there so many executions, especially for crimes such as theft? The answers are simple; most people lived a precarious existence and a theft could condemn an individual or family to instant poverty. Secondly, there was no place to warehouse the criminals as the average taxpayer could not see why they should have to pay higher taxes to feed and house criminals. Finally, when the death penalty was used for thieves, it was for a third time offender as the city fathers viewed a third offense as a sign that the criminal was useless to society.
But Schmidt had more scorn for the wealthy who committed crimes as they betrayed their superior social position and broke the bonds that kept society together. Their crimes unless swiftly punished could be seen by the “lower orders” as a rationale for their own disregard of the law.
This is an excellent book which gives an insight into the mindset of the time. People lived a narrowly balanced life, but their problems can be seen in our own time.
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