USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -Guillotine: A machine used during (and after) the French Revolution for beheading people condemned to death, by means of a heavy sharp blade that slid down within vertical guides. By extension, “guillotine” refers to any shearing machine or instrument (such as a paper cutter, a book trimmer, etc.)

Detailed explanation-2: -One day after being convicted of conspiracy with foreign powers and sentenced to death by the French National Convention, King Louis XVI is executed by guillotine in the Place de la Revolution in Paris.

Detailed explanation-3: -During the Revolution, the guillotine was continuously moved around Paris. It was first used on the Place de Grève and then the Place du Carrousel (near the Tuileries). It was then moved to the Place de la Révolution (currently the Place de la Concorde) from May 11, 1793 to June 9, 1794.

Detailed explanation-4: -The first execution was carried out on a highwayman in 1792 and the machine became known as the guillotine. By that time, France was in the throes of revolution. The King, Louis XVI had been deposed and the country had declared itself a republic.

Detailed explanation-5: -It was originally developed as a more humane method of execution. The origins of the French guillotine date back to late-1789, when Dr. Joseph-Ignace Guillotin proposed that the French government adopt a gentler method of execution.