List of people who died by hanging
Encyclopedia
This is a list of people who died as a result of hanging
. These deaths are notable due to history or due to media exposure.
Capital punishment
Hanging
Hanging is the lethal suspension of a person by a ligature. The Oxford English Dictionary states that hanging in this sense is "specifically to put to death by suspension by the neck", though it formerly also referred to crucifixion and death by impalement in which the body would remain...
. These deaths are notable due to history or due to media exposure.
Before the 20th century
- Chongzhen EmperorChongzhen EmperorThe Chongzhen Emperor was the 16th and last emperor of the Ming Dynasty in China. He reigned from 1627 to 1644, under an era name that means "honorable and auspicious".- Early years :...
, emperor of China's Ming DynastyMing DynastyThe Ming Dynasty, also Empire of the Great Ming, was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty. The Ming, "one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history", was the last dynasty in China ruled by ethnic...
(April 25, 1644) - Gérard de NervalGérard de NervalGérard de Nerval was the nom-de-plume of the French poet, essayist and translator Gérard Labrunie, one of the most essentially Romantic French poets.- Biography :...
, French poet and essayist (January 26, 1855)
20th century
- Ludwig BoltzmannLudwig BoltzmannLudwig Eduard Boltzmann was an Austrian physicist famous for his founding contributions in the fields of statistical mechanics and statistical thermodynamics...
, physicist, pioneer of statistical mechanicsStatistical mechanicsStatistical mechanics or statistical thermodynamicsThe terms statistical mechanics and statistical thermodynamics are used interchangeably...
(September 5, 1906) - Sergei YeseninSergei YeseninSergei Alexandrovich Yesenin was a Russian lyrical poet. He was one of the most popular and well-known Russian poets of the 20th century but committed suicide at the age of 30...
, a RussianRussiansThe Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
poet, ex-husband of Isadora DuncanIsadora DuncanIsadora Duncan was a dancer, considered by many to be the creator of modern dance. Born in the United States, she lived in Western Europe and the Soviet Union from the age of 22 until her death at age 50. In the United States she was popular only in New York, and only later in her life...
(December 27, 1925) - Nishinoumi Kajirō IINishinoumi Kajiro IINishinoumi Kajirō II was a sumo wrestler. He was the sport's 25th Yokozuna.- Career :Nishinoumi was promoted to the top makuuchi division in May 1906. He was awarded a yokozuna licence by the house of Yoshida Tsukasa in February 1916 after winning a championship at January 1916 tournament...
, 25th yokozuna (January 27, 1931) - Santos Dumont, Brazilian aviationAviationAviation is the design, development, production, operation, and use of aircraft, especially heavier-than-air aircraft. Aviation is derived from avis, the Latin word for bird.-History:...
pioneer (1932) - Hans BergerHans BergerHans Berger was born in Neuses near Coburg, Bavaria, Germany. He is best known as the first to record human electroencephalograms in 1924, for which he invented the electroencephalogram , and the discoverer of the alpha wave rhythm known as "Berger's wave".- Biography :After attending...
, German inventor of electroencephalographyElectroencephalographyElectroencephalography is the recording of electrical activity along the scalp. EEG measures voltage fluctuations resulting from ionic current flows within the neurons of the brain...
(June 1, 1941) - Marina Tsvetayeva, a RussianRussiansThe Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
poet (August 31, 1941) - Eduard WirthsEduard WirthsEduard Wirths was the Chief SS doctor at the Auschwitz concentration camp from September 1942 to January 1945...
, Chief SS doctor (September 20, 1945) - Charles Armijo WoodruffCharles Armijo WoodruffCharles Armijo Woodruff was a United States Navy officer and the 11th Governor of American Samoa from December 6, 1914 to March 1, 1915. He captained multiple ships in both the Navy and the United States Merchant Marines. He served only briefly as governor, for a few months before ceding the...
, 11th Governor of American Samoa (November 23, 1945) - Wilfrid Garfield Case, former Canadian Member of Parliament and war veteran. (September 22, 1959)
- Frederick FleetFrederick FleetFrederick Fleet was a crewman and survivor of the sinking of the RMS Titanic after it struck an iceberg on 14 April 1912...
, lookout on the Titanic who first spotted the iceberg (1965) - Pete Ham, guitarist and singer of rock band BadfingerBadfingerBadfinger were a British rock band consisting originally of Pete Ham, Ron Griffiths, Mike Gibbins and Tom Evans, active from 1968 to 1983, and evolving from The Iveys, formed by Ham, Griffiths and David "Dai" Jenkins in Swansea, Wales, in the early 1960s. Joey Molland joined the group in 1969,...
(April 23, 1975) - Ulrike MeinhofUlrike MeinhofUlrike Marie Meinhof was a German left-wing militant. She co-founded the Red Army Faction in 1970 after having previously worked as a journalist for the monthly left-wing magazine Konkret. She was arrested in 1972, and eventually charged with numerous murders and the formation of a criminal...
, imprisoned member of the German Red Army FactionRed Army FactionThe radicalized were, like many in the New Left, influenced by:* Sociological developments, pressure within the educational system in and outside Europe and the U.S...
