Hook, cross and stake were the most terrible form of torture and execution. This was the inevitable end of spies, bandits, thieves and rebels. Those who were guilty would pay the price sooner or later, and the scales of justice would never fail.
However, one cannot help but think that these methods are quite painful. What would you think if we said that falaka is the mildest torture method used?
Removing teeth and nails is nothing compared to these methods.
Although many torture methods were used to make the criminal confess his crime, the most commonly used methods were hooks, crosses and stakes. Even when you imagine yourself being impaled to death, there must be pain in every part of your body. And imagine if this was done in a defenseless moment when you were completely naked and your hands and feet were tied, it’s terrible!
Hooking was a torture method used in Eminönü. Prisoners were placed naked on hooks larger than human height and quite thick, with pointed heads pointing upwards. If the person was lucky, he would die instantly, otherwise he would writhe in pain.
The cross was a method we all know.
The parts of the person’s buttocks were carved with a knife, oil candles were erected, and they were displayed to the public on a camel. Apart from these known methods, some of the tortures were also traditional. For example, this method, known as Mankurt and used by the Turks, reached the Ottoman Empire. To turn a person into Mankurt, first his hair is cut, then a wet skin is wrapped around his head, his hands and arms are tied and left under the sun. As the skin dries, it becomes compressed, which causes intense pain and affects the person’s mind. In this way, the person becomes unconscious and turns into a slave who will do whatever is asked without question.
Some of the methods used to make the prisoner talk were as follows: Skinning the prisoner alive with a knife, pulling his nerves with tweezers, shaving his hair completely and holding an iron object heated in the fire close to his head, breaking his bones with iron mallets, drilling holes in his body and attaching screws to his limbs, and putting him in boiling water. ..
A few examples of the victims of these tortures can be given as Yahnikapan Abdülkerim Pasha, one of the 17th century treasurers, and Gadde, the chamberlain of Grand Vizier Melek Ali Pasha.
There was also another method of punishment and torture used by executioners: castration.
In other words, the male’s reproductive organs are completely removed and castrated. During this procedure, the testicles were first completely removed, then the organ was cut and a lead rod was placed in its place. This torture was especially applied to those who kidnapped young girls or boys and committed adultery.
Another torture method was hanging and strangling with a greasy lasso. This torture method; It was applied to those who kidnapped captives, those who kidnapped concubines, those who stole more than once, and slaves who neglected their duties. In addition, those from the ulema were executed by hanging before bloodshed. For example, Seyyid Mustafa Efendi, who allegedly played a role in the Edirne rebellion in 1703, was strangled with a greasy lasso. Also, II. Murat had the Biga Judge hanged, who helped his uncle Prince Mustafa cross the Biga River.
In addition, the punishment of cauterizing or cutting various parts of the body was used for different crimes.
The arms of those who gave false testimony and prepared false documents and documents were branded, and the foreheads of those who led women astray were branded. For example, in 1638, IV. During the reign of Murad, the Eskişehir Judge, who claimed to be Mahdi and took action against the state by gathering followers around him, was punished with this method. When he was caught, the executioners put straps around the fake sheikh’s back and chest, wrapped them around his neck, then ripped off pieces of skin from his body and cut off all his fingers. They also put him on a donkey and paraded him around.
A rarely used torture method was the punishment of pouring hot lead into the mouth. This method was seen in only one example, and was applied to a person who later became a Muslim and allegedly drank wine during Ramadan.
A rare form of punishment recorded only once is cannon dismemberment.
This punishment was imposed only once by Bostancıbaşı Ferhat Ağa towards the end of the 16th century. The incident developed because a young janissary deceived and kidnapped a married young woman. Janissaries captured in Üsküdar are taken to Tophane. Ferhat Agha finds all known methods to punish the young man insufficient and strips the young man completely and breaks his wrists, elbows, knees and foot joints with a hammer. Then the young man is wrapped in oiled cloths and placed in the barrel of a cannon. Finally the cannon is fired and the young man dies, disintegrating in the air.
Although there were various methods of torture and execution in Ottoman history, all of them disappeared among the dusty pages of history after a while, leaving behind cautionary tales.
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