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The Faithful Executioner
- Life and Death, Honor and Shame in the Turbulent Sixteenth Century
- Narrated by: James Gillies
- Length: 9 hrs and 39 mins
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Publisher's Summary
Based on the rare and until now overlooked journal of a Renaissance-era executioner, the noted historian Joel F. Harrington's The Faithful Executioner takes us deep inside the alien world and thinking of Meister Frantz Schmidt of Nuremberg, who, during 45 years as a professional executioner, personally put to death 394 individuals and tortured, flogged, or disfigured many hundreds more. But the picture that emerges of Schmidt from his personal papers is not that of a monster. Could a man who routinely practiced such cruelty also be insightful, compassionate - even progressive?
In The Faithful Executioner, Harrington vividly re-creates a life filled with stark contrasts, from the young apprentice's rigorous training under his executioner father to the adult Meister Frantz's juggling of familial duties with his work in the torture chamber and at the scaffold. With him we encounter brutal highwaymen, charming swindlers, and tragic unwed mothers accused of infanticide, as well as patrician senators, godly chaplains, and corrupt prison guards. Harrington teases out the hidden meanings and drama of Schmidt's journal, uncovering a touching tale of inherited shame and attempted redemption for the social pariah and his children. The Faithful Executioner offers not just the compelling firsthand perspective of a professional torturer and killer, but testimony of one man's lifelong struggle to reconcile his bloody craft with his deep religious faith.
The biography of an ordinary man struggling for his soul, this groundbreaking book also offers an unparalleled panoramic view of Europe on the cusp of modernity, a society riven by violent conflict at all levels and encumbered by paranoia, superstition, and abuses of power. Thanks to an extraordinary historical source and its gifted interpreter, we recognize far more of ourselves than we might have expected in this intimate portrait of a professional killer from a faraway world.
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- Amazon Customer
- 2024-05-07
The amazing details of an era and job we mostly know through Hollywood
A great read from a deeply researched story. The author conveys the story in a way that engages us beyond the retelling of simply the macabre
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- Joshua
- 2020-11-25
Less gruesome and more educational than expected.
A heavy listen, the author has out a lot of hard work into researching and understanding his subject, who wrote very little of himself.
It provides and interesting contextualization of life and social norms in the 1600's, and food for thought on how much and how little we've changed since then.
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- Vlad Rybicka
- 2019-08-29
Definitely, we, as a western civilization,...
... did a huge improvement in the field of human rights and its treatment of people who got sucked in the justice system. In many instances my thoughts went to the Middle East on these days, when people are treated as we did them 450 years ago. On other level, I have to admit that a diary of Frantz Schmidt, the executioner, and his life as an untouchable of that period, was very moving and sadden me very much. This book is the must for any enthusiast of history of our western civilization.
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- Amazon Customer
- 2018-09-13
Great Book!
I thought this was a very well written book, the story was great and it was a good look back at the history of the executioners life and the social impact that job had on him and his family. I finished this book in one shot, and would definitely listen again. #Audible1
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- Jon
- 2018-10-28
Very interesting and surprisingly touching book
I picked this up after listening to a Dan Carlin podcast titled "Painfotainment" which referenced this title several times.
The history of capital and corporal punishment is quite fascinating, if you have the stomach for the gory details of some very brutal practices.
I got it mostly for the history, but to my surprise, the life story of Frantz Schmidt, whose diary formed the basis of this book, was extremely compelling and even touching. Without spoiling anything, it's a story of honour, faith, redemption, and tragedy. I found myself heavily emotionally invested in the life of a man whose experiences were totally alien to me.
The narration was also excellent. Great pacing and feeling.
Excellent all around.
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- A
- 2024-07-12
surprisingly great!
This is a very surprising and enlightening book. As other reviewers said, it is not overly focused on violence, but by necessity does have to describe some gruesome acts. I totally assumed before beginning that a person who was a executioner and torturer would be a sadistic monster. But the author did such a great job humanizing him that you understand he is much more of a reluctant bureaucrat than anything else. When you understand the worldview of the people described here and what little scientific knowledge they had, their behaviour makes more sense and is much less grotesque. As the author says, for us in the modern world to think we are way more civilized than these people is to not fully understand or appreciate human nature.
Def recommend.
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