Picture flipping through a dusty journal from 16th-century Nuremberg, entries scrawled by the city's official executioner. That's exactly what historian Joel F. Harrington did when he found Meister Frantz Schmidt's records. For over four decades, Schmidt wielded the sword on 394 souls, tortured hundreds more, and bore the weight of society's scorn. Yet his words paint a surprisingly nuanced portrait—not of a sadist, but a family man driven by duty and quiet rebellion.
Back then, executioners were untouchables, barred from guilds and markets, their kids tainted by birth. Schmidt's life was a tightrope: perform the unthinkable to earn a living, then prove your worth beyond the blood. His journal details the era's shocking crimes—theft, adultery, witchcraft—that ended in floggings, disfigurements, or the scaffold. But woven in are glimpses of his true calling: healing the sick as a barber-surgeon, a nod to the medical knowledge executioners often held.
It's history that sticks with you, blending true crime thrills with profound questions about humanity. What makes us monsters or men? Perfect for fans of dark history, this paperback pulls you into Schmidt's world, where honor clashed with horror daily.
At around 300 pages, it's a quick yet rich dive—no dry academia here. Harrington's storytelling makes you smell the market square executions and hear the crowd's roars. Whether you're pondering justice systems, Renaissance life, or just crave a unique true story, The Faithful Executioner delivers. Grab it for your next rainy afternoon; it'll spark debates at your book club or trivia nights. Who knew an executioner's diary could feel so alive?
