A Timeline of Capital Punishment

By Tim Lambert

1307

A mechanical beheading device is recorded in Dublin

1608

The first execution takes place in the North American colonies

1685

Alice Lisle becomes the last woman beheaded in Britain

1747

Simon Fraser, Lord Lovat becomes the last person beheaded on Tower Hill by the Tower of London

1790

In Britain, death by burning is abolished

1792

In France, the guillotine becomes the official method of execution

1820

In Britain, five men convicted of treason are sentenced to be hung, drawn, and quartered. But the full sentence is not carried out. They are hanged until they are dead and then beheaded with an axe.

1847

In the USA Michigan is the first state to abolish the death penalty for murder (it is retained for treason but it is abolished for all crimes in 1962)

1853

In the USA, Wisconsin abolishes the death penalty for all crimes

1861

In Britain capital punishment is abolished for all but four crimes murder, piracy, arson in the Royal Dockyards, and high treason

1868

In Britain, public executions are banned

1870

In Britain, the sentence of hanging, drawing, and quartering is formally abolished

1887

In the USA, Maine abolishes the death penalty

1890

In the USA, William Kemmler becomes the first person to be executed in the electric chair

1899

Martha Place becomes the first woman to be executed in the electric chair

1905

Norway abolishes the death penalty for crimes committed during peacetime

1910

Johan Ander becomes the last person executed in Sweden

1911

In the USA, Minnesota abolishes capital punishment

1921

Sweden abolishes the death penalty for all crimes committed during peacetime (in theory it could still be used for crimes committed during wartime).

1923

Susan Newell becomes the last person to be hanged in Scotland

1924

In the USA, John Gee becomes the first person to be executed in the gas chamber

1928

Iceland abolishes the death penalty

1933

In Britain, the minimum age for a person to be hanged is raised to 18

1936

The last public execution takes place in the USA. Rainey Bethea is hanged in Kentucky.

1939

The last public execution takes place in France

1949

West Germany abolished the death penalty

1950

In Britain Timothy Evans is hanged for a murder he did not commit

1955

Ruth Ellis is the last woman to be hanged in Britain

1957

In Britain, the Homicide Act abolished hanging for certain kinds of murder. It was still allowed for murder during a theft, by shooting, or by an explosion. Capital punishment was also kept for the murder of a police officer or prison officer while on duty.

Walter Bolton becomes the last person to be executed for murder in New Zealand.

In the USA, Alaska abolishes the death penalty. So does Hawaii.

1961

New Zealand abolishes the death penalty for murder (it is retained for treason)

1964

Peter Allen and Gwynne Jones are the last two people to be hanged in Britain

1965

In Britain, the death penalty for murder is abolished for an experimental period of 5 years. In the USA, Iowa abolishes the death penalty. So does West Virginia.

1967

Ronald Ryan becomes the last person to be executed in Australia

1969

In Britain, the death penalty for murder is permanently abolished (its retained for arson in a royal dockyard, treason, and piracy with violence)

1971

In Britain, the death penalty for arson in a royal dockyard is abolished

1972

Vassilis Lymberis becomes the last person in Greece executed for murder (he was shot by a firing squad). In the USA, Vermont abolishes the death penalty.

1973

Sweden abolishes executions for all crimes. North Dakota completely abolishes capital punishment.

1976

Portugal abolishes the death penalty

1977

The guillotine is used for the last time in France

1978

Denmark abolishes the death penalty for all crimes. Spain abolishes capital punishment in peacetime.

1979

Norway abolishes capital punishment for crimes committed during wartime. Nicaragua abolishes the death penalty for all crimes. So does Luxembourg.

1981

France abolishes capital punishment

1982

In the USA lethal injection is first used as a method of execution. The Netherlands abolishes the death penalty for all crimes.

1984

In the USA, Rhode Island abolishes the death penalty

1985

The death penalty is abolished for all crimes in Australia

1987

Haiti abolishes the death penalty. So does East Germany.

1989

New Zealand abolishes the death penalty for all crimes. Cambodia also abolishes the death penalty. So does Slovenia.

1990

Romania abolishes the death penalty. So do Hungary, Croatia, and Slovakia. It is also abolished in the Czech Republic. Capital punishment is completely abolished in Ireland. It’s also abolished in Mozambique.

1992

Switzerland abolishes the death penalty for all crimes. Angola abolishes capital punishment. So does Paraguay.

1994

Italy abolishes the death penalty for all crimes

1995

Spain abolishes capital punishment for all crimes

1996

Belgium abolishes the death penalty for all crimes

1997

Poland abolishes the death penalty

1998

In Britain, the death penalty is abolished for treason and piracy with violence, the last crimes for which it could be used. Bulgaria abolishes the death penalty. So do Estonia and Lithuania. Canada completely abolishes the death penalty.

1999

In Britain the British Home Secretary signs the 6th protocol of the European Convention on Human Rights, formally ending capital punishment in the UK.

2000

Malta abolishes all capital punishment. Ukraine abolishes the death penalty.

2004

Greece abolishes capital punishment for all crimes. So do Senegal, Turkey, and Bhutan

2005

Mexico abolishes the death penalty for all crimes.

2007

In the USA, New Jersey abolishes the death penalty. Rwanda abolishes the death penalty. So does Albania.

2009

Bolivia abolishes the death penalty for all crimes. In the USA New Mexico abolishes the death penalty. So do Burundi and Togo.

2010

Gabon abolishes the death penalty

2011

In the USA, Illinois abolishes the death penalty

2012

Latvia abolishes the death penalty for all crimes. In the USA, Connecticut abolishes capital punishment.

2013

In the USA, Maryland abolishes the death penalty

2015

Madagascar abolishes the death penalty. So does Suriname. Fiji abolishes capital punishment for all crimes.

2016

Benin abolishes capital punishment for all crimes. In the USA, Delaware abolishes the death penalty.

2018

Burkina Faso abolishes capital punishment. In the USA, Washington abolishes the death penalty.

2019

In the USA, New Hampshire abolishes the death penalty

2020

Chad abolishes the death penalty for all crimes. In the USA, Colorado abolishes capital punishment.

2021

Sierra Leone abolishes capital punishment. So does Kazakhstan. In the USA, Virginia abolishes the death penalty.

2022

Papua New Guinea abolishes the death penalty for all crimes

Today some countries still allow capital punishment but there is a growing movement across the world for its abolition.

Death Penalty – Amnesty International