The history of any state goes through a certain period, characterized by particular cruelty. It was aimed at criminals and simply disenfranchised citizens. Medieval instruments of torture shock everyone who comes to see them in museums, regardless of whether it is a man or a woman.
China is no exception in this sense. The variety and sophistication of the tortures used in this state caused attacks of horror even among the most experienced warriors. What is interesting, when torture was carried out in the squares, in order to warn everyone else about the consequences of crimes, a huge number of onlookers gathered to "stare" at the torment and death of a person. In this case, it becomes clear where such terrible pictures of bullying and death of criminals arose in the minds of Chinese executioners: the majority of the population of that time, especially the common people, were prone to unreasonable violence and curiosity about other people's suffering.
History
Since the time when the Qin dynasty ruled in China, Chinese torture has been considered a traditional way to punish a person for a crime. The ruling dynasty's code included at least four thousand crimes that deserved punishment.
Punishment for some included beating with light or heavy bamboo sticks, exile or hard labor. However, those whose crimes were, to use modern terminology, of minor gravity were subjected to this. Those who were sentenced to death experienced the most terrible torments from torture before their death. And these tortures were so cruel that even now they cause trembling in the body.
Until the beginning of the 20th century, in the understanding of Chinese rulers and judges, there was no clear idea of what the presumption of innocence and the prosecution were. That is why those confessions that a person gave under torture were considered irrefutable evidence of guilt. In addition, not only criminals were subjected to ancient Chinese torture, but also witnesses to their crimes. Chinese executioners simply did not take into account the fact that a person could slander himself, if only his torment would stop.
Who was tortured?
In ancient times, torturing or killing a person was almost a common thing. As in most ancient countries, China invented its own proprietary methods of Chinese torture and executions. They were so common because fines or the placement of convicts in prison were not considered worthy punishment. And they could torture any criminal: a thief, a murderer, a liar, a spy, a blasphemer, women who gave birth out of wedlock, gay men, someone who cheated on his spouse or just a personobjectionable to the government.
Ancient China: types of torture
The variety of ancient Chinese torture amazes modern people. The cruelty and composure with which the executioner did his job excites minds to this day. Torture in the Celestial Empire was not just a way to “knock out” a confession from a criminal, over time it turned into an art. How else to explain the ingenuity with which judges and executioners came up with punishments for their victims?
It is not possible to list all the many variants of ancient Chinese torture, however, here are some of them:
- Clamping feet in steel sandals.
- The knees were squeezed with a special vise.
- Beating me in the calves with bamboo sticks.
- Pierced fingernails and toenails with thin bamboo sticks.
- They put the criminal on the so-called tiger bench: they tied him to the back of the bench and stretched his legs in different directions.
- They laid on the bed-block. Several of the tortured were placed on one narrow bed so that they could not move, and a wooden cover was pressed on top.
- Crushed the bones of the fingers with a special vise.
- They put hot steel shoes on the feet of a delinquent person.
- They tightened the iron hoop on the head of the criminal and gradually tightened it even more.
- They put their bare knees on metal chains.
- The kneecaps were cut out with a sharp knife.
- As the upper punishment, they branded the face and cut off the nose.
- As a lower pen alty - castrated.
- Thrown into the water withacne.
And this is only a small fraction of what the justice of Ancient China was capable of.
Usually, all the tortures took place in special rooms. Chinese torture chambers were cold, damp rooms with no windows or lighting. Lamps or candles were brought there only for the time of torture, the rest of the time the criminal was in complete darkness. Often people imprisoned there died of hypothermia.
The worst Chinese tortures are:
- Water torture.
- Torture with drops of water.
- Bamboo torture.
- Torture with boiled meat.
- Scolopendra torture.
Water as a means of torture
The tradition of using water torture goes back to the Middle Ages. Therefore, despite the fact that one of its most popular variants is called "Chinese water torture", it was not invented by Chinese executioners at all.
In ancient times, Chinese water torture was one of the most brutal. Museums of torture around the world put on public display, at first glance, seemingly unpresentable and boring, an instrument of water torture. It is a funnel made of copper or wood, which is covered with leather. Against the background of the instruments of torture surrounding it (for example, collars with spikes turned inward, chopping blocks with chipped pancakes), this funnel looks at least harmless.
However, looking more closely, on its basis, you can distinguish a huge number of clear dents. They were left from the teeth of criminals who were subjected to this kindtorture, which was considered neat, humane and not violating decency. It is for these supposed qualities that Chinese water torture was often used as a punishment for women, as it did not require them to be stripped or dismembered.
How did she act?
The essence of Chinese water torture was that the victim was tied with his back to a bench or bed. They lifted her head, forcibly pushed the narrow edge of the funnel into her throat and poured water into it. There was plenty of water. In addition to the fact that the tortured person felt suffocation and pain in the stomach, from the fact that he was bursting with poured liquid, this torture could continue for a very long time. Gradually, the victim weakened, her consciousness clouded, and complete humility and suppleness appeared.
