The Headsmen of Trenčín
The Headsman House on the Street of Matthew Czak has also been adorned by a number of legends. Originally, a renaissance townhouse of the 16th century, the building used to be a home to Trenčín city headsman. Damp and dark cellar would be the last place of wailing of condemned criminals before the hand of the master headsman would finish their miserable life at the execution place below the city walls. The place was near the Lower City Gate, next to the road leading toward the outer city and farms. Later, the gallows was moved farther from the city, to a part called Dolný Šianec.
Most common forms of execution were beheading and hanging. In Hungary, beheading was not carried out by axe, or by laying the head on the stump. They would use a special double-edged sword with a dull end. The condemned would kneel down or sit on the chair. The headsman usually executed with the city execution sword. Alternatively, he also executed with his own sword, in which case he would charge a higher execution fee, also called the fee “for sharpening”. Written accounts tell us that the city of Trenčín had three execution swords. Two of them have been preserved in the collections of Trenčín Museum.
Trenčín was also affected by so-called Witch trials and burning of witches. Even today, when the night gets windy, we may be able to hear sorrowful howling of condemned witches awaiting their dreadful death in the flames of the stake.
Trenčín, being a free royal city with the privileges of Budín and Stoličný Belgrade granted to it in 1412 by the Hungarian king and Roman Emperor - Sigmund of Luxemburg, also enjoyed the right of sword (reaffirmed again in 1454 by Ján Huňady), and thus had its own headsman.
In the second half of the 16th century, Trenčín had its headsman by the name of Stanislav Chrbinský. In 1596, this headsman was tried under the damage suffering law and executed by sword on the charges of stealing from church money depositories and adultery.
Another Trenčín headsman by the name of Pavol Sloboda was of an unusual origin. He was a landlord from Ivanovce. In 1663, after the raiding Turks had burned his lands, killed his whole family, and slew his fiancé, Pavol, overwhelmed by despair and poverty, asked to be given this generally despised office, quite unsuitable for a landlord. The legend tells us that he became very skilful. Pavol married the widow of his predecessor, Ján Ostrovský; yet, his wife and his only son would both soon die. This master headsman, haunted by his unhappy destiny, decided to be hired to join an army fighting the Turks. We are told that at the battle of Parkan in 1683, Pavol was fighting bravely with his execution sword, and found his death two years later at the battle of Nové Zámky.
Most common forms of execution were beheading and hanging. In Hungary, beheading was not carried out by axe, or by laying the head on the stump. They would use a special double-edged sword with a dull end. The condemned would kneel down or sit on the chair. The headsman usually executed with the city execution sword. Alternatively, he also executed with his own sword, in which case he would charge a higher execution fee, also called the fee “for sharpening”. Written accounts tell us that the city of Trenčín had three execution swords. Two of them have been preserved in the collections of Trenčín Museum.
Trenčín was also affected by so-called Witch trials and burning of witches. Even today, when the night gets windy, we may be able to hear sorrowful howling of condemned witches awaiting their dreadful death in the flames of the stake.
Trenčín, being a free royal city with the privileges of Budín and Stoličný Belgrade granted to it in 1412 by the Hungarian king and Roman Emperor - Sigmund of Luxemburg, also enjoyed the right of sword (reaffirmed again in 1454 by Ján Huňady), and thus had its own headsman.
In the second half of the 16th century, Trenčín had its headsman by the name of Stanislav Chrbinský. In 1596, this headsman was tried under the damage suffering law and executed by sword on the charges of stealing from church money depositories and adultery.
Another Trenčín headsman by the name of Pavol Sloboda was of an unusual origin. He was a landlord from Ivanovce. In 1663, after the raiding Turks had burned his lands, killed his whole family, and slew his fiancé, Pavol, overwhelmed by despair and poverty, asked to be given this generally despised office, quite unsuitable for a landlord. The legend tells us that he became very skilful. Pavol married the widow of his predecessor, Ján Ostrovský; yet, his wife and his only son would both soon die. This master headsman, haunted by his unhappy destiny, decided to be hired to join an army fighting the Turks. We are told that at the battle of Parkan in 1683, Pavol was fighting bravely with his execution sword, and found his death two years later at the battle of Nové Zámky.
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