Famous People Who Were Executed

Capital punishment has become a rarity in today’s world though it was quite common until a few decades ago. In fact, in the past centuries, not just criminals, but also political dissidents and rebels were routinely executed. One of the most famous figures to have ever been executed was the ancient Greek philosopher Socrates, who was accused of “failing to acknowledge the gods that the city acknowledges” and “introducing new deities.” Sir Thomas More, an English social philosopher, faced execution for his “treason, religious dissent” while Sir William Wallace, one of the main leaders during the Wars of Scottish Independence was brutally executed for high treason. Coming to the 20th century, Adolf Eichmann, Ernst Kaltenbrunner, and Arthur Seyss-Inquart were executed for their involvement in war crimes against humanity. Ion Victor Antonescu, who presided over two successive wartime dictatorships in Romania was another figure to be convicted of war crimes and executed. Talking of politically motivated executions, General Ignatius Kutu Acheampong, a military head of state of Ghana, was deposed and later executed by firing squad. This section gives you more information about the life and works of famous people who were executed.
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 1 
Mary, Queen of Scots
(Queen of Scotland (1542 - 1567))
Mary, Queen of Scots
81
Birthdate: December 8, 1542
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Linlithgow Palace, Linlithgow, Scotland
Died: February 8, 1587
 2 
Che Guevara
(Revolutionary)
Che Guevara
198
Listed In: Leaders
Birthdate: June 14, 1928
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Rosario, Argentina
Died: October 9, 1967
Height: 5'9" (175 cm)
 3 
Socrates
(Greek Philosopher Who is Credited as the Founder of Western Philosophy)
Socrates
25
Birthdate: 0470 AD
Birthplace: Alopece, Greek
Died: 0399 AD
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 4 
Marie Antoinette
(Former Queen Consort of France (1774 - 1792))
Marie Antoinette
46
Birthdate: November 2, 1755
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: The Hofburg, Vienna, Austria
Died: October 16, 1793
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 5 
Joan of Arc
(Best Remembered as 'The Heroine of France' for Her Role During the 'Hundred Years' War' Against England)
Joan of Arc
69
Listed In: Miscellaneous
Birthdate: January 6, 1412
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Domrémy-la-Pucelle, France
Died: May 30, 1431
 6 
Louis XVI of France
(King of France)
Louis XVI of France
24
Birthdate: August 23, 1754
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Palace of Versailles, Versailles, France
Died: January 21, 1793
Height: 6'4" (193 cm)
 7 
Nicholas II
(Emperor of Russia (1894 - 1917))
Nicholas II
43
Birthdate: May 18, 1868
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Saint Petersburg, Russia
Died: July 17, 1918
 8 
Guy Fawkes
(Soldier)
Guy Fawkes
39
Listed In: Leaders
Birthdate: April 13, 1570
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: York
Died: January 31, 1606
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 9 
Jose Rizal
(Filipino Nationalist and Writer Who is Considered One of the Greatest Heroes of the Philippines)
Jose Rizal
39
Listed In: Leaders
Birthdate: June 19, 1861
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Calamba, Laguna
Died: December 30, 1896
 10 
Walter Raleigh
(English Statesman, Soldier, Writer, Explorer and One of the Most Notable Figures of the Elizabethan Era)
Walter Raleigh
8
Listed In: Writers
Birthdate: 1552 AD
Birthplace: Hayes Barton,United Kingdom, United Kingdom
Died: October 29, 1618
 11 
Patrice Lumumba
(1st Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo)
Patrice Lumumba
6
Listed In: Leaders
Birthdate: July 2, 1925
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Sankuru, Democratic Republic of the Congo
