The Guillotine Headquarters

In 1792 the guillotine was built, tested, modified and made ready for the first execution by guillotine which took place on April 25th 1792. But why was it necessary to use a machine for beheading?

The Guillotine was NOT invented by Dr Guillotin. He suggested that mechanical decapitation should be used to replace older cruder forms of execution, and his name eventually became associated with the machine itself.

Discover the people behind the history: Sanson, Dr. Antoine Louis, Deibler, Weidmann and many others who became connected to the guillotine through politics, medicine, crime, and execution.

Learn more about the history, its construction, and the mechanical principles behind how the guillotine operated.

Build your own detailed 1792 scale model guillotine using historical measurements and drawings.

If you are interested in historical locations in Paris connected to the guillotine, explore this historical guide.