, (May 9, 1976) - Phil OchsPhil OchsPhilip David Ochs was an American protest singer and songwriter who was known for his sharp wit, sardonic humor, earnest humanism, political activism, insightful and alliterative lyrics, and haunting voice...
, political folksinger (1976) - David MunrowDavid MunrowDavid Munrow was a British musician and early music historian.- Biography and career :Munrow was born in Birmingham and was the son of Birmingham University dance teacher Hilda Norman Munrow and Albert Davis 'Dave' Munrow, a Birmingham University lecturer and physical education instructor who...
, musician and early musicEarly musicEarly music is generally understood as comprising all music from the earliest times up to the Renaissance. However, today this term has come to include "any music for which a historically appropriate style of performance must be reconstructed on the basis of surviving scores, treatises,...
historian, (May 15, 1976) - Ian CurtisIan CurtisIan Kevin Curtis was an English singer and lyricist, famous for leading the post-punk band Joy Division. Joy Division released their debut album, Unknown Pleasures, in 1979 and recorded their follow-up, Closer, in 1980...
, lead singer of Joy DivisionJoy DivisionJoy Division were an English rock band formed in 1976 in Salford, Greater Manchester. Originally named Warsaw, the band primarily consisted of Ian Curtis , Bernard Sumner , Peter Hook and Stephen Morris .Joy Division rapidly evolved from their initial punk rock influences...
(May 18, 1980) - Trent LehmanTrent LehmanTrenton Lawson "Trent" Lehman was an American child actor, best known for his role as Butch Everett on Nanny and the Professor...
, former child actor of Nanny and the ProfessorNanny and the ProfessorNanny and the Professor is a U.S. fantasy situation comedy created by AJ Carothers and Thomas L. Miller for 20th Century Fox Television. During pre-production, the proposed title was Nanny Will Do. The series first aired as a mid-season replacement on January 21, 1970, on ABC and was last telecast...
(January 18, 1982) - Richard ManuelRichard ManuelRichard George Manuel was a Canadian composer, singer, and multi-instrumentalist, best known for his contributions to and membership in The Band....
, Musician best known for his membership in The BandThe BandThe Band was an acclaimed and influential roots rock group. The original group consisted of Rick Danko , Garth Hudson , Richard Manuel , and Robbie Robertson , and Levon Helm...
(March 4, 1986) - Buster EdwardsBuster EdwardsBuster Edwards was a British criminal who was a member of the gang that committed the Great Train Robbery. He had also been a boxer and nightclub owner.-Early and private life:...
, British Great Train RobberGreat Train Robbery (1963)The Great Train Robbery is the name given to a £2.6 million train robbery committed on 8 August 1963 at Bridego Railway Bridge, Ledburn near Mentmore in Buckinghamshire, England. The bulk of the stolen money was not recovered...
(1994) - Tom EvansTom Evans (musician)Thomas Evans Jr was a musician who was most notable for his work with the band Badfinger.- Badfinger :In 1969, The Iveys changed their name to Badfinger and Paul McCartney of The Beatles gave the group a boost by offering them his song "Come and Get It" which he produced for the band...
, a member of the rock band Badfinger (5 June 1947 – 19 November 1983) - Michael GothardMichael GothardMichael Alan Gothard was an English actor, best remembered for his role as Kai in the television series Arthur of the Britons and for his role as the mysterious villain Emile Leopold Locque in the 1981 James Bond film For Your Eyes Only.-Early life:Michael Gothard was born in London in 1939...
, British actor (December 2, 1992) - Fred WestFred WestFrederick Walter Stephen West , was a British serial killer. Between 1967 and 1987, he alone, and later, he and his wife Rosemary, tortured, raped and murdered at least 11 young women and girls, many at the couple's homes. The majority of the murders occurred between May 1973 and September 1979 at...
, British serial killer (January 1, 1995) - Cheyenne BrandoCheyenne BrandoTarita Cheyenne Brando was the daughter of Marlon Brando by his third wife Tarita Teriipia, a Tahitian whom he met while filming Mutiny on the Bounty in 1962....
, daughter of Marlon BrandoMarlon BrandoMarlon Brando, Jr. was an American movie star and political activist. "Unchallenged as the most important actor in modern American Cinema" according to the St...
(April 16, 1995) - Kim Kwang-Seok, South Korean folk rockFolk rockFolk rock is a musical genre combining elements of folk music and rock music. In its earliest and narrowest sense, the term referred to a genre that arose in the United States and the UK around the mid-1960s...
singer (January 6, 1996) - Ray CombsRay CombsRaymond Neil "Ray" Combs, Jr. was an American comedian, actor, and host of the game show Family Feud on CBS and in syndication from 1988 to 1994.-Early life and career:...
, host of Family FeudFamily FeudFamily Feud is an American television game show created by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman. Two families compete against each other in a contest to name the most popular responses to a survey question posed to 100 people...
from 1988 to 1994 (June 2, 1996) - Terence DonovanTerence Donovan (photographer)Terence Daniel Donovan was a British photographer and film director, best remembered for his fashion photography of the 1960s. He oversaw the music video to Robert Palmer's "Addicted to Love" and "Simply Irresistible".Donovan was born in Stepney in the East End of London to Lilian Constance V...
