Today in 1793 during the French Revolution, King Louis XVI was executed on the guillotine. He had been condemned for treason.The French Revolution came about due to the widening split in French society between the elite at the very top and the poor who made up the largest part of the population. Rumours about the frivolous lifestyle of King Louis wife, Marie Antonia of Austria (better known by the French form of her name, Marie Antoinette), caused resentment amongst the French masses and were one of the reasons behind the break out of the revolution.
On a more gruesome note historian David Andress states that accounts of Louis’s beheading indicate that the blade did not sever his neck entirely the first time. There are also accounts of a blood-curdling scream issuing from Louis after the blade fell but this is unlikely as the blade severed Louis’s spine. It is agreed however that, as Louis's blood dripped to the ground, many in the crowd ran forward to dip their handkerchiefs in it.
