The Middle Ages is one of the darkest and most tragic eras in the history of mankind. Those harsh times were characterized by a fierce struggle against dissent, sometimes taking on the most sinister forms. The courts of the Holy Inquisition widely used in their practice sophisticated torture that broke the will of the defendants and made the unfortunate crippled. One such torture is the so-called Spanish boot.
Sophisticated instrument of torture
The monstrous tortures of the Inquisition gained wide popularity in the countries of medieval Europe. The "Spanish boot" was especially painful. As the name suggests, this procedure was invented in Spain, but has since been used in other countries, including Germany, France, England, and even Russia.
The "Spanish boot" was often used by tsarist gendarmes and fascist executioners.
The "Spanish boot" was invented by the cunning figures of the Spanish Inquisition, who were very inventive. The task was simple - to create an instrument under the influence of which the accused of heresy would lose his will, become obedient and accommodating. The name of the specific inventor of this monstrous design remained unknown.
History has almost no detailed information about how the torture actually took place in the dungeons of the Holy Inquisition. The names of the victims and executioners often remain a mystery. The Holy Fathers were prudent people and did not want to leave traces of torture and subsequent reprisals. The materials testifying to the confessions of the accused were usually destroyed after interrogations and executions, and the people were only informed that the defendant himself had admitted his guilt.
"Spanish boot" in action
The instrument of torture, called the "Spanish boot", to some extent really remotely resembles a shoe. The torture instrument looked like a pair of metal plates or two wooden planks, between which the victim's legs were placed. The designs of such a torture device were somewhat different in different countries, but the very principle of its operation remained unchanged.
The "boot" worked according to the principle of an ordinary vice. The executioner, wielding wedges and screws, shifted the iron plates, which slowly but inevitably crushed the bones of the lower extremities. The ankle and knee joints, as well as the leg muscles, were destructive.
The place, which was exposed to this mechanism, turned into one continuous bloody mass.
Only a few could withstand such torment, and even then only those who by nature had a sufficiently high threshold of pain sensitivity. When, under the influence of the grip, the bones began to crunch, the victim either immediately agreed with the accusation, or simply fainted. Even if the confession was not followed by the death penalty, the sufferer usually died of gangrene or remained helpless and disabled until the end of his days.
