Epilog zbójnickiego żywota
The Epilogue of the Robber’s Life

Summary/Abstract: Robbery in the Carpathians and the Carpathian Foothills region lasted from the early 16th till the mid-19th century, causing problems first for Poland and next, after the Partitions of Poland, for the Austrians who struggled with this phenomenon with varying success., In times before the Partitions, the person responsible for the prosecution of crime was called Starosta Grodowy. However, the best results were achieved by summary courts called Standrecht, introduced in the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy in late 18th century. In cases of robbery courts sentenced to the so-called qualified death, which meant quartering, tortures on a breaking wheel, impalement or dismemberment by horses, often preceded by mutilation: cutting arms, legs or ears, gouging eyes out or flaying. The most “deserving” criminals were sentenced to death by hanging on a hook by the inferior rib. The executions took place in the city markets or more often in special places of execution, located outside the settlements usually on a nearby hill. The convict was accompanied to the place of execution by members of judicial panel and priests.

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