The Munster Rebellion Part III — The Horrifying Execution of Van Leiden,In Case You Missed &md

The Munster Rebellion Part III — The Horrifying Execution of Van Leiden,In Case You Missed — Part I, Part IIThe Utopian dream of creating a heavenly kingdom in Munster, Germany had quickly deformed into a dystopian nightmare.  The rule of Jan van Leiden was a very strict and tyrannical rule, a theocracy based on his strict interpretation of the Bible.  Worse yet, the army of the Prince-Bishop Von Waldeck still surrounded the city, intent on snuffing out the Munster Rebellion before it spread.  While Van Leiden and his elite retinue feasted like royalty, the rest of the people in Munster starved, resorting to boiling leather, eating rats, eating tree bark, and even resorting to cannibalism.On June 24th, 1535 the Waldeck’s army made its last attempt to take the city.  A small commando force was sent to scale the walls, take out the guards, and open the city gates.  The guards were so weakened by malnutrition that they were barely able to put up a fight.  The army of Von Waldeck practically walked into the city.  Some of the most fanatical anabaptists put up a fight, battling in the streets until they were cut down by Von Waldeck’s troops.  Most, however, were so weakened by starvation that they did nothing to resist to enemy invasion.  Most of the anabaptists were spared if they confessed their heresy and returned to the Catholic faith, and most did so due to the disillusionment caused by the previous years sufferings.  However the main leaders of the rebellion were picked out for a particularly brutal punishment, one that was meant to be every bit as humiliating as it was torturous and terrifying.On January 22nd, 1536, Van Leiden was taken to the city of center of Munster to be publicly executed, along with two of his lieutenants, Bernhard Knipperdolling and Bernhard Krechting.  Each were shackled to the same pole with an iron spiked collar around their necks, so that each could hear the screams of agony when one was being tortured and executed.   Jan van Leiden was first.  They took red hot prongs and slowly tore off pieces of his flesh, starting with his armpits, arms, chest, abdomen, and legs.  It was mandated that the torture last at least an hour, and there was an official timekeeper with a special clock who kept track of the time.  When van Leiden passed out, the clock was stopped, and he was quickly brought back to consciousness.  Once the process of burning was done and there was no more flesh that could be torn from his body, a hot clamp was attacked to his tongue, which was then cut out with a hot knife.  Finally, a flaming dagger was thrust into his heart, ending his life. During the execution of van Leiden, Knipperdolling attempted to choke himself to death with the spiked collar.  He was further restrained, then likewise executed after van Leiden in the same manner.  Krechting was executed last.After the execution the bodies of van Leiden, Knipperdolling, and Krechting were displayed in cages and left rotting on display from the steeple of St. Lambert’s Church as a warning to any other would be revolutionaries.  50 years later, the bodies were removed, but the cages still remained.  They remain there still to this day. -- source link
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