, British fashion photographer (1996) - Michael HutchenceMichael HutchenceMichael Kelland John Hutchence was an Australian musician and actor. He was the founding lead singer-songwriter of rock band :INXS from 1977 to his death in 1997, a period of twenty years. Hutchence was a member of short-lived pop rock group Max Q and recorded solo material which was released...
, lead singer of INXSINXSINXS are an Australian rock band, formed as The Farriss Brothers in 1977 in Sydney, New South Wales. Mainstays are Garry Gary Beers on bass guitar, Andrew Farriss on guitar/keyboards, Jon Farriss on drums, Tim Farriss on lead guitar and Kirk Pengilly on guitar/sax...
(November 22, 1997) - Rozz WilliamsRozz WilliamsRozz Williams was an American vocalist and musician of several varieties, most famous for fronting the band Christian Death, then later Shadow Project with musician Eva O, though his main project throughout his career was the industrial, Premature Ejaculation...
, American musician (April 1, 1998) - Justin FashanuJustin FashanuJustinus Soni "Justin" Fashanu was an English footballer who played for a variety of clubs between 1978 and 1997. He was known by his early clubs to be homosexual, and came out to the press later in his career, to become the first professional footballer to be openly gay...
, British footballer (May 2, 1998) - Hideto Matsumoto, Japanese rock musician (May 2, 1998)
- Sarah KaneSarah KaneSarah Kane was an English playwright. Her plays deal with themes of redemptive love, sexual desire, pain, torture — both physical and psychological — and death. They are characterised by a poetic intensity, pared-down language, exploration of theatrical form and, in her earlier work, the use of...
, British playwright (February 20, 1999) - David StricklandDavid StricklandDavid Gordon Strickland, Jr. was an American television actor best known for playing the boyish rock music reporter Todd Stites in the NBC sitcom Suddenly Susan.-Life:...
, American actor, best known for his character Todd on Suddenly SusanSuddenly SusanSuddenly Susan is an American sitcom that was broadcast on NBC from 1996 to 2000. The show takes place at The Gate, a fictitious magazine which is based in San Francisco. Among the magazine's employees is Susan Keane , who always has been cared for by someone else...
, (March 22, 1999)
21st century
- Stuart AdamsonStuart AdamsonStuart Adamson , born William Stuart Adamson, was an English-born Scottish guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter, described by legendary music journalist John Peel as “Britain’s answer to Jimi Hendrix”...
, British musician (December 16, 2001) - Jon Lee, drummer with FeederFeeder-Technology:* Feeder , any of several devices used in apiculture to supplement or replace natural food sources* Feeder , another name for a riser, a reservoir built into a metal casting mold to prevent cavities due to shrinkage...
(2002) - Ryan Halligan, a 13 year old schoolboy (October 7, 2003)
- Jonathan BrandisJonathan BrandisJonathan Gregory Brandis was an American actor, director, and screenwriter.-Early life and career:Brandis was born in Danbury, Connecticut, the only child of Mary, a teacher and personal manager, and Gregory Brandis, a food distributor and firefighter. He began his career as a child model and...
, American actor (November 12, 2003) - Tesia Samara (Ben Brownlee), a fifteen year old transgender MTF (November 18 2003)
- Harold ShipmanHarold ShipmanHarold Fredrick Shipman was an English doctor and one of the most prolific serial killers in recorded history with 218 murders being positively ascribed to him....
, English doctor and serial killer, convicted of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment (January 13, 2004) - Lee Eun-juLee Eun-juLee Eun-ju was a South Korean actress. She died by suicide at the age of 24.-Life and career:Born in Gunsan, Jeollabuk-do, South Korea, Lee moved to Seoul after graduating high school to study acting. She was first noticed in the mid-1990s as a model for school uniforms, and after a number of...
, South Korean actress and singer (February 22, 2005) - Paul HesterPaul HesterPaul Newell Hester was an Australian musician and television personality; he was the drummer for the related bands Split Enz and Crowded House.-The early years:...
, former drummer of Crowded HouseCrowded HouseCrowded House are a rock band, formed in Melbourne, Australia and led by New Zealand singer-songwriter Neil Finn. Finn is the primary songwriter and creative director of the band, having led it through several incarnations, drawing members from New Zealand , Australia and the United States...
(March 26, 2005) - Megan MeierSuicide of Megan MeierMegan Taylor Meier , was an American teenager from Dardenne Prairie, Missouri, who committed suicide by hanging three weeks before her fourteenth birthday. A year later, Meier's parents prompted an investigation into the matter and her suicide was attributed to cyber-bullying through the social...
, a 13 year old schoolgirl (October 17, 2006) - Jung Da Bin, South Korean actress (February 10, 2007)
- Mike AwesomeMike AwesomeMichael Lee Alfonso , better known by his ring name Mike Awesome, was an American professional wrestler best known in America for his work in Extreme Championship Wrestling, World Championship Wrestling, and in World Wrestling Federation and also in Japan for his work with Frontier Martial-Arts...
