On June 17th, 1816, L'Écho, L'Argus, La Loire and La Méduse set sail for Saint-Louis in Senegal. This expedition was to take possession of the colonies that France had before the Revolution. It was led by an incompetent aristocrat : Hugues Duroy de Chaumareys. La Méduse, an 150-ft long frigate,...

Many of those sentenced to death over the years were executed by hanging. For a long time, it was considered a safe way to carry out capital punishment, since it causes a rupture of the cervical vertebrae, an inability to breathe and finally death, all, usually, in an instant. Few people survive...