French officials recently revealed an intriguing find: a 16th-century gallows situated in Grenoble, once used to publicly display executed prisoners as a caution to others. This discovery, made in 2024 but only announced in December, was the result of research conducted by France’s National Preventive Archeology Agency, Inrap.
The excavation occurred ahead of redevelopment work on the Esplanade in Grenoble, located in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of southeastern France. Archaeologists expressed surprise upon uncovering the gallows, which were constructed during the Protestant Reformation. These structures were specifically designed for “rebels against royal authority, including Protestants defying the crown.”
Notable individuals who faced execution there included Benoit Croix, involved in an assault on Grenoble in 1573, and Charles du Puy Montblanc, a Huguenot leader beheaded in 1575. Initially, archaeologists had thought the structure might be a religious site, only to later confirm it was a location for displaying the bodies of those executed.
The find includes a rectangular masonry structure along with ten burial pits from the same era, containing at least 32 skeletons, primarily male, often buried in groups. Dating back to 1544, the gallows features eight stone pillars, suggesting it was under direct royal control, as opposed to local feudal lords.
Nicolas Minvielle-Larousse, a researcher from Inlap, mentioned that such gallows excavations are quite rare in France. The unique square design with its eight columns points to its significant role within the kingdom’s criminal justice framework.
He elaborated that while gallows were common across Europe until the early modern period, each criminal court could possess its own, whether under royal jurisdiction or the Lords’ Court. At the excavation site, most burials showed little care, prompting further questions for researchers to explore.
Minvielle-Larousse expressed hope that this excavation would contribute to anthropological research regarding burial practices, both historically and in contemporary societies. He raised thought-provoking questions like: What constitutes a ‘good’ death versus a ‘bad’ death? What tangible markers do we leave behind that indicate such experiences? And how do societal views on death relate to beliefs about the afterlife?
