Albert Pierrepoint
| Albert Pierrepoint | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
30 March 1905 Clayton, Bradford,West Riding of Yorkshire, England |
| Died | 10 July 1992 (aged 87) Southport, Merseyside, England |
| Occupation | Executioner, publican |
| Employer | HM Prison Service |
| Spouse(s) | Annie Pierrepoint, née Fletcher (1905–1998, aged 93) |
| Parent(s) | Henry Albert Pierrepoint and Mary Pierrepoint (née Buxton) |
| Relatives | Annie Fletcher Pierrepoint (wife); Thomas Pierrepoint (uncle) |
Albert Pierrepoint (/ˈpɪər.pɔɪnt/; 30 March 1905 – 10 July 1992) was a long-serving hangman in England. He executed at least 400 people, including William Joyce ("Lord Haw-Haw") and John Amery. In Germany and Austria after the war, he executed some 200 people who had been convicted of war crimes. In England, Timothy Evans was hanged by Pierrepoint for a crime committed by his neighbour John Christie, who was also hanged by Pierrepoint.
He was often dubbed the Official Executioner, despite there being no such job or title. In England, executions were the responsibility of the local sheriff; however, instead of officiating themselves, sheriffs used to delegate the job to a person of suitable character who was employed and paid only when required. Pierrepoint continued to work for years in a grocery near Bradford after qualifying as an Assistant Executioner in 1932 and a Chief Executioner in 1941, following in the footsteps of his father and uncle. Following his resignation in 1956, the Home Office acknowledged Pierrepoint as the most efficient executioner in British history.
He subsequently became a pub owner in Lancashire and wrote his memoirs, in which he concluded that capital punishment was not a deterrent. There is no official count of the number of people he executed, which some have estimated at more than 600; the most commonly accepted figure is 435.
Albert Pierrepoint was the middle child and eldest son of Henry and Mary Pierrepoint. He was influenced by the side-occupation (executioner) of his father and uncle Thomas; as an 11-year-old he wrote, in response to a school "When I grow up ..." writing exercise, "When I leave school I should like to be the Official Executioner". He spent his school summer holidays at the home of his uncle and Aunt Lizzie in Clayton, West Yorkshire, his own family having moved to Huddersfield when Henry ceased to be an executioner, and he became very close to his uncle. While Tom was away on business, his aunt would allow the boy to read the diary Tom kept of his executions.
...
Wikipedia