Lorenz Schwietz
Encyclopedia
Lorenz Schwietz was Royal Prussian
executioner
from 21 June 1900 to 29 January 1914. Responsible for carrying out capital punishment
in the Prussian provinces
, he executed a total of 120 to 123 people, primarily by beheading with an axe, but also with guillotine
s.
(now Dobrzeń Wielki), Oppeln county, Prussian
province of Silesia
. In his early years, he worked as a butcher
, first in Breslau (now Wroclaw), where he received the respective education, later in Ratibor
(now Racibórz, both in Silesia
), before he returned to Breslau to open a butchery. Since 1886, he ran a knacker
's yard in Breslau, and in addition worked as an assistant of Royal Prussian executioner Julius Krautz.
Krautz, a knacker from Charlottenburg, resigned from the executioner's office after he had slain his assistant Gummich in April 1889 in a pub brawl, resulting from a dispute about the legitimacy of Krautz's punishments for Gummich's drunkenness at work. Schwietz was considered to take over an executioner's office by the Breslau state procecutor, but since Schwietz had a criminal record, he was rejected. Executions in Prussia were then carried out by members of the Reindel family, a „dynasty of executioners“. Friedrich Reindel retired in 1898, and Wilhelm Reindel had to resign in 1901 when, after continuous reports about his drunkenness and „feeble-minded“ appearance at work, he was unable to cut off a victim's head with the first blow of his axe.
river. Engelhardt soon went bankrupt, since the authorities in Hanover
refused to employ him and he spent too much of his money for alcohol. In 1906, he resigned, and Schwietz was the sole executioner in Prussia.
When Schwietz was called to an execution, he brought with him three to four assistants, a red bench, an axe, a log of wood, and a black stovepipe hat. The executioner's team travelled by train, 3rd class, on the state's expense. The victim and the executioner had a first contact the evening before the execution, for the executioner to examine the victim's neck as well as their physical and mental state in case they would offer resistance. After the execution, Schwietz engraved the name of the victim into his axe, which is likely to now rest in the archives of some museum in Berlin
. In an interview, Schwietz said that he felt no remorse, but perceived himself as merely executing justice on earth.
Three of Schwietz's assistants became executioners later on, Carl Gröpler, Joseph Kurz and Paul Spaethe. Spaethe succeeded Schwietz in 1914, and during World War I
performed several executions under Schwietz's supervision. When Spaethe's wife died in January 1924, he shot himself dead with a revolver on 29 January 1924. Kurz was appointed his successor, but became sick and died in 1927. Gröpler, who ran a laundry in Magdeburg
, was appointed executioner already when Schwietz and Spaethe were also in office, and became the foremost executioner in Nazi Germany
before he died in Soviet
custody in 1946.
n executioner Josef Lang committed suicide in the same year. The year before his death, Schwietz published his memoirs: Das Tagebuch des Scharfrichters Schwietz aus Breslau über seine 123 Hinrichtungen (Diary of executioner Schwietz from Breslau about his 123 executions), edited by Helmuth Kionka, Ruessmann: Breslau 1924.
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
executioner
Executioner
A judicial executioner is a person who carries out a death sentence ordered by the state or other legal authority, which was known in feudal terminology as high justice.-Scope and job:...
from 21 June 1900 to 29 January 1914. Responsible for carrying out capital punishment
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
in the Prussian provinces
Provinces of Prussia
The Provinces of Prussia constituted the main administrative divisions of Prussia. Following the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806 and the Congress of Vienna in 1815 the various princely states in Germany gained their nominal sovereignty, but the reunification process that culminated in...
, he executed a total of 120 to 123 people, primarily by beheading with an axe, but also with guillotine
Guillotine
The guillotine is a device used for carrying out :executions by decapitation. It consists of a tall upright frame from which an angled blade is suspended. This blade is raised with a rope and then allowed to drop, severing the head from the body...
s.
Early life
Lorenz Schwietz was born 25 July 1850 in Groß DöbernDobrzen Wielki
Dobrzeń Wielki is a village in Opole County, Opole Voivodeship, in south-western Poland. It is the seat of the Gmina Dobrzeń Wielki and is situated in the central district of the Opole Voivodeship, lying approximately north-west of the regional capital Opole...
(now Dobrzeń Wielki), Oppeln county, Prussian
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
province of Silesia
Province of Silesia
The Province of Silesia was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1815 to 1919.-Geography:The territory comprised the bulk of the former Bohemian crown land of Silesia and the County of Kladsko, which King Frederick the Great had conquered from the Austrian Habsburg Monarchy in the 18th...
. In his early years, he worked as a butcher
Butcher
A butcher is a person who may slaughter animals, dress their flesh, sell their meat or any combination of these three tasks. They may prepare standard cuts of meat, poultry, fish and shellfish for sale in retail or wholesale food establishments...
, first in Breslau (now Wroclaw), where he received the respective education, later in Ratibor
Racibórz
Racibórz is a town in southern Poland with 60,218 inhabitants situated in the Silesian Voivodeship , previously in Katowice Voivodeship...
