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The
Official Table of Drops, published by the British
Home OfficeThe Home Office is the United Kingdom government department responsible for immigration control, security, and order. As such it is responsible for the police, UK Border Agency, and the Security Service . It is also in charge of government policy on security-related issues such as drugs,...
, is a manual which was used to calculate the appropriate length of rope for long drop
hangingHanging 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...
s.
Following a series of failed hangings including those of
John 'Babbacombe' LeeJohn Henry George Lee , better known as John "Babbacombe" Lee or "The Man They Couldn't Hang", was a British man famous for surviving three attempts to hang him for murder....
, a committee chaired by
Henry Bruce (Baron Aberdare)Henry Austin Bruce, 1st Baron Aberdare GCB, PC, FRS was a British Liberal Party politician, who served in government most notably as Home Secretary and as Lord President of the Council....
was formed in 1886 to discover and report on the most effective manner of hanging. The results of the committee's report were published in 1888.
A significantly revised edition of the Table of Drops was published in 1913, when the length of rope previously used for a 14
stoneThe stone is a units of measurement that was used in many North European countries until the advent of metrication. It value, which ranged from 3 kg to 12 kg, varied from city to city and also often from commodity to commodity...
individual was prescribed for an 8 stone individual.
| Body weight |
1888-1913 drop |
Modern drop |
| Stone | lb The pound or pound-mass is a unit of mass used in the Imperial, United States customary and other systems of measurement...
| kg |
ft | cm |
ft | cm |
| 14.0 |
196 |
89 |
8′0" |
244 |
5′5" |
165 |
| 13.5 |
189 |
86 |
8′2" |
249 |
5′6" |
168 |
| 13.0 |
182 |
82¾ |
8′4" |
254 |
5′8" |
173 |
| 12.5 |
175 |
79½ |
8′6" |
259 |
5′11" |
180 |
| 12.0 |
168 |
76¼ |
8′8" |
264 |
6′1" |
185 |
| 11.5 |
161 |
73¼ |
8′10" |
269 |
6′4" |
193 |
| 11.0 |
154 |
70 |
9′0" |
274 |
6′6" |
198 |
| 10.5 |
147 |
66¾ |
9′2" |
279 |
6′8" |
203 |
| 10.0 |
140 |
63¾ |
9′4" |
284 |
7′1" |
215 |
| 9.5 |
133 |
60½ |
9′6" |
290 |
7′5" |
226 |
| 9.0 |
126 |
57¼ |
9′8" |
295 |
7′7" |
231 |
| 8.5 |
119 |
54 |
9′10" |
300 |
7′9" |
236 |
| 8.0 |
112 |
51 |
10′0" |
305 |
8′0" |
244 |
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