Assassinations And Executions That Made Europe 1648-1992

  • The Law of Suspects - during the Reign of Terror

    The Law of Suspects - during the Reign of Terror
    The law of suspects was created by the French National Convention on September 17, 1793, at the beginning of France’s Reign of Terror. It was used as a guideline for criminal activity against the revolution that all citizens were aware of. It dictated who was subject to anti revolutionary ideas and if found guilty would be executed for treason.
    French National Convention