(now Racibórz, both in Silesia
Silesia
Silesia is a historical region of Central Europe located mostly in Poland, with smaller parts also in the Czech Republic, and Germany.Silesia is rich in mineral and natural resources, and includes several important industrial areas. Silesia's largest city and historical capital is Wrocław...
), before he returned to Breslau to open a butchery. Since 1886, he ran a knacker
Knacker
A knacker is a person in the trade of rendering animals that are unfit for human consumption, such as horses that can no longer work. This leads to the slang expression "knackered" meaning very tired, or "ready for the knacker’s yard", where old horses are slaughtered and made into dog food and glue...
's yard in Breslau, and in addition worked as an assistant of Royal Prussian executioner Julius Krautz.
Krautz, a knacker from Charlottenburg, resigned from the executioner's office after he had slain his assistant Gummich in April 1889 in a pub brawl, resulting from a dispute about the legitimacy of Krautz's punishments for Gummich's drunkenness at work. Schwietz was considered to take over an executioner's office by the Breslau state procecutor, but since Schwietz had a criminal record, he was rejected. Executions in Prussia were then carried out by members of the Reindel family, a „dynasty of executioners“. Friedrich Reindel retired in 1898, and Wilhelm Reindel had to resign in 1901 when, after continuous reports about his drunkenness and „feeble-minded“ appearance at work, he was unable to cut off a victim's head with the first blow of his axe.
Executioner
On 21 June 1900, Schwietz was examined executioner, and on 8 and 9 August, he performed his first executions. Wilhelm Reindel's son-in-law Alwin Engelhardt was also examined executioner in the same year, and claimed that he should be sole executioner in Prussia, pointing out that while he was unemployed, Schwietz had an income as a retiree. The Prussian Ministry of Justice tried to solve the rivalry by assigning to Schwietz the executions in the eastern part of Prussia, to Engelhardt the executions in the western part, divided by the ElbeElbe
The Elbe is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Krkonoše Mountains of the northwestern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia , then Germany and flowing into the North Sea at Cuxhaven, 110 km northwest of Hamburg...
river. Engelhardt soon went bankrupt, since the authorities in Hanover
Hanover
Hanover or Hannover, on the river Leine, is the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony , Germany and was once by personal union the family seat of the Hanoverian Kings of Great Britain, under their title as the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg...
refused to employ him and he spent too much of his money for alcohol. In 1906, he resigned, and Schwietz was the sole executioner in Prussia.
When Schwietz was called to an execution, he brought with him three to four assistants, a red bench, an axe, a log of wood, and a black stovepipe hat. The executioner's team travelled by train, 3rd class, on the state's expense. The victim and the executioner had a first contact the evening before the execution, for the executioner to examine the victim's neck as well as their physical and mental state in case they would offer resistance. After the execution, Schwietz engraved the name of the victim into his axe, which is likely to now rest in the archives of some museum in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. In an interview, Schwietz said that he felt no remorse, but perceived himself as merely executing justice on earth.
Three of Schwietz's assistants became executioners later on, Carl Gröpler, Joseph Kurz and Paul Spaethe. Spaethe succeeded Schwietz in 1914, and during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
performed several executions under Schwietz's supervision. When Spaethe's wife died in January 1924, he shot himself dead with a revolver on 29 January 1924. Kurz was appointed his successor, but became sick and died in 1927. Gröpler, who ran a laundry in Magdeburg
Magdeburg
Magdeburg , is the largest city and the capital city of the Bundesland of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Magdeburg is situated on the Elbe River and was one of the most important medieval cities of Europe....
, was appointed executioner already when Schwietz and Spaethe were also in office, and became the foremost executioner in Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
before he died in Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
custody in 1946.
Death
Schwietz's wife had died in 1923, and the economical crisis in post-war Weimar Germany had cost him all his savings. Frustrated, he committed suicide with a gun in May 1925. The AustriaAustria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n executioner Josef Lang committed suicide in the same year. The year before his death, Schwietz published his memoirs: Das Tagebuch des Scharfrichters Schwietz aus Breslau über seine 123 Hinrichtungen (Diary of executioner Schwietz from Breslau about his 123 executions), edited by Helmuth Kionka, Ruessmann: Breslau 1924.