, former professional wrestlerProfessional wrestlingProfessional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
, twice ECW Champion (February 17, 2007) - Kevin WhitrickKevin WhitrickKevin Neil Whitrick was a British citizen and an electrical engineer.Whitrick's death was highly publicized for his live, online webcasted suicide.- Marriage and children :...
, online suicide via webcam (March 21, 2007) - Toshikatsu MatsuokaToshikatsu Matsuokawas a Japanese politician. He served as the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries from September 26, 2006 under the Abe cabinet. He committed suicide in 2007 in the middle of a financial scandal.- Biography :...
, Japanese politician (May 28, 2007) - Chris BenoitChris BenoitChristopher Michael "Chris" Benoit was a Canadian professional wrestler whose career and life ended in a murder–suicide...
, Canadian professional wrestler (June 24, 2007Chris Benoit double murder and suicideThe Chris Benoit double murder suicide occurred over a three-day period ending on June 24, 2007. World Wrestling Entertainment professional wrestler Chris Benoit killed his wife, Nancy Benoit, strangled his seven-year-old son, Daniel, and subsequently committed suicide by hanging. Autopsy results...
) - Mark SpeightMark SpeightMark Warwick Fordham Speight was an English television presenter, best known as the host of children's art programme SMart. Speight grew up in Tettenhall, Wolverhampton, and left school at 16 to become a cartoonist...
, British children's television presenter SmartSmartSmart is another word for intelligence.Smart or SMART may also refer to:People:*Christopher Smart, English poet*Amy Smart, American actress and former fashion model*Elizabeth Smart:...
(April 7, 2008) - Deborah Jeane PalfreyDeborah Jeane PalfreyDeborah Jeane Palfrey operated Pamela Martin and Associates, an escort agency in Washington, D.C. Although she argued that the company's services were legal, she was convicted on April 15, 2008 of racketeering, using the mail for illegal purposes, and money laundering...
, operator of an escort agencyEscort agencyEscort agencies are companies that provide escorts for the agency's clients. The agency typically arranges a meeting between one of its escorts and the client at the customer's house or hotel room , or at the escort's residence . Some agencies also provide escorts for longer durations, who may stay...
in Washington, D.C. (May 1, 2008) - David Foster WallaceDavid Foster WallaceDavid Foster Wallace was an American author of novels, essays, and short stories, and a professor at Pomona College in Claremont, California...
, the American author of Infinite JestInfinite JestInfinite Jest is a 1996 novel by David Foster Wallace. The lengthy and complex work takes place in a semi-parodic future version of North America, and touches on tennis, substance addiction and recovery programs, depression, child abuse, family relationships, advertising and popular entertainment,...
(September 12, 2008) - Jang Ja-yeon, South Korean actress (March 7, 2009)
- Lucy GordonLucy Gordon (actress)Lucy Gordon was a British actress and model. She became a face of CoverGirl in 1997 before starting an acting career. Her first film was Perfume in 2001 before going on to have small roles in Spider-Man 3, Serendipity and The Four Feathers...
, English actress and model (May 20, 2009) - Daul KimDaul KimKim Daul was an international South Korean fashion model and blogger. She committed suicide at the age of 20.-Career:...
, a South Korean born model who modeled in France, died on November 20, 2009 - Phoebe PrinceDeath of Phoebe PrinceThe suicide of Phoebe Prince, on January 14, 2010, led to the criminal prosecution of six teenagers for charges including statutory rape and civil rights violations, as well as to the enactment of stricter anti-bullying legislation by the Massachusetts state legislature.Prince had moved from...
, a 15 year old schoolgirl (January 14, 2010) - Alexander McQueenAlexander McQueenLee Alexander McQueen, CBE was a British fashion designer and couturier best known for his in-depth knowledge of bespoke British tailoring, his tendency to juxtapose strength with fragility in his collections, as well as the emotional power and raw energy of his provocative fashion shows...
, British fashion designer (February 11, 2010) - Ambrose OlsenAmbrose OlsenAmbrose Olsen was an American male fashion model known for starring in dozens of ad campaigns for Armani and Hugo Boss.-Early:...
, American male model (April 22, 2010) - Choi Jin Young, the brother of Choi Jin Shil (March 29, 2010)
- Viveka BabajeeViveka BabajeeViveka Babajee was a Mauritian-born Indian model and actress. She held the titles of Miss Mauritius World 1993 and Miss Mauritius Universe 1994. She was best known for her KamaSutra condom advertisements of the 1990s, and for her involvement in the so-called Metro Manila Film Festival scam of...
, Indian model (June 25, 2010) - Ismail Mohamed Didi, air traffic controller at the Malé International AirportMalé International AirportIbrahim Nasir International Airport , more commonly known as Malé International Airport, previously known as Hulhulé Airport, is the main international airport in the Maldives...
MaldivesMaldivesThe Maldives , , officially Republic of Maldives , also referred to as the Maldive Islands, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean formed by a double chain of twenty-six atolls oriented north-south off India's Lakshadweep islands, between Minicoy Island and...
(July 13, 2010) - Alex WhybrowLarry SweeneyAlexander K. Whybrow was an American professional wrestler and manager, better known by his ring name Larry Sweeney...