Died: January 17, 1961
 12 
Jesus Christ
(Founder of Christianity Who is Believed to be the Incarnation of God )
Jesus Christ
83
Listed In: Miscellaneous
Birthdate: 0004 AD
Birthplace: Judea, Roman Empire
Died: 0033 AD
 13 
Catherine Howard
(Queen Consort of England from1540 to 1541)
Catherine Howard
6
Birthdate: 1521 AD
Birthplace: London, England, United Kingdom
Died: February 13, 1542
 14 
Prithviraj Chauhan
(Rajput king of the Chauhan dynasty)
Prithviraj Chauhan
23
Birthdate: 1149 AD
Birthplace: Ajmer
Died: 1192 AD
 15 
Saint George
(One of the Most Venerated Saints and Megalomartyrs in Christianity)
Saint George
12
Listed In: Miscellaneous
Birthplace: Cappadocia, Turkey
Died: April 23, 0303
 16 
Maximilien de Robespierre
(French Lawyer and Statesman & One of the Most Influential Figures of the 'French Revolution')
Maximilien de Robespierre
22
Listed In: Lawyers & Judges
Birthdate: May 6, 1758
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Arras, France
Died: July 28, 1794
Height: 5'3" (160 cm)
 17 
Lady Jane Grey
(Queen of England and Ireland from 10 July 1553 to 19 July 1553)
Lady Jane Grey
3
Birthdate: 1537 AD
Birthplace: Leicestershire, United Kingdom
Died: February 12, 1554
 18 
Alexandra Feodorovna
(Empress Consort of Russia (1894 - 1917))
Alexandra Feodorovna
18
Birthdate: June 6, 1872
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Darmstadt, Germany
Died: July 17, 1918
 19 
Thomas Cromwell
(English statesman)
Thomas Cromwell
4
Listed In: Lawyers & Judges
Birthdate: 1485 AD
Birthplace: Putney
Died: July 28, 1540
 20 
Vasco Núñez de Balboa
(Spanish Explorer)
Vasco Núñez de Balboa
5
Listed In: Miscellaneous
Birthdate: 1475 AD
Birthplace: Jerez de los Caballeros, Spain
Died: January 15, 1519
 21 
Andres Bonifacio
(Filipino Revolutionary)
Andres Bonifacio
19
Listed In: Leaders
Birthdate: November 30, 1863
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Tondo
Died: May 10, 1897
 22 
Sophie Scholl
(German Student and Anti-Nazi Political Activist)
Sophie Scholl
20
Listed In: Activists
Birthdate: May 9, 1921
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Forchtenberg, Germany
Died: February 22, 1943
 23 
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
(Theologian Known for His Staunch Resistance to the Nazi Dictatorship)
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
4
Birthdate: February 4, 1906
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Wrocław, Poland
Died: April 9, 1945
 24 
Claus von Stauffenberg
(German Army Officer Who Failed in His Attempt to Assassinate Adolf Hitler)
Claus von Stauffenberg
11
Listed In: Leaders
Birthdate: November 15, 1907
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Jettingen, Germany
Died: July 1, 1944
 25 
Ignatius of Antioch
(Syrian Bishop)
Ignatius of Antioch
6
Listed In: Miscellaneous
Birthplace: Roman Syria
Died: 0108 AD
 26 
William Tyndale
(Theologian)
William Tyndale
3
Birthdate: 1494 AD
Birthplace: North Nibley
Died: October 6, 1536
 27 
Michel Ney
(French Military Commander and Marshal of the Empire)
Michel Ney
3
Listed In: Leaders
Birthdate: January 10, 1769
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Saarlouis, Germany
Died: December 7, 1815
 28 
Noor Inayat Khan
(British Resistance Agent in France in World War II)
Noor Inayat Khan
14
Listed In: Miscellaneous
Birthdate: January 1, 1914
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Moscow, Russia
Died: September 13, 1944
 29 
Maximilian I of Mexico
(Emperor of Mexico from 1864 to 1867)
Maximilian I of Mexico
9
Birthdate: July 6, 1832
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Vienna, Austria
Died: June 19, 1867
Height: 6'2" (188 cm)
 30 
Lu Bu
(Chinese Army General and Warlord of the 2nd Century)
Lu Bu
4
Listed In: Leaders
Birthdate: 0161 AD
Birthplace: Wuyuan Commandery, China
Died: February 7, 0199
 31 
Guan Yu