List of executions
| Place | Number of executions | Victim(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Glogau | 6 | |
| Breslau | 3 | |
| Brieg Brzeg Brzeg is a town in southwestern Poland with 38,496 inhabitants , situated in Silesia in the Opole Voivodeship on the left bank of the Oder... |
1 | |
| Berlin Berlin Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union... |
3 | |
| Neuruppin Neuruppin Neuruppin is a town in Brandenburg, Germany. Located on the shore of Ruppiner See , it is the capital of the district of Ostprignitz-Ruppin. Population: 32,800 .-Overview:... |
1 | |
| Ostrowo Ostrów Wielkopolski Ostrów Wielkopolski is a town in central Poland with 72,360 inhabitants , situated in the Greater Poland Voivodeship; the seat of Ostrów Wielkopolski County.-History:Recently, a small fortified dwelling dating from the 10th century was discovered on the north-east side of... |
2 | |
| Oppeln | 2 | |
| Graudenz | 4 | All four victims were subsequently beheaded within 45 minutes in 1901 |
| Danzig | 2 | |
| Cottbus Cottbus Cottbus is a city in Brandenburg, Germany, situated around southeast of Berlin, on the River Spree. As of , its population was .- History :... |
7 | |
| Görlitz Görlitz Görlitz is a town in Germany. It is the easternmost town in the country, located on the Lusatian Neisse River in the Bundesland of Saxony. It is opposite the Polish town of Zgorzelec, which was a part of Görlitz until 1945. Historically, Görlitz was in the region of Upper Lusatia... |
2 | |
| Tilsit | 5 | |
| Köslin | 1 | |
| Beuthen | 10 | |
| Gleiwitz | 7 | |
| Posen Poznan Poznań is a city on the Warta river in west-central Poland, with a population of 556,022 in June 2009. It is among the oldest cities in Poland, and was one of the most important centres in the early Polish state, whose first rulers were buried at Poznań's cathedral. It is sometimes claimed to be... |
7 | |
| Allenstein | 6 | |
| Hirschberg Jelenia Góra ----Jelenia Góra is a city in Lower Silesia, south-western Poland. The name of the city means "deer mountain" in Polish, Czech and German. It is close to the Krkonoše mountain range running along the Polish-Czech border – ski resorts such as Karpacz and Szklarska Poręba can be found... |
5 | |
| Stargard Stargard Szczecinski Stargard Szczeciński is a city in northwestern Poland, with a population of 71,017 . Situated on the Ina River it is the capital of Stargard County and since 1999 has been in the West Pomeranian Voivodeship; prior to that it was in the Szczecin Voivodeship... |
1 | |
| Königsberg Königsberg Königsberg was the capital of East Prussia from the Late Middle Ages until 1945 as well as the northernmost and easternmost German city with 286,666 inhabitants . Due to the multicultural society in and around the city, there are several local names for it... |
4 | |
| Schneidemühl | 1 | A young mother who had just delivered her baby in the death cell, in 1905 |
| Hanover Hanover Hanover or Hannover, on the river Leine, is the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony , Germany and was once by personal union the family seat of the Hanoverian Kings of Great Britain, under their title as the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg... |
1 | |
| Cologne Cologne Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the... |
1 | |
| Essen Essen - Origin of the name :In German-speaking countries, the name of the city Essen often causes confusion as to its origins, because it is commonly known as the German infinitive of the verb for the act of eating, and/or the German noun for food. Although scholars still dispute the interpretation of... |
1 | |
| Düsseldorf Düsseldorf Düsseldorf is the capital city of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and centre of the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region.Düsseldorf is an important international business and financial centre and renowned for its fashion and trade fairs. Located centrally within the European Megalopolis, the... |
2 | |
| Schweidnitz | 3 | |
| Glatz | 1 | |
| Meseritz Miedzyrzecz Międzyrzecz is a town in western Poland with 18,584 inhabitants . The capital of Międzyrzecz County, it was part of the Gorzów Wielkopolski Voivodeship from 1975–1998. Since the Local Government Reorganization Act of 1998, Międzyrzecz has been situated in the Lubusz Voivodeship... |
3 | |
| Öls OLS OLS can stand for:* IATA code for Nogales International Airport in Arizona* Ordinary least squares, a method used in regression analysis for estimating linear models* Ottawa Linux Symposium* Oulun Luistinseura... |
1 | |
| Bartenstein | 1 | |
| Liegnitz | 1 | |
| Ratibor Racibórz Racibórz is a town in southern Poland with 60,218 inhabitants situated in the Silesian Voivodeship , previously in Katowice Voivodeship... |
6 | |
| Bromberg | 4 | |
| Plötzensee Plötzensee Plötzensee is a small glacial lake in Berlin. It is situated near the Rehberge public park in the former borough of Wedding, now a part of Mitte. The name stems from Plötze, one name for the roach in German, as the lake formerly teemed with it.... |
3 | Rudolf Hennig in 1906 |
| Guben Guben Guben is a town on the Lusatian Neisse river in the state of Brandenburg, Germany. Located in the Spree-Neiße district, Guben has a population of 20,049... |
1 | |
| Lessa | 1 | |
| Thorn Torun Toruń is an ancient city in northern Poland, on the Vistula River. Its population is more than 205,934 as of June 2009. Toruń is one of the oldest cities in Poland. The medieval old town of Toruń is the birthplace of the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus.... |
1 | |
| Insterburg | 5 | |
| Stettin | 1 | |
| Frankfurt an der Oder |
See also
- List of executioners
- Decapitation by executioner Schwietz 24 January 1908 in Bartenstein
- Decapitation by executioner Schwietz 27 February 1908 in Stettin
- Royal Prussian executioner Julius Krautz at de.wikipedia.org
- Royal Prussian executioner Friedrich Reindel at de.wikipedia.org
- Royal Prussian executioner Carl Gröpler at de.wikipedia.org