Thunk!
Question: Does beheading hurt? And, if so, for how long is the severed head
aware of its plight?
Answer: Yes, beheading hurts. How much depends on the executioner’s skill, or
lack of it.
When Mary, Queen of Scots, was executed at Fotheringay Castle in 1587, a
clumsy headsman gave her three strokes without quite managing to sever her head.
The headsman then had to saw though the skin and gristle with his sheath knife
before the job could be regarded as complete. The profound, protracted groan
Mary gave when the axe first hit left the horrified witnesses in no…
