In the view of modern people tortureThe Middle Ages were an invention of sadistic monks and kings who were mad at cruelty. In fact, they were an integral part of medieval life, in particular, one of the judicial procedures and religious ritual. In order to understand the ways of development of a human society, one needs to look at the tortures of the Middle Ages without fear and disgust.
Brief background
It is wrong to consider torture to be an invention of the darkMiddle Ages: as a procedural procedure, it was used long before that. By and large, the torture of the Middle Ages was a legacy of antiquity. True, in ancient Greece it was possible to torture only slaves, and to the free, under the law, torture was not used. The same rule applied in the time of the Roman Republic. In the empire, they began to retreat from him, but the "untouchability" of honestiores (decent) was still preserved. However, if a person was suspected of a crime against the emperor, then his social status did not matter. In the tribes of the Germans conquered by Rome, torture could also be applied only to slaves and prisoners. The free German was dismissed by accountability for his relatives. Everything changed with the spread of Christianity and the emergence of such a thing as Ordalia - "the court of God." They began to look at the use of torture much more democratic - after all, before God, everyone is equal.
Medieval torture
Purification through pain and suffering is one ofpostulates of Christianity, which is confirmed by its main symbol - the cross. Which, in essence, is nothing more than an instrument of torture. Add to this a peremptory faith in the afterlife and the daily observed death from diseases and wars: and you will not find that death is a serious punishment for the criminal. Therefore, in the Middle Ages, torture was easily used as a punishment or as a way to establish the truth. Moreover, a confession obtained without torture could not be taken into account by the court. In the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, after the reception of Roman law in Western Europe, torture gained legal status. From that moment on, the law was enshrined as, who and when to torture.
The most terrible torture of the Middle Ages
Since the torture received procedural status, herimmediately brought to terrible perfection. So that not only the pain caused by her, but the very thought of her would bring the criminals before faith and the law to immediate repentance. The tools of torture of the Middle Ages, with rare exceptions, were simple, but eerily effective. Most of them were designed for the fragmentation of small bones or joints, as well as their turning and stretching. Vivid examples of such tools are the rack and all sorts of grips for fingers and knees. It was also very common to give the body of the attempted a certain position in which he could be for days, while being able to pierce him (so that his vital organs were not damaged) or to burn with fire. Against this background, the demand of the law for judges and executioners to be moderate and not to use tortures that are not provided for by the law somehow looks unnatural.
