A guillotine is now on display at the Museum of European and Mediterranean Civilizations in Marseille, France, honoring the legacy of Robert Badinter, a former Minister of Justice who died in 2024. This exhibition coincides with Badinter’s induction into the Panthéon, France’s national mausoleum, recognizing his pivotal role in abolishing the death penalty.

From 'Louisette' to Symbol of Revolution

The guillotine, originally known as the “louisette” after its inventor, surgeon Antoine Louis, emerged in the late 1780s. Louis, inspired by existing execution methods like the English gibbet and Italian mannaia, collaborated with harpsichord manufacturer Tobias Schmidt to build the device. The impetus came from physician Joseph-Ignace Guillotin, who, despite opposing capital punishment, sought a more humane and efficient method of execution.

A Democratization of Punishment

Prior to the French Revolution, methods of execution varied based on social class. Nobles received beheading by sword, while others faced harsher punishments like hanging or drowning. Guillotin advocated for equal treatment under the law, arguing that “offenses of the same kind will be punished by the same kind of penalty, regardless of the rank and status of the guilty.” He proposed the new apparatus as a means to achieve this.

The Reign of Terror and Beyond

The first public execution by guillotine took place in 1792. Despite Guillotin’s intentions, executions often became chaotic events, attracting large, unruly crowds. A tragic incident even occurred when the executioner’s son fell to his death from the scaffold while displaying a severed head.

The machine was equipped with macabre accessories, including a splatter shield and a wicker basket to collect the heads. For nearly two centuries, the Sanson family monopolized executions in Paris, until Henri-Clément Sanson sold the family apparatus in 1847. Later, criminals began tattooing “ma tête à Deibler” (my head to Deibler) on their necks, referencing the Deibler family, who then carried out executions.

A Spectacle Silenced

Public executions continued into the 20th century, reaching a peak in 1939 with the execution of serial killer Eugen Weidmann. The event, captured by a hidden camera and broadcast to a festive crowd, was deemed so scandalous that Prime Minister Édouard Daladier decreed all future executions be held behind prison walls.

Gruesome documentation of the practice persisted, notably in Anatole Deibler’s notebooks, published in 2000 as “Guillotiné’s,” containing mugshots, notes, and even photographs of severed heads.

Badinter's Legacy and Abolition

The guillotine was last used in France in 1977 in Marseille, to execute Hamida Djandoubi, a Tunisian man convicted of murder. Robert Badinter, who became Minister of Justice, spearheaded the campaign to abolish capital punishment, recognizing the guillotine’s significance in French history. He ensured the preservation of two guillotines in the national collection, with a stipulation that they not be displayed for twenty years.

A Fight for Abolition

Badinter’s commitment to abolition stemmed from a formative experience in 1972, witnessing the execution of a client he had defended. He dedicated his life to ending capital punishment, culminating in a famous speech urging the Assemblée Nationale to prevent “furtive executions at dawn.” His efforts were successful, with the death penalty being abolished in France in 1981.

Badinter’s work also impacted the case of Klaus Barbie, a Nazi war criminal who was sentenced to life in prison, avoiding the guillotine due to Badinter’s efforts. Badinter considered this a “true victory of civilization.”