Besides the traditional version, this Chinese torture had alternatives. One of them was the infusion of water not into the throat, but into the nose. In this case, the person either immediately confessed to everything (what he did and did not do), or choked.
Is a drop of water so scary?
In the cinema of the twentieth century, there was a stereotype that running (or walking) in the rain is a lot of fun. Perhaps this is so, but only if after that you go into a warm house in which firewood is crackling in the fireplace. In all other cases, it is not particularly welcome that water drips on the head for a long time. And in eastern countries, torture with dripping water was considered one of the most effective.
At first glance, the ancient Chinese water drop torture seems harmless enough. Well, what is it about droplets falling on a person?It seems nothing terrible, but the executioners used the Chinese drop torture with enviable regularity, since its result was stunning and, importantly, effective.
How did the bullying happen?
The procedure of Chinese drop torture began with the fact that the offender was tightly tied either to a chair or to a bunk so that he could not move and, more importantly, itch. In the case of the chair, the victim was still thrown back and also fixed it in a motionless state. A flask or some other vessel with water was hung over his head, in which there was a very small hole. From it constantly (without interruption) water dripped onto the victim's forehead.
The first impression of such a Chinese torture is a strange and harmless procedure. However, in fact, constantly dripping drops on the forehead are one of the worst options for psychological torture. The bottom line is that after prolonged exposure to the forehead of the victim with drops of water, she begins to experience nervous tension and, as a result, a mental disorder. The reason for this is the victim's feeling that, falling at the same point on the forehead, the drop forms a notch at the place where it fell.
It is the psychological component of Chinese drop torture that affects its effectiveness and the positive result of the interrogation of criminals in Ancient China.
China: linking bamboo and torture
The first place among the most cruel tortures used in the Celestial Empire is rightfully occupied by Chinese torture with bamboo and water, which gradually turns into execution. This terrible procedure is infamous in all corners of the world. However, there is an opinion that this is just one of the local frightening legends, since not a single documentary evidence that such Chinese torture existed and was used has survived to our time.
Many have heard of bamboo as one of the fastest growing plants. Some of its Chinese varieties are able to grow almost a meter in just one day.
There is an opinion among historians that the deadly Chinese bamboo torture was used not only by the Chinese of antiquity, but also by the Japanese military during the fighting of the Second World War.
How was the torture?
People whose crimes, according to the judges, were very serious (espionage, high treason, murder of high-ranking officials) were subjected to this torture.
Before starting the torture, a bed of young bamboo was sharpened with a knife so that the stems became sharp as spears. After that, the victim was hung over the bed in a horizontal position, so that the pointed bamboo shoots were either under the stomach or under the back. Bamboo watered well for rapid growth and waited.
Because bamboo sprouts, especially young ones, grow at an incredible rate, soon the sharp sprouts pierced the body of the criminal, delivering terrible torment to the victim. As it grew, the bamboo would grow through the peritoneum and kill the person. Such a death was very long and painful.
Food torture
According to the rulesa he althy diet, it is preferable to eat boiled meat, and it is recommended to refuse fried meat altogether. However, you should not overeat even boiled meat. Chinese criminals, who knew first hand the consequences of such eating, would agree with this.
Tortured with boiled meat most often were thieves who attempted on food sold in street shops: vegetables, fruits, rice.
In addition, in addition to Chinese torture with boiled meat, there was another, no less sophisticated torture. Condemned to death, they regularly fed rice and watered clean water. However, it was not completely cooked, but only half. That is, the offender ate a full stomach of half-baked rice and washed it all down with water. As a result, his stomach swelled from the rice swollen in it, and the intestines and stomach simply burst, giving the criminal unbearable pain. The result was profuse internal bleeding and a long, painful death.
Process
Chinese meat torture could last a whole month. Throughout this time, the victim suffered greatly.
The criminal was locked in a narrow and low cell. In it, he could only be in a sitting or lying position, crouching. He was given clean water to drink. They fed the criminal with well-cooked meat, in which there were no veins, bones and fat. A month later, a dead body was found in a cage.
According to Chinese judicial directories, the effectiveness of this torture directly depends on what nationality the convicted person is. The reason for this is the nutritional habits of different peoples. Because the Chineseoften ate food of plant origin, such a change in diet was very noticeable for them and, in the end, led to death. But the Mongols or Huns, who are accustomed to eating exclusively meat in the morning at lunchtime and in the evening, would even like such torture.
According to modern doctors, there may be several reasons why the victim died in the process of such torture. First of all, the fault may be insufficient production of enzymes that help digest food of animal origin. The result of poor digestion will be a failure in the functioning of the whole organism. The second reason may have been the immobilized stay in the cage for a long time. As you know, in order to digest heavy food, a person needs to move so that there is no stagnation in the intestines. In addition, a sedentary lifestyle and eating meat can lead to the accumulation of nitrogenous products in the blood. As a result, tachycardia, swelling and other pathologies of the body that can lead to the death of a person.
