A variety of corporal punishment shocked its inhumanity and cruelty from ancient times. What they just didn’t do with the prisoners in order to get the truth from them: they broke their ribs, quartered, raised them on the rack. Torture in Russia was very sophisticated. Even the West lured the Slavic experience in the ways of savage torment.
Hanging on the rack
Raising on the rack is torture in Russia, which was used with particular rigidity. In another way, this corporal punishment was called the "Russian temple." Fish is a tool of torture that was used to stretch a person’s body.
As a result, the soft tissues were torn, the limbs fell out of the joints. The prisoner experienced unbearable pain, so the victim often confessed to all crimes, even which he did not commit.
In Russia, this type of execution appeared in the 13th century. The prisoner was tied by the legs and hands to two posts that were connected by a crossbar. Gradually, the body began to stretch until the arms were twisted.
The hanging time was determined differently each time, and a person could be subjected to such torture from a few minutes to a couple of hours. It all depended on whether he admitted his deed or not.
Such corporal punishment was extremely common under the rule of the Romanov dynasty. When Peter the Great was on the throne, the archers rebelled in 1698 were hung on the rack. Moreover, they were not just twisted joints, but also beaten with a whip.
Tendon ruptures were common. As a result, a pain shock occurred, and the prisoner fell unconscious. Until he recovered, the torture was stopped. After this execution, all the joints were restored to the man, and he continued to live and work.
Batogi
The second most popular torture in Russia. This is when a prisoner was beaten with thick rods, on which the end was trimmed. They were called batogs. This corporal punishment was especially popular under Ivan the Terrible. They resorted to him for various violations: for an improper appeal to the owner, the king, or for petty theft (chicken, for example).
The victim was laid face down on the ground. One man sat on the neck and the other on his feet so that the condemned person was completely immobilized. The executioner took two whips in his hands and began to beat the man on the back until he heard the truth. The torture could also be continued until the prisoner withstood all the assigned blows.
Under Ivan the Terrible, this was punished for drunkenness. Also, the booze could be shackled and dipped in ice water or put naked on an anthill.
Wine barrel
This is another punishment for those who like to drink. The victim was placed in a barrel of wine so that he could not get out of there. After that, a barrel was transported throughout the city for all to publicly humiliate a drunkard.
It so happened that a person was in an alcohol solution for a rather long time, as a result of which soft tissues began to exfoliate from the bones. This inflicted tremendous torment on the imprisoned. Often such a punishment ended tragically and a dead body was taken out of the barrel.
Tongue cutting
This torture in Moscow Russia appeared in the middle of the 13th century. The supposed culprit was forced to open the jaw, with the help of special forceps, the tongue was pulled out and cut off.
For the first time such a punishment was tested on the Novgorodians who rebelled against the Tatar Baskaks in 1257. Also in the 1670s, Protopope Habakkuk was tortured, who went against church reform under Patriarch Nikon.
Tearing out the nostrils
This torture in Russia appeared during the reign of Prince Vladimir and was described in the "Council Code" - the code of laws in 1649. Subjected to this execution observed in adultery. In those days, it was called "Urezash noses."
Under the Golden Horde, this torture punished those who killed tribute collectors and Tatar-Mongolian scribes. When Ivan the Terrible ruled, they could rip out the nostrils of the one who slandered the ruler.
Mikhail Romanov and Alexei Mikhailovich (his son) resorted to tearing out their nostrils for smoking. Under Peter 1, thieves were punished in this way, and Anna Ioannovna (his niece) ordered such torture to convicts. And it doesn’t matter what class of person.
When Catherine 2 began to rule, this type of corporal punishment was used as a mark. So the caught participants of the Pugachev uprising were “tagged”.
Tearing out nails
Thanks to such torture in Russia, it was possible to “learn the whole background.” Malyuta Skuratov (close to Ivan the Terrible) began to practice its use from the 16th century for knocking out the necessary evidence. He drove a needle under the victim’s nails.
Malyuta also tried to catch those who ridiculed the king, the so-called comedian parsley. After the capture, they were threatened with such a punishment: fingers were clamped in a vice so that the bone came out from under the skin, like a bone made of cherry. After that, the fingers remained non-functional, so they were often simply removed.
Knitting
This is one of the most famous tortures of ancient Russia used in the Peter and Paul Fortress. She found the greatest application during the reign of Peter 1. Sharp wooden pegs were dug into the ground, and the victim was forced to stand or walk on them with bare feet. At the same time, the man was chained so that there was no way to move from the knitting needles.
This execution was carried out at the commandant's house in the fortress itself. Therefore, this square was called a dance square, because it is simply impossible to stand still on the sharpest pegs.
Wooden horse
This is another instrument of torture in Russia. A man sentenced for several hours was put on a model of a horse made of wood, after which a load was hung at his feet. It so happened that at the same time the victim was still beaten with bats and whips. The guardsmen of that time were very popular phrase: "You go on a horse, which drives the rider himself."
Artemy Volynsky is the Astrakhan governor, he so tortured Lieutenant Prince Meshchersky, only tied live dogs to his feet, which bit the legs of the punished.
The Thief’s Throne
This is a torture weapon, which was intended for traitors and conspirators. The prisoner was put on this "throne", carefully tied and slowly began to fold and twist the ropes. As a result, multiple spikes pierced the body, causing the victim unbearable torment.
After a couple of days, the victim admitted even that which she did not commit at all. And since all this time a person could not normally go to the toilet, the wounds on the body began to get wet and rot.
Torture by fire
This corporal punishment was invented by Ivan the Terrible and his associate Malyuta Skuratov. The punishment was carried out in the bathhouse. A broom was set on fire and a prisoner was beaten. Moreover, everything was done so that a person in no case died.
After that, the burns were crazyly scratched, but when touching the back, the person experienced terrible pain. Many simply died of wild pain in terrible torment.
Toad Feet
Often this method of corporal punishment was applied to the hypocrites who were caught under Tsar Ivan the Terrible. Using a special device, the knockers were literally squeezed out knuckles, after which the hands resembled the paws of a toad.
Hook hanging
This is one of the worst tortures in Russia. Rebels and robbers who were hung by their ribs were exposed to her. Also, the hook could be passed through other parts of the body.
If the woman was guilty, a through hole was made in her chest, through which a rope was passed and hung on a crossbeam.
Burrowing Alive
This punishment was purely female and was prescribed for those who killed their husbands. According to the Council Code of 1649, the wife who killed her husband was placed in the ground so that the head remained on the surface.
A guard was placed around her, who was to ensure that no one would feed the guilty, feed or release. As a result, a person simply died from starvation and crazy thirst.
Upside down
Especially sophisticated punishment was intended for rapists and pedophiles. They were hung upside down and sawed to the navel. As a result, blood rushed to the head, and the offender was conscious for a long time, but he was still dying from hellish pain.
Wheeling
This is one of the most terrible tortures that ended in the death of a criminal. He was tied to a large wheel in the "eagle pose", after which he began to break bones with a club. They could also snap and ride on stones. This torture came from Europe and was used until the 18th century.
Torture drop of water
This torture was used to drive a person to madness. They called her a "thin jug." All the hair was shaved off the prisoner at the crown and tied to a post. A jug was installed from above, from which water oozed drop by drop. So to a greater extent punished those who swear.
So you found out what torture was in Russia. The punishment for any wrongdoing was more than serious. Many criminals fled, only not to be punished by any of these methods, which by itself promised a sure and painful death.