Antoine Desrues Tortured on Breaking Wheel, 1777

Antoine Desrues Tortured on Breaking Wheel, 1777

The breaking wheel, also known as the Catherine wheel or simply the wheel, was a torture device used for capital punishment from antiquity into early modern times for public execution by breaking the criminal's bones/bludgeoning him to death. Antoine François Desrues (1744 - 1777) was a French poisoner. He went to Paris to seek his fortune, and started in business as a grocer. He was known as a man of great piety and devotion, and his business was reputed to be a flourishing one. He entered into negotiations with a Madame de la Motte for the purchase from her of a country estate, and, when the time came for the payment of the purchase money, invited her to stay with him in Paris pending the transfer. While she was still his guest, he poisoned first her and then her son. The disappearance of Madame de la Motte and her son had aroused suspicion. He was arrested, the bodies of his victims were discovered, and he was charged with their murder. He was originally sentenced to life in prison, but was retried and condemned to be torn asunder alive and burned. He was condemned to death and executed in Paris in 1777, Desrues repeating protestations of his innocence to the last.

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