News Story

You might associate beheading machines with the guillotine, made famous during the French Revolution, but the Scots invented another solution for mechanised beheading over 200 years earlier: The Maiden.

Built in Edinburgh, it was used between 1564 and 1710 to publicly behead over 150 criminals and political opponents of the Crown.

Image gallery

Flat-pack design

The Maiden was constructed primarily from oak, with a steel edged iron blade and a lead weight. Copper lined grooves in the upright posts held the blade firmly in place and ensured it fell smoothly. Pulling the rope raised the blade and the taut rope was then knotted and attached to the trigger. At the release of the trigger, the lead block made the iron blade fall very quickly.

After use the block, blade, rope and bar were removed from the Maiden. The wooden structure was then dismantled and the Maiden put into storage. The portable design meant it could be flat-packed and moved to different locations.

A sketched drawing of a wooden guillotine. — Source: Extracts from the Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, Volume 7, 1866-68.

Public spectacle

Executions occurred in large open spaces, with crowds turning up to see others punished for their crimes. Before 1564, beheading in Scotland was usually by axe or sword, but this could be messy. Severing the head from the body sometimes required several attempts by the executioner.

Using a beheading machine was more efficient, and may have seemed modern and awe-inspiring to the public attending these spectacles. A platform was built for each execution so that people could see the Maiden more easily.

Executions using the Maiden are known to have taken place in Castlehill, Grassmarket, and High Cross off the High Street in Edinburgh, minutes from the site where the National Museum of Scotland now stands.

A drawing of a guillotine surrounded by people and a horse. — Illustration by Lucas Cranach, 1539, showing a German beheading machine.

Who was executed by the Maiden?

The Judiciary records of the time document the crimes that could lead to a Maiden-assisted beheading. These tended to be the most serious offences, or for those committed by the nobility, including murder, incest, stealing, treason, adultery, forgery and robbery.

Ironically, the person believed to have introduced the beheading machine to Scotland, James Douglas, 4th Earl of Morton, was executed by the Maiden on 2 June 1581.

A royal murder

James Douglas was Regent of Scotland from 1572 to 1578 during the minority of James VI. He worked hard to maintain a friendship with England, dealing ruthlessly with Mary, Queen of Scots' supporters. However, his downfall came in 1580, when his political enemies were able to implicate him in the murder of Mary's second husband, Lord Darnley, 13 years after Darnley's death.

Morton's trial took place at Edinburgh's Tolbooth on 1 June 1581. The jury consisted mainly of Morton's enemies including Lord Oglivie, who Morton had previously imprisoned. Unsurprisingly, Morton was found guilty and sentenced to be hanged. However, King James VI intervened and commuted the sentence to execution by the Maiden.

A drawing of James Douglas. — James Douglas, 4th Earl of Morton.

Morton's execution

At 16:00 the following day, Morton reached his place of execution at the Mercat Cross, Edinburgh. A great crowd gathered to see 'justice' being done. Having mounted the platform, Morton swore his innocence saying,

"King shall lose a guid servant this day."

After a short prayer by the minister of St Giles Cathedral, Morton placed his head on the block. An iron bar was pulled down across the back of his neck to stop him lifting his head. Morton cried out,

"Lord Jesus receive my soul!"

Like most of the Maiden's victims, Morton's head was put on public display as a warning to others. His body was buried in the local churchyard of Greyfriars, 300 metres from his execution.

A photograph of a church grave yard with a path, trees and a lamp. — Present day Greyfriars Kirk yard, opposite the National Museum of Scotland.

The last public execution

Use of the Maiden for public executions stopped in 1710. However, public executions continued in Edinburgh until the hanging of George Bryce, the Ratho murderer, in 1864. His execution took place on the corner of the present-day George VI Bridge and Lawnmarket. This is now the site of the French Consulate.

A gold coloured plaque screwed on the end of a brick walled building. — Street plaque on George VI Bridge and Lawnmarket.

Maintenance

How much did it cost to maintain the Maiden?

The Maiden was in use for over 100 years, so it required periodic maintenance to keep it in good working order.

Extracts from the records of the Treasurer, Jhoun Watsoun, detail some of these costs:

"From the Discharge of the compte of Mr Robert Glen, Thesaurer of the Burgh of Edinburgh begynnand at Mychaelmas in the zeir of God 1564, and ended at Mychaelmas in the zeir of God 1564."

"the Compte of the Heding Aix maid the tyme if the comptaris office, as efter followis, at command of the Provest, Baillies, & Counsale."

Item for ane greit geist conteining of in lenth xxiiii futis price thairof, xxxs.Item for upbringing of this jeist with sax wane shot, vs.
Item for outlaying of this trie ou of ane cloiss with the sax wane shot, ixd.
Item for twa stabe twa pund wecht and ane quarter pund wecht of Danskin yrne price of the stane xiiij s,summa, xxxs.
Items four pundis steill price of the pund ijs, summa, viiis.
Item for vj and ane half of leid price of the stane xiiis, summa, iiilixviiis.
Item for thre faddum of tow to the pillie, xviiid.
Item for thre wane shot & ane half to the cleking of the samyn price of the pece, viiis., xxviiis.
Item to the man that maid the Aix be the space of sax dayis, ilk day vs., xxxs.
Item to the said man for fasoning of the samyn, vli.
Item for ane pund of saip, xvid.
Item to Mongo Hunter for the thre bandis of yrne, viiis.
Item for the sloitis, stappellism & naills, viiijs.
Items for the ye planchor nialls, iijs.
Item for sawing of this jeist, iijs.
Item for careing of the Aix to the smiddy & caring of the jeist frae the sawaris to Patrik Shangs buyth, xviiid.
Item to Androw Gotterstoun for onputting of twa stane & half of leid on the Aix & tempering of it for his laubors
Item to George Tod wrycht vii dayis, ilk day iiijs, xxviiis.
Item to Adam Shang, aucht dayis waigis, ilk day iiijs., xxxiis.
Item to ane prenteis vj dayis waigis, ilk day xviiid., ixs.Item to Patrik Shang wrycht for his haill laubours & devysing of the tymmer wark, xls.
Total s £22 15s. 1d.

See the Maiden

The Lord Provost and Magistrates of Edinburgh donated the Maiden in 1797 to the Society of Antiquaries, who then passed it on to the old Museum of Scotland.

You can view the Maiden in the Scotland galleries at the National Museum of Scotland.

Site Menu.

The Maiden: the Scottish beheading machine