, American professional wrestler better known as Larry Sweeney (April 11, 2011) - Miyu UeharaMiyu Uehara, better known as , was a Japanese gravure idol and TV personality, who gained popularity as a "poverty idol".-Life:Uehara was born on the island of Tanegashima in Kagoshima Prefecture, the youngest of 10 siblings. She attended high school in Kagoshima for a brief time before dropping out...
, Japanese gravure idol (May 12, 2011) - Andrzej LepperAndrzej LepperAndrzej Zbigniew Lepper was a Polish politician who was the leader of Samoobrona RP political party....
, former Deputy Prime Minister of PolandDeputy Prime Minister of the Republic of PolandDeputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland is the deputy of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland and member of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Poland. He can also be one of the ministers of Poland.-People's Poland :...
and former Minister of Agriculture of Poland (August 5, 2011) - Gary SpeedGary SpeedGary Andrew Speed, MBE was a Welsh football player and manager. He was captain of the Wales national football team until he retired from international football in 2004 and he remains the most capped outfield player for Wales and the second overall, having appeared 85 times at senior level between...
, Wales national football teamWales national football teamThe Wales national football team represents Wales in international football. It is controlled by the Football Association of Wales , the governing body for football in Wales, and the third oldest national football association in the world. The team have only qualified for a major international...
manager and former football player (November 27, 2011)
In literature
- Judas IscariotJudas IscariotJudas Iscariot was, according to the New Testament, one of the twelve disciples of Jesus. He is best known for his betrayal of Jesus to the hands of the chief priests for 30 pieces of silver.-Etymology:...
in The Bible - JocastaJocastaIn Greek mythology, Jocasta, also known as Jocaste , Epikastê, or Iokastê was a daughter of Menoeceus and Queen consort of Thebes, Greece. She was the wife of Laius. Wife and mother of Oedipus by Laius, and both mother and grandmother of Antigone, Eteocles, Polynices and Ismene by Oedipus...
and AntigoneAntigoneIn Greek mythology, Antigone is the daughter of Oedipus and Jocasta, Oedipus' mother. The name may be taken to mean "unbending", coming from "anti-" and "-gon / -gony" , but has also been suggested to mean "opposed to motherhood", "in place of a mother", or "anti-generative", based from the root...
in SophoclesSophoclesSophocles is one of three ancient Greek tragedians whose plays have survived. His first plays were written later than those of Aeschylus, and earlier than or contemporary with those of Euripides...
' Three Theban Plays - John the Savage in Huxley'sAldous HuxleyAldous Leonard Huxley was an English writer and one of the most prominent members of the famous Huxley family. Best known for his novels including Brave New World and a wide-ranging output of essays, Huxley also edited the magazine Oxford Poetry, and published short stories, poetry, travel...
Brave New WorldBrave New WorldBrave New World is Aldous Huxley's fifth novel, written in 1931 and published in 1932. Set in London of AD 2540 , the novel anticipates developments in reproductive technology and sleep-learning that combine to change society. The future society is an embodiment of the ideals that form the basis of... - Able Frye in Hangman's CurseHangman's CurseHangman's Curse is a 2001 novel by Frank E. Peretti. It is the first book in the Veritas Project series for teenagers.-Plot overview:The story centers around an apparently supernatural case taken by a family of investigators who make up the Veritas Project...
Capital punishmentCapital punishmentCapital 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...
- Bhagat Singh, Indian Revolutionary freedom fighter (March 19, 1931)
- Rajguru, Indian Revolutionary freedom fighter (March 19, 1931)
- SukhdevSukhdevSukhdev Thapar was born in Ludhiana, Punjab. He was an Indian freedom fighter who lived from 15 May 1907 to March 23, 1931) who was involved with Shaheed Bhagat Singh andShivaram Rajguru in the killing of a British police officer J.P...
, Indian Revolutionary freedom fighter (March 19, 1931) - John AndréJohn AndréJohn André was a British army officer hanged as a spy during the American War of Independence. This was due to an incident in which he attempted to assist Benedict Arnold's attempted surrender of the fort at West Point, New York to the British.-Early life:André was born on May 2, 1750 in London to...
, British officer, for espionage (1780) - George AtzerodtGeorge AtzerodtGeorge Andreas Atzerodt was a conspirator, with John Wilkes Booth, in the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Assigned to assassinate Vice-President Andrew Johnson, he lost his nerve and did not make an attempt. He was executed along with three other conspirators by hanging.-Early life:Atzerodt...
, Abraham LincolnAbraham LincolnAbraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
assassination conspirator (July 7, 1865) - Kevin BarryKevin BarryKevin Gerard Barry was the first Irish republican to be executed by the British since the leaders of the Easter Rising. Barry was sentenced to death for his part in an IRA operation which resulted in the deaths of three British soldiers.Barry's death is considered a watershed moment in the Irish...
, Irish nationalist militant (November 1, 1920) - Rainey BetheaRainey BetheaRainey Bethea was the last person to be publicly executed in the United States. Bethea, who was a black man, confessed to the rape and murder of a 70-year-old white woman named Lischia Edwards, and after being convicted of her rape, he was publicly hanged in Owensboro, Kentucky...
