Why Did Everyone Avoid the Medieval Executioner?

For forty years Frantz Schmidt was Nuremberg's executioner, and nobody would sit with him in a tavern or pray beside him in church. So why was the man with the sword treated like he was contagious, and why did the same people who shunned him knock on his door when they were sick? Sam follows Schmidt from his father's forced first hanging in Hof to a journal that records hundreds of executions, a medical practice that treated about fifteen thousand patients, and a petition to an emperor for his family's honor. 0:00 The diary line that started it 0:47 Congratulations, you're hired 1:01 Meet Frantz Schmidt 1:19 A woodsman and a margrave 2:13 The first hanging 3:07 What the job really was 3:36 Why everyone avoided him 4:05 The tavern door 4:43 The journal and the sword 6:19 Witches and torture 7:09 The secret doctor 8:21 Two lives 9:09 A letter to the emperor 10:04 The ending 10:29 Sam's survival estimate and verdict Main sources: Joel F. Harrington, The Faithful Executioner (2013), and his interview with Vanderbilt University News (2013); Frantz Schmidt's journal, as described by Harrington; Wikipedia, Franz Schmidt (executioner); Executed Today on Meister Frantz Schmidt; Kirkus Reviews and Macmillan on The Faithful Executioner. Counts of executions vary between sources (about 361 to 394). The tavern, door, council and imperial-court conversations are reconstructions based on Harrington's account, not recorded dialogue. Some dialogue is dramatized from historical records. If you enjoy history's weirdest true stories, like and subscribe. Stay curious, stay a little weird. #Executioner #MedievalHistory #FrantzSchmidt #AnimatedHistory #History #HistoryExplained #TrueStories Music: "Impact Prelude" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b... "Fluffing a Duck" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b... "Sovereign Quarter" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b... "Merry Go" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b... "Despair and Triumph" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b... "Rites" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b... "Sad Trio" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b... "Pixel Peeker Polka - faster" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b... "Long Note Four" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b... "Mesmerize" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b... "Despair and Triumph" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b... "Sneaky Snitch" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b... "Long Note Four" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b... "Hidden Agenda" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b...