Insects in the service of executioners
Another way to "torture" the convict was the Chinese centipede torture in the ear. So, often, they mocked criminals who were accused of espionage. Like torture with water drops, this torture had a significant effect on the mental state of the person, since the insect moving in the ear canal made the victim nervous and increased the level of anxiety. And if we take into account the fact that her claws are connected to poisonous glands, the presence of an insect in the ear also causes severe pain. Just running through the body, centipedeleaves behind a trail of stinging mucus. What to say about a place where she will feel uncomfortable.
For this sophisticated mockery of a person, the executioners always had a couple of red Chinese centipedes, which practically did not feed, so that the insect always remained aggressive and hungry. On the first order, the executioner took out a centipede from the box, which, feeling free, began to actively behave, and once again getting into the closed space of the ear canal, it went berserk.
Insect torture
The goal of the Chinese torture with a red centipede in the ear is the complete psychological exhaustion of the victim, in which she agrees to everything just to stop the torture.
Preparation for torture involves the complete immobilization of a person by tying him to a bed or bunk. The head is also fixed so that the criminal cannot shake the centipede out of the ear. After the executioner sticks the centipede into the ear hole of the victim. By irritating the receptors in the ear, the insect can cause bouts of nausea and vomiting, as well as dizziness. This causes considerable discomfort to the victim and increases her level of anxiety.
Because the centipede loses its sense of direction while in the ear canal, it becomes restless and may knock on the eardrum. In some cases, if she behaved calmly and did not move, the executioner deliberately disturbed and annoyed her so that she began to show aggression. As a result of such actions, she often gnawed her eardrum andcontinued its way through the ear canals, making its way deeper into the head. At the same time, the victim felt terrible pain, her mind became clouded, and if she remained alive for some time, she went crazy.
Torture of women
Despite all the cruelty of Chinese torture, they were often used to abuse women. The rulers of ancient China did not see the difference between criminals and criminals. This is not surprising, since some women were not inferior to men in terms of the severity of their crimes. They robbed, spied, sometimes killed, but most often women were tortured and executed for being unfaithful to their husbands.
Chinese torture of women was also peculiar, and the executioners showed particular ingenuity.
However, they could torture and kill the fairer sex just for nothing. For example, there is a known case when, at the court of the rulers of the Ming Dynasty, two cooks were subjected to a monstrous execution. And their fault was that the rice that they served at the table of the nobles "was not as white as the wisdom of their master." Such an "omission", made when working for the rulers of the Celestial Empire, cost the cooks their lives. They were stripped and hung by the hands on rings, and just below the pelvis, between the legs, sharp saws were fixed. The convicts, unable to hang on bent arms for a long time (in order not to touch the saw, they had to pull themselves up), began to gradually lower themselves onto the blade. However, unable to sit still on a sharp saw, the women began to fidget and squirm, not realizing that by doing so they caused themselves even more pain. Thus,gradually the victims sawed themselves to the chest and died. Often, metal saws were replaced with bamboo ones, as the latter brought more pain.
There were times when instead of a woman sawing herself, she was put on the so-called "horse". This instrument of torture was a triangular log with legs. The top of the triangle was the place on which the woman was seated, having previously provided the seat with sharp spikes. Thus, feeling uncomfortable and in pain, the woman fidgeted and cut her genitals.
The same fate befell the maid at the emperor's court, who "dared to complain about the bad weather and thus spoiled the mood of her masters."
A woman who committed a serious crime sat on a pyramid. The offender was undressed and forced to sit on the tip of a metal pyramid, standing on a chair or some bench. At the same time, she did not just sit down, but first spread her legs so that the top of the pyramid fell exactly into the genitals. If a woman did not confess to the crime she had committed, then the executioner forcibly planted her on the pyramid to the very end, thereby tearing it apart. After that, the victim, most often, died from blood loss or pain shock.
Wives who cheated on their husbands or had a child out of wedlock were often put on a bamboo stake. This was done in the square so that every woman could see what kind of end awaits her if she decides to “go left.”
Another very terrible punishment for unfaithful wives wasmockery in which snakes were used. The essence of this execution was that the woman was laid on a flat surface and tied so that she could not move. After that, milk was poured into her genitals. And, as the conclusion of the preparation, a snake was thrown at her feet. Feeling the smell of milk, the snake crawled inside the woman, causing unbearable pain. As a result of this torture, the victim died.
Torture prohibition
Terrible torture, which was used in ancient China, was subjected to both old and young, regardless of gender and position in society. Despite the fact that in ancient times criminals were tortured in almost all countries of the world, Chinese torture was considered the most sophisticated and cruel, before which even battered European soldiers and executioners trembled.
The use of such terrible, and even brutal, torture is currently not practiced by the Chinese authorities. However, knocking out confessions of criminals with the help of cold, hunger or beatings was carried out in the 21st century. And only on November 21, 2013, the Supreme People's Court of the People's Republic of China issued a statement in which an appeal was made to all judicial instances. It de alt with the exclusion of evidence and testimonies that were obtained through torture and exhaustion of the defendants. Torture and coercion under the influence of low temperature, hunger and fatigue became prohibited at the state level. It would seem that this is so, a matter of course, but in Chinese prisons and temporary detention centers they did not disdain to beat and mock criminals just some five years ago.
