Revolutionary hero and doctor
28th May 1739 – 26 March 1814
Beliefs
Concerned about torture and deaths
Criminals should be allowed to volunteer for medical experiments instead of being subject to capital punishment
Part of a commission that decided mesmerism was a fraud
In 1789, elected to the Estates General and became secretary
When locked out, it was Guillotin who proposed reconvening in the Jeu de Paume court, and the National Assembly was born
Pioneer of medical reform, exposing unsanitary conditions First chair of Health Committee and submitted bill for medical reform in 1791
Death penalty
Death penalty was by axe or sword for nobility
Commoners hanged but noose not invented. Other methods included burning at the stake, the breaking wheel or death by boiling
Guillotin failed to get abolition of the death penalty, so proposed a more humane method of killing, mechanical decapitation
Guillotine’s 6 principles of humane punishment
All punishments for the same class of crime shall be the same, regardless of the criminal (i.e., there would be no privilege for the nobility)
When the death sentence is applied, it will be by decapitation, carried out by a machine
The family of the guilty party will not suffer any legal discrimination
It will be illegal to anyone to reproach the guilty party’s family about his/her punishment
The property of the convicted shall not be confiscated
The bodies of those executed shall be returned to the family if so requested
Modern day relevance
Guillotin one of first French doctors to support Edward Jenner’s discovery of vaccination
In 1805, he became chairman of the Central Vaccination Committee in Paris
Founded precursor to the French National Academy of Medicine
A full account of Dr Guilotine’s life can be found here
