The Halifax Gibbet: How Summary Executions Were Done in Halifax

Capital punishment was pretty common in history and there have been some really gruesome and terrifying methods of carrying it out. The Halifax Gibbet was one such device that meted out justice through decapitation.

You may identify this device as a guillotine, famously used against members of the monarchy during the French Revolution, but the Halifax Gibbet predates the French guillotine by more than five centuries.

While decapitation was a fairly common method of execution in England, it was mostly carried out by swords. Halifax is believed to be the first place where a machine was used to carry out the punishment.

It was not until Oliver Cromwell that this barbaric practice was outlawed. Today, a replica of the Gibbet stands at Halifax and a commemorative plaque nearby lists the names of people known to have been executed by the device.

(Image credit: Flickr user Robert Lennon)