, last public hanging in U.S., for rape and murder (August 14, 1936) - Zulfikar Ali BhuttoZulfikar Ali BhuttoZulfikar Ali Bhutto was 9th Prime Minister of Pakistan from 1973 to 1977, and prior to that, 4th President of Pakistan from 1971 to 1973. Bhutto was the founder of the Pakistan Peoples Party — the largest and most influential political party in Pakistan— and served as its chairman until his...
, Pakistani politician (1979) - Dietrich BonhoefferDietrich BonhoefferDietrich Bonhoeffer was a German Lutheran pastor, theologian and martyr. He was a participant in the German resistance movement against Nazism and a founding member of the Confessing Church. He was involved in plans by members of the Abwehr to assassinate Adolf Hitler...
, German theologian (1945) - John BrownJohn Brown (abolitionist)John Brown was an American revolutionary abolitionist, who in the 1850s advocated and practiced armed insurrection as a means to abolish slavery in the United States. He led the Pottawatomie Massacre during which five men were killed, in 1856 in Bleeding Kansas, and made his name in the...
, militant U.S. anti-slavery activist (December 2, 1859) - William Henry BuryWilliam Henry BuryWilliam Henry Bury was executed in Dundee, Scotland, for the murder of his wife Ellen in 1889, shortly after the height of the Whitechapel murders in London that were attributed to the unidentified serial killer "Jack the Ripper". Bury's previous abode near Whitechapel, and certain similarities...
, murderer and Jack the Ripper suspect (April 24, 1889) - Charles Rodman Campbell, convicted murderer (May 27, 1994)
- Roger CasementRoger CasementRoger David Casement —Sir Roger Casement CMG between 1911 and shortly before his execution for treason, when he was stripped of his British honours—was an Irish patriot, poet, revolutionary, and nationalist....
, Irish nationalist (August 3, 1916) - Hawley Harvey CrippenHawley Harvey CrippenHawley Harvey Crippen , usually known as Dr. Crippen, was an American homeopathic physician hanged in Pentonville Prison, London, on November 23, 1910, for the murder of his wife, Cora Henrietta Crippen...
, alleged wife murderer (November 23, 1910) - Westley Allan DoddWestley Allan DoddWestley Allan Dodd was a convicted American serial killer and child molester. He has been called "one of the most evil killers in history." His execution on January 5, 1993, was the first legal hanging in the United States since 1965.- His childhood years :Westley Allan Dodd was born in Richland,...
, serial killer and child molester (January 5, 1993) - Tom DulaTom DulaThomas C. Dula was a former Confederate soldier, who was tried, convicted, and hanged for the murder of his fiancée, Laura Foster. The trial and hanging received national publicity from newspapers such as The New York Times, thus turning Dula's story into a folk legend...
, inspiration for the song Tom DooleyTom Dooley (song)"Tom Dooley" is an old North Carolina folk song based on the 1866 murder of a woman named Laura Foster in Wilkes County, North Carolina. It is best known today because of a hit version recorded in 1958 by The Kingston Trio. This version was a multi-format hit, reaching #1 in Billboard, the...
, for murder (1868) - Adolf EichmannAdolf EichmannAdolf Otto Eichmann was a German Nazi and SS-Obersturmbannführer and one of the major organizers of the Holocaust...
, Nazi war criminal (May 31, 1962) - Hans FrankHans FrankHans Michael Frank was a German lawyer who worked for the Nazi party during the 1920s and 1930s and later became a high-ranking official in Nazi Germany...
Nazi official (October 16, 1946) - Wilhelm FrickWilhelm FrickWilhelm Frick was a prominent German Nazi official serving as Minister of the Interior of the Third Reich. After the end of World War II, he was tried for war crimes at the Nuremberg Trials and executed...
Hitler's Minister of the Interior 1933-1943 (October 16, 1946) - Nathuram GodseNathuram GodseNathuram Vinayak Godse , from the city of Pune, India was a Hindutva activist and journalist, who was the assassin of Mahatma Gandhi. Along with his brother Gopal Godse and six other co-conspirators, he executed a plot to assassinate Gandhi.-Early life:Nathuram Godse was born in Baramati, Pune...
, Mahatma Gandhi's Assassin (November 15, 1949) - Charles Guiteau, assassin of President Garfield (June 30, 1882)
- Nathan HaleNathan HaleNathan Hale was a soldier for the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He volunteered for an intelligence-gathering mission in New York City but was captured by the British...
, American patriot (September 22, 1776) - Richard "Dick" HickockRichard HickockRichard "Dick" Eugene Hickock was one of two ex-convicts who murdered the four members of the Herbert Clutter family in Holcomb, Kansas on November 15, 1959, a crime made famous by Truman Capote in his 1966 non-fiction novel In Cold Blood...
and Perry Edward SmithPerry Smith (murderer)Perry Edward Smith was one of two ex-convicts who murdered four members of the Clutter family in Holcomb, Kansas, United States on November 15, 1959, a crime made famous by Truman Capote in his 1966 non-fiction novel In Cold Blood.-Family and early life:Perry Edward Smith was born in Huntington,...
