MysteryTraveler
Forum Veteran
These images are of a Czech girl who lived during WWII and spoke Czech and German. She had a birth defect that caused her to walk with a limp. In her childhood and adolescence, she was mercilessly mocked by other children.
Her bilingual skills made her valuable to the Gestapo and she translated conversations and documents for them. She also served as a spy for them and apparently reported dissidents to the Germans. Among those she reported were four young men, rumored to have been among her tormentors in her youth. The young men were summarily captured by the Germans and executed.
Following the war, she was arrested and charged with crimes against humanity. She was sentenced to death and hanged in 1946. She was 23 when she died.
Pole hanging was the method of execution. Persons executed by this method were loosely tied to a vertical structure and left standing on a small platform. A noose would be circled around the person’s neck and secured at the back of the structure. At the appointed time, the platform would be kicked out from under the person's feet and the executioner would stand behind the pole and yank on the noose. At the same time, an assistant would sometimes push up on the prisoner’s head to help expedite the execution. Death was much slower and more painful than the long drop method, because whether the neck was broken depended on how suddenly the executioners could cause sufficient injury to the prisoner’s neck.
It was said that Herta collapsed upon seeing the hanging pole and had to be assisted to walk to her place of execution. Witnesses also said that she urinated down her leg as she was being executed.
Below are images of Herta, before, during, and after her execution. Sad to see such a pretty, young girl being subjected to such a death, even thought she brought it upon herself.
Pretty Herta during a happier time in her life.
Herta upon receiving her death sentence.
Herta standing before a priest to receive a final blessing.
Herta during her execution. At this point, the platform would have just been removed and the executioner would be pulling on the noose in back of the structure. The man you see is the assistant and he would be trying to apply upward pressure to her head so the weight of her body would strangle her more quickly. She would likely still be conscious at this point.
Here, she is being checked to see if her heart has stopped beating.
Note the puddle of urine on the ground beneath her feet.
Herta after her death.
The box would be used to carry her body away.
Her bilingual skills made her valuable to the Gestapo and she translated conversations and documents for them. She also served as a spy for them and apparently reported dissidents to the Germans. Among those she reported were four young men, rumored to have been among her tormentors in her youth. The young men were summarily captured by the Germans and executed.
Following the war, she was arrested and charged with crimes against humanity. She was sentenced to death and hanged in 1946. She was 23 when she died.
Pole hanging was the method of execution. Persons executed by this method were loosely tied to a vertical structure and left standing on a small platform. A noose would be circled around the person’s neck and secured at the back of the structure. At the appointed time, the platform would be kicked out from under the person's feet and the executioner would stand behind the pole and yank on the noose. At the same time, an assistant would sometimes push up on the prisoner’s head to help expedite the execution. Death was much slower and more painful than the long drop method, because whether the neck was broken depended on how suddenly the executioners could cause sufficient injury to the prisoner’s neck.
It was said that Herta collapsed upon seeing the hanging pole and had to be assisted to walk to her place of execution. Witnesses also said that she urinated down her leg as she was being executed.
Below are images of Herta, before, during, and after her execution. Sad to see such a pretty, young girl being subjected to such a death, even thought she brought it upon herself.
Pretty Herta during a happier time in her life.
Herta upon receiving her death sentence.
Herta standing before a priest to receive a final blessing.
Herta during her execution. At this point, the platform would have just been removed and the executioner would be pulling on the noose in back of the structure. The man you see is the assistant and he would be trying to apply upward pressure to her head so the weight of her body would strangle her more quickly. She would likely still be conscious at this point.
Here, she is being checked to see if her heart has stopped beating.
Note the puddle of urine on the ground beneath her feet.
Herta after her death.
The box would be used to carry her body away.