(Military general serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China)
Guan Yu
1
Listed In: Leaders
Birthdate: 0160 AD
Birthplace: Yuncheng, Shanxi, China
Died: 0220 AD
 32 
Charles George Gordon
(British Army Officer Who Led The 'Ever Victorious Army' in China)
Charles George Gordon
3
Listed In: Leaders
Birthdate: January 28, 1833
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: London
Died: January 26, 1885
 33 
Vitellius
(Roman emperor)
Vitellius
5
Birthdate: September 24, 0015
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Rome, Italy
Died: December 20, 0069
 34 
Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex
3
Listed In: Miscellaneous
Birthdate: November 10, 1565
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: England
Died: February 25, 1601
 35 
James Connolly
(Socialist Leader)
James Connolly
5
Listed In: Leaders
Birthdate: June 5, 1868
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Cowgate
Died: May 12, 1916
 36 
Charlotte Corday
(French Revolutionary Who Was Executed for the Assassination of Jacobin Leader Jean-Paul Marat)
Charlotte Corday
4
Listed In: Leaders
Birthdate: July 27, 1768
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Écorches, Normandy, France
Died: July 17, 1793
 37 
Wilhelm Canaris
(5th Chief of the Abwehr (1935 - 1944))
Wilhelm Canaris
7
Listed In: Leaders
Birthdate: January 1, 1877
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Germany
Died: April 9, 1945
 38 
Atahualpa
(Last Inca Emperor)
Atahualpa
6
Birthdate: 1502 AD
Birthplace: Inca Empire
Died: July 26, 1533
 39 
Edith Cavell
(British Nurse Who Saved the Lives of Soldiers from Both Sides During the First World War)
Edith Cavell
7
Listed In: Miscellaneous
Birthdate: December 4, 1865
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Swardeston, Norfolk, England
Died: October 12, 1915
 40 
Olympe de Gouges
(French Playwright, Political Activist, and Advocate for Women's Rights)
Olympe de Gouges
1
Listed In: Activists
Birthdate: May 7, 1748
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Montauban, France
Died: November 3, 1793
 41 
Patrick Pearse
(Barrister and a Leader of the Easter Rising in 1916)
Patrick Pearse
5
Listed In: Activists
Birthdate: November 10, 1879
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Dublin, Ireland
Died: May 3, 1916
 42 
Sambhaji
(Ruler)
Sambhaji
9
Birthdate: May 14, 1657
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Purandar fort, India
Died: March 11, 1689
 43 
Sima Qian
(Chinese Historian and Astrologer)
Sima Qian
1
Listed In: Miscellaneous
Birthdate: 0145 AD
Birthplace: Hejin, Yuncheng, China
Died: 0086 AD
 44 
Anicius Manlius Severinus Boethius
(Roman Senator, Magister Officiorum, Historian and Philosopher)
Anicius Manlius Severinus Boethius
1
Birthdate: 0477 AD
Birthplace: Rome, Italy
Died: October 23, 0524
 45 
Agustín de Iturbide
(Emperor of Mexico (1822 - 1823))
Agustín de Iturbide
0
Birthdate: September 27, 1783
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Morelia, Mexico
Died: July 19, 1824
 46 
Genrikh Grigoryevich Yagoda
(Official)
Genrikh Grigoryevich Yagoda
2
Listed In: Miscellaneous
Birthdate: November 7, 1891
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Rybinsk, Russia
Died: March 15, 1938
 47 
Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York
(Noblemen)
Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York
0
Listed In: Miscellaneous
Birthdate: August 17, 1473
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England
Died: 1483 AD
 48 
Lucilla
(Ruler)
Lucilla
2
Birthdate: March 7, 0150
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Rome, Italy
Died: 0182 AD
 49 
Cuauhtémoc
(Aztec Emperor from 1520 to 1521)
Cuauhtémoc
2
Birthdate: 1497 AD
Birthplace: Tenochtitlan
Died: 1525 AD
 50 
Reginald of Châtillon
(Prince)
Reginald of Châtillon
0
Listed In: Miscellaneous
Birthdate: 1120 AD
Birthplace: France
Died: July 4, 1187