, murderers of the Clutter family (1965) - David HeroldDavid HeroldDavid Edgar Herold was an accomplice of John Wilkes Booth in the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. After guiding fellow conspirator Lewis Powell to the home of Secretary of State William H. Seward, whom Powell intended to kill, Herold fled and rendezvoused outside of Washington, D.C., with Booth...
, Abraham Lincoln assassination conspirator (July 7, 1865) - Tom HornTom HornThomas "Tom" Horn, Jr. was an American Old West lawman, scout, soldier, hired gunman, detective, outlaw and assassin. On the day before his 43rd birthday, he was hanged in Cheyenne, Wyoming, for the murder of Willie Nickell.-Early life:Born to Thomas S. Horn, Sr...
, Old West "Range Detective" (1903) - Saddam HusseinSaddam HusseinSaddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
, Iraq President (December 30, 2006) - Alfred JodlAlfred JodlAlfred Josef Ferdinand Jodl was a German military commander, attaining the position of Chief of the Operations Staff of the Armed Forces High Command during World War II, acting as deputy to Wilhelm Keitel...
, Chief of Operations Staff of Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (October 16, 1946) - William JoyceWilliam JoyceWilliam Joyce , nicknamed Lord Haw-Haw, was an Irish-American fascist politician and Nazi propaganda broadcaster to the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He was hanged for treason by the British as a result of his wartime activities, even though he had renounced his British nationality...
(Lord Haw-HawLord Haw-HawLord Haw-Haw was the nickname of several announcers on the English-language propaganda radio programme Germany Calling, broadcast by Nazi German radio to audiences in Great Britain on the medium wave station Reichssender Hamburg and by shortwave to the United States...
), Nazi propagandist (January 3, 1946) - Ernst KaltenbrunnerErnst KaltenbrunnerErnst Kaltenbrunner was an Austrian-born senior official of Nazi Germany during World War II. Between January 1943 and May 1945, he held the offices of Chief of the Reichssicherheitshauptamt , President of Interpol and, as a Obergruppenführer und General der Polizei und Waffen-SS, he was the...
, highest surviving SS leader (October 16, 1946) - Kiyotaka KatsutaKiyotaka Katsutawas a Japanese serial killer and thief.-Biography:Katsuta committed several murders and robbed several houses before being apprehended. The exact number of murders he committed is unknown. He killed his victims by strangling and shooting them....
, Japanese serial killer (2000) - Wilhelm KeitelWilhelm KeitelWilhelm Bodewin Gustav Keitel was a German field marshal . As head of the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht and de facto war minister, he was one of Germany's most senior military leaders during World War II...
, German head of army (October 16, 1946) - Ned KellyNed KellyEdward "Ned" Kelly was an Irish Australian bushranger. He is considered by some to be merely a cold-blooded cop killer — others, however, consider him to be a folk hero and symbol of Irish Australian resistance against the Anglo-Australian ruling class.Kelly was born in Victoria to an Irish...
, Australian Bushranger, (1880) - Tom KetchumTom KetchumThomas Everard Ketchum , known as Black Jack, was a cowboy who later turned to a life of crime. He was hanged in 1901 for attempted train robbery.-First train robberies and murders:...
, American old west outlaw (April 26, 1901) - Yoshio KodairaYoshio Kodairawas a Japanese rapist and serial killer. He killed one person in 1932 and was later sentenced to death after being convicted of killing seven others in 1945 and 1946.- Life as a soldier :...
, Japanese serial killer (1949) - Genzo KuritaGenzo Kuritawas a Japanese serial killer, who murdered eight people.- Murders :Kurita murdered two girlfriends in February 1948. On August 8, 1951, he raped and murdered a 24-year-old woman beside her baby. He then had sex with her corpse....
, Japanese serial killer (1959) - Norio NagayamaNorio Nagayamawas a Japanese spree killer and novelist.-Biography:Nagayama was born in Abashiri, Hokkaidō and grew up in a broken home. He moved to Tokyo in 1965 and, while working in Tokyo's Shibuya district, witnessed the Zama and Shibuya shootings....
, Japanese serial killer (1997) - Akira NishiguchiAkira Nishiguchiwas a Japanese serial killer and fraudster. He is most known for being able to confuse Japanese police into believing that he was only connected to fraud rather than the murders. While engaging in confidence scams, he murdered two people, was put on the most wanted list, and killed three others...
, Japanese serial killer (1970) - Kiyoshi ŌkuboKiyoshi Okubowas a Japanese serial killer. Between March 31, 1971 and May 10, 1971, he raped and murdered eight women, ages 16 to 21. He used a pen name, Tanigawa Ivan .- Early life :...
, Japanese serial killer (1976) - Lewis PowellLewis Powell (assassin)Lewis Thornton Powell , also known as Lewis Paine or Payne, attempted unsuccessfully to assassinate United States Secretary of State William H...
