Henry-Clément Sanson (27 May 1799 – 25 January 1889) was a French

executioner An executioner, also known as a hangman or headsman, is an official who executes a sentence of capital punishment on a legally condemned person. Scope and job The executioner was usually presented with a warrant authorising or order ...

. He held the position of Royal

Executioner An executioner, also known as a hangman or headsman, is an official who executes a sentence of capital punishment on a legally condemned person. Scope and job The executioner was usually presented with a warrant authorising or order ...

of the City of

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, serving King Louis-Philippe I from 1840 to 1847. Sanson was born into a long line of executioners. His father was Henri Sanson, the city's chief executioner for 47 years, and his grandfather was

Charles-Henri Sanson Charles-Henri Sanson, full title ''Chevalier Charles-Henri Sanson de Longval'' (15 February 1739 – 4 July 1806), was the royal executioner of France during the reign of King Louis XVI, as well as High Executioner of the First French Republic. He ...

, the storied executioner of royals and revolutionaries.

Personal history

Early in his career as executioner, Henry-Clément was described contemporaneously as being "in person a fine figure, with an elegant and noble countenance, and a very sweet and agreeable expression". His pleasant demeanor belied a deep inner anguish: he simply could not reconcile himself to his family profession. His profound unhappiness led him to seek anaesthetic refuge in alcohol and other vices. Most unlike his rectitudinous forebears, Henry-Clément immersed himself in a dissolute and profligate lifestyle,Gerould, Daniel (1992)
''Guillotine: Its Legend and Lore''
Blast, NY; p.68. , "Henri-Clement pursued expensive hobbies, indulging in gambling and sexual debauchery." and his extravagance left him desperately in need of income. Among other unconventional methods of moneymaking, he established a ''musée des horreurs'' in his home, where for five francs the curious public could watch the famous Sanson family

guillotine A guillotine is an apparatus designed for efficiently carrying out executions by beheading. The device consists of a tall, upright frame with a weighted and angled blade suspended at the top. The condemned person is secured with stocks at th ...

be used to decapitate a sheep."France: The Heirs of the Widow"
''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...

'', 1951.

Career as executioner

Henry-Clement served less than eight years as the ''Monsieur de Paris'', the shortest duration of any of the Sanson dynasty. The end of his career came in 1847, after he was compelled by debt to pawn his ancestral guillotine for 3,000

franc The franc is any of various units of currency. One franc is typically divided into 100 centimes. The name is said to derive from the Latin inscription ''francorum rex'' (Style of the French sovereign, King of the Franks) used on early France, ...

s. He attempted to commence his next execution armed only with one of his ancestor's

axe An axe ( sometimes ax in American English; see spelling differences) is an implement that has been used for millennia to shape, split and cut wood, to harvest timber, as a weapon, and as a ceremonial or heraldic symbol. The axe has many for ...

s. The French government bought the guillotine back, summoned Sanson back for the execution, and dismissed him immediately when it was complete. Henry-Clément was the last executioner of the Sanson family line. He was replaced by Charles-André Férey.

Memoirs

After his dismissal, Henry-Clement dictated his memoirs to a journalist, the six-volume ''Seven Generations of Executioners, 1688 - 1847''. Though often dismissed as fiction - like the spurious "memoirs" ascribed to his grandfather - Henri-Clement's recollections are considered by some scholars to have at least a basis in fact. Admittedly ghostwritten (and probably embellished), ''Seven Generations'' is considered reasonably reliable and may even draw upon an actual diary written by his grandfather.Gerould (1992). See p.70: "Destitute, Henri-Clement published the six-volume ''Seven Generations of Executioners, 1688 - 1847'' family history in 1862 and 1863; although extensively rewritten by a journalist . d'Olbreuze it is perhaps based on the original diary kept by his grandfather during the Revolution."

References

External links

* Sanson family article in French Wikipedia {{DEFAULTSORT:Sanson, Henry-Clement 1799 births 1889 deaths French executioners