The garrotte (or garrote) was the standard civilian method of execution in Spain.

The garrotte (or garrote) was the standard civilian method of execution in Spain. It was introduced in 1812/13, at the beginning of the reign of Ferdinand VII, to replace the crude form of hanging previously used. 

At least 736 people, including 16 women, were executed in Spain in the 19th century.  It is not clear how complete earlier records are and even modern ones are somewhat patchy.

Some 96 people, including two women, were garrotted between 1900 and 1935 with a further 110 men and three women being put to death in the post Civil War period.  

Executions also took place by shooting during this period and Spain’s last executions were by firing squad.  

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Shooting was more commonly handed down by military tribunals, however, it is unclear why people were shot for civilian murders.  Most 20th century executions were for murder or terrorist related crimes, although banditry remained a capital crime, certainly into the 1950’s.

Sixty five men and two women were executed by garrotte between 1950 and 1974 in various parts of Spain, including one man in Las Palmas on Grand Canaria.  

All of these suffered either for murder, banditry or major acts of terrorism.  Eleven men were executed by firing squad in the same period.

Garrotting appears to have developed from the early Chinese form of execution known as the bow-string. 

The criminal was tied to an upright post with two holes bored in it through which the ends of a cord from a long bow were passed and pulled tight round the neck by the executioner until the condemned strangled.  

In the original Spanish version, the prisoner was seated on top of a short post with his back to the main post and a rope loop was placed round his neck and around the post. The executioner twisted a stick inserted in the loop to tighten the rope and strangle the prisoner.

As in most countries, a more humane method of execution was sought and various improvements to the garrotte were made.

The next form of garrotte comprised a wooden stool on which the prisoner sat with his back to the post (pictured). 

In some later instances a strong wooden chair was used.  The condemned was strapped at the wrists, arms, waist and legs and the hinged iron collar closed around their neck.

 A screw operated by a handle or a weighted lever connected to a spike or a small star shaped blade ran through the post. 

When the screw/lever mechanism was operated, the blade entered the criminal's neck and severed the spinal column, in an attempt to ensure that the prisoner did not strangle to death.

In some versions, two brass collars were used. One collar was attached to the lever whilst the other was fixed to the post. Both collars were hinged to admit the prisoner's neck. 

When all preparations were complete, the executioner operated the mechanism forcing one collar outwards whilst the other remained stationary thus, if correctly adjusted, dislocating the prisoner's neck and causing immediate unconsciousness followed by death. 

(As in modern hanging). Click here for a photo of a 20th century garrotting in Cuba.

An execution by garrotting of a robber named Jose de Roxas in Mexico in the early 1800's was witnessed and described by journalist, Richard Ford, as follows: The condemned man mounted the platform and was seated on a short post with his back to a strong upright post. 

The executioner fastened the iron collar round his neck. When all was ready, he took the lever in both hands and at the pre-arranged signal, turned the lever so drawing the collar tight whilst his assistant threw a black cloth over Roxas's face.

A convulsive pressure of the hands and a heaving of the chest were the only visible signs of the passing of the robber's spirit. 

After a pause of a few seconds, the executioner peeped behind the cloth and after giving another turn to the screw, removed the cloth. 

The dead man was slightly convulsed, the mouth open and the eyeballs were turned into their sockets.

This description is very similar to those of executions carried out by hanging at the same period.

  In most cases, the prisoner lost consciousness quite quickly and was dead after a few minutes. Garrotting, even in its later forms, could never guarantee an instant loss of consciousness and was never considered to be as quick or humane as hanging.

The first woman to be garotted was Juana Rivero in Madrid on the 3rd of November 1824 for robbery.  Twenty seven year old Mariana Pineda became the first woman to suffer for treason when she was executed on the 26th of May 1831 in Andalusia. Mariana had embroidered a flag with the words, "Equality, Liberty, Law."

 The flag was burned in front of her while she was being executed. It was reported that the spike of the garrotte pierced her neck and protruded through her mouth. 

Afterwards, as customary, her body was taken away, stripped naked (the clothes went to charity), wrapped in a bedsheet, and placed in a cheap pine coffin for burial.  Twenty eight year old Higinia Balaguer, a Spanish maid, became

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