, Abraham Lincoln assassination conspirator (July 7, 1865) - Joachim Ribbentrop, German Reichminister, for war crimes (October 16, 1946)
- Louis RielLouis RielLouis David Riel was a Canadian politician, a founder of the province of Manitoba, and a political and spiritual leader of the Métis people of the Canadian prairies. He led two resistance movements against the Canadian government and its first post-Confederation Prime Minister, Sir John A....
, Canadian political activist, for high treason (November 6, 1885) - Alfred RosenbergAlfred Rosenberg' was an early and intellectually influential member of the Nazi Party. Rosenberg was first introduced to Adolf Hitler by Dietrich Eckart; he later held several important posts in the Nazi government...
, early member of the Nazi Party (October 16, 1946) - Mary SurrattMary SurrattMary Elizabeth Jenkins Surratt was an American boarding house owner who was convicted of taking part in the conspiracy to assassinate Abraham Lincoln. Sentenced to death, she was hanged, becoming the first woman executed by the United States federal government. She was the mother of John H...
, Abraham Lincoln assassination conspirator (July 7, 1865) - Mamoru TakumaMamoru Takumawas a Japanese janitor who committed mass murder of 8 people and wounded 15 others in the 2001 Osaka school massacre. He had been convicted and imprisoned for rape before the massacre.- Early life :...
, Japanese mass murderer (2004) - Hideki TōjōHideki TōjōHideki Tōjō was a general of the Imperial Japanese Army , the leader of the Taisei Yokusankai, and the 40th Prime Minister of Japan during most of World War II, from 17 October 1941 to 22 July 1944...
, Japanese war criminal (December 23, 1948) - Aleksandr UlyanovAleksandr UlyanovAleksandr Ilyich Ulyanov was a Russian revolutionary and a terrorist, convicted of attempted assassination of Alexander III. He was an older brother of Vladimir Lenin.- Life :...
, Russian revolutionary, for Tsar assassination plot (May 8, 1887) - Henry WirzHenry WirzHeinrich Hartmann Wirz better known as Henry Wirz was a Confederate officer in the American Civil War...
, Confederate commandant of the notorious AndersonvilleAndersonville, GeorgiaAndersonville is a city in Sumter County, Georgia, United States. The population was 331 at the 2000 census . It is located in the southwest part of the state, about southwest of Macon, Georgia on the Central of Georgia railroad...
, Georgia POW camp (November 10, 1865) - Michael XMichael XMichael X , born Michael de Freitas in Trinidad and Tobago to a Portuguese father and a Bajan-born mother, was a self-styled black revolutionary and civil rights activist in 1960s London. He was also known as Michael Abdul Malik and Abdul Malik...
, black revolutionary, for murder (1975) - Tomoyuki YamashitaTomoyuki YamashitaGeneral was a general of the Japanese Imperial Army during World War II. He was most famous for conquering the British colonies of Malaya and Singapore, earning the nickname "The Tiger of Malaya".- Biography :...
, Japanese general, for war crimes (1946) - Ali Hassan al-MajidAli Hassan al-MajidAli Hassan Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti , , was a Ba'athist Iraqi Defense Minister, Interior Minister, military commander and chief of the Iraqi Intelligence Service...
, Military commander and chief of the Iraqi Intelligence Service, for war crimes (January 25, 2010) - Flor ContemplacionFlor ContemplacionFlor R. Contemplacion born in San Pablo City, Laguna, Philippines was a Filipina domestic worker who was executed in Singapore for murder...
, convicted of murder in SingaporeSingaporeSingapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
(March 17, 1995) - Zahra BahramiThe Dutch-Iranian Zahra Bahrami was hanged in Iran. She was convicted of smuggling drugs.
- Marguerite Pitre Mass Murderess/Airliner Bomber, last woman executed in Canada (Jan 9, 1953)
- Ronald TurpinRonald TurpinOn December 10, 1962 Ronald Turpin, 29, was one of the two last people to be executed in the Dominion of Canada. The other prisoner was Arthur Lucas who was executed alongside Turpin at the Toronto Jail. Turpin had been convicted of the murder of Metropolitan Toronto police officer Frederick Nash...
patrolman-killer, and Arthur LucasArthur LucasArthur Lucas, originally from the U.S. state of Georgia, was one of the two last people to be executed in Canada, on December 11, 1962. Lucas had been convicted of the murder of an undercover narcotics agent from Detroit...
FBI Agent killer, last executions in Canada, side by side in Toronto (December 11, 1962)
Questionable circumstances
- David CarradineDavid CarradineDavid Carradine was an American actor and martial artist, best known for his role as a warrior monk, Kwai Chang Caine, in the 1970s television series, Kung Fu, which later had a 1990s sequel series, Kung Fu: The Legend Continues...
, American Actor (June 3, 2009) - Gudrun EnsslinGudrun EnsslinGudrun Ensslin was a founder of the German militant group Red Army Faction . After becoming involved with co-founder Andreas Baader, Ensslin was influential in the politicization of Baader's voluntaristic anarchistic beliefs. Ensslin was perhaps the intellectual head of the RAF...
, imprisoned member of the German Red Army FactionRed Army FactionThe radicalized were, like many in the New Left, influenced by:* Sociological developments, pressure within the educational system in and outside Europe and the U.S...
, (October 18, 1977)