Long ago, a man had a hard job.
He worked in a big city. He helped carry out the law. Many people watched him work. It was a very serious time. Do you think his job was hard?
Long ago, a man had a very hard job.
His name was William Calcraft. He worked in a big city in England. Before this, he sold meat pies on the street.
He became a man who carried out the law. Many people came to watch him work. Some people thought he did not do his job well. Later, the law changed. Now, these serious events happen in private.
It was a very different time in history.
William Calcraft was a man with a very grim job.
He was an executioner in England. This is a person who carries out death sentences. Before this, he was a cobbler. He also sold meat pies on the street.
He met a man named John Foxton near a prison. After Foxton died, Calcraft took his place in 1829.
Calcraft worked for 45 years. It is thought he performed 450 executions. He used a method called the short-drop. This method did not always break the neck quickly. Instead, it often caused death by strangulation. This took several minutes. Because of this, some people said he was bad at his job.
He sometimes pulled on legs to try to help.
In the past, these events were public. Large crowds of people came to watch. One event had 50,000 people there. In 1868, the law changed. Executions had to happen in private inside prisons. Calcraft did the last public one and the first private one. He retired in 1874.
He died in 1879.
William Calcraft was a very famous executioner in England.
An executioner is a person who carries out a death sentence. Calcraft had a long career that lasted 45 years. It is estimated he carried out about 450 executions during this time. He was one of the most active people to hold this job in British history. Many people in England knew his name because his work was so public.
Before he began this grim work, Calcraft had a very different life. He was born in Baddow in the year 1800. His main job was being a cobbler, which is a person who makes shoes. He also worked as a nightwatchman at a brewery in London. While selling meat pies near Newgate Prison, he met John Foxton. Foxton was the official hangman for the City of London for 40 years. When Foxton died in 1829, the government chose Calcraft to take his place.
Calcraft used a specific way to carry out his duties. This was called the short-drop method. In this method, the person falls only a very short distance. This often did not break the person's neck right away. Instead, death happened slowly through strangulation over several minutes. Because of this, many people thought Calcraft was incompetent at his job. To try and make death faster, he sometimes pulled on legs or climbed on shoulders.
His work changed as the laws in England changed. For a long time, executions were held in public for large crowds. Some of these crowds were huge, with 50,000 people watching one event. In 1868, a new law said executions must be done in private. Calcraft was there for this big change in history. He performed the very last public execution in Britain on May 26, 1868. He also performed the very first private execution under the new law.
Calcraft's life had many different moments and people. He executed many people, including 35 women. He even hanged a husband and wife, Marie and Frederick Manning, in 1849. This was the first time a couple had been hanged together since 1700. As he got older, the newspapers said he was not as good at his job. He finally retired in 1874 and received a pension. He died in 1879 at the age of 79.
William Calcraft was a prominent English executioner during the 19th century.
An executioner is an official responsible for carrying out legal death sentences. Calcraft had a career that lasted approximately 45 years. It is estimated that he performed roughly 450 executions during his tenure. This made him one of the most prolific executioners in British history. His work occurred during a major transition in how the law handled capital punishment.
Before entering this profession, Calcraft lived a very different life in England. He was born in Baddow, near Chelmsford, in 1800. His primary trade was as a cobbler, which is a person who repairs shoes. He also worked as a nightwatchman at Reid's brewery in Clerkenwell, London. While selling meat pies near Newgate Prison, he met John Foxton. Foxton had served as the City of London's hangman for 40 years. After Foxton died in 1829, the government appointed Calcraft as his successor.
Calcraft's official role involved several specific duties and payments. He was sworn in as the Executioner for the City of London and Middlesex on April 4, 1829. He received a weekly salary of one guinea. He also earned an additional guinea for every individual execution he performed. His income was supplemented by an allowance for tools like birch rods and cats o' nine tails. He even sold sections of the rope used in his work. These rope segments were sold for prices ranging from five shillings to one pound per inch.
Calcraft was known for using a specific technique called the short-drop method. In this process, the prisoner's arms were pinioned to their sides with leather straps. Their heads were covered with a white cap, or hood, to hide their faces from the crowd. The hood also prevented the prisoner from seeing the lever being pulled. The short-drop method involved a fall of only about one foot. This short distance often failed to break the person's neck immediately. Consequently, death frequently occurred slowly through strangulation over several minutes.
Because of this method, many people considered Calcraft to be incompetent. To try and hasten death, he would sometimes pull on the victim's legs. He was also known to climb onto the shoulders of the condemned. Some historians suggest he did this to entertain the massive crowds. Public executions often drew huge numbers of people to watch. For example, the execution of Franz Müller in 1864 was witnessed by 50,000 spectators.
Calcraft's career spanned a significant change in British law. Until 1868, most executions in London were public events. They often took place on temporary gallows built in front of prisons. However, the Capital Punishment Amendment Act of 1868 changed this requirement. The law mandated that all executions must be conducted privately inside a prison. Calcraft participated in both sides of this transition. He carried out the last public execution on May 26, 1868, involving Michael Barrett. He also performed the first private execution on August 13, 1868, involving Thomas Wells.
Throughout his long career, Calcraft executed many different types of people. He is estimated to have hanged 35 women during his time in office. In 1849, he performed a rare execution of a married couple. Marie and Frederick Manning were the first husband and wife to be hanged together since 1700. As Calcraft aged, the press noted a decline in his abilities. In 1869, at age 69, a newspaper reported his work was slow and bungling. He eventually retired in 1874 and received a pension of 25 shillings a week.
In his later years, Calcraft's appearance and reputation changed significantly. While he was described as genial when he was younger, he became a surly figure. He was often seen in scruffy black clothing with a long beard and hair. He died in Hoxton on December 13, 1879, at the age of 79.
His life remains a documented part of the history of the British justice system. His career illustrates the shift from public spectacle to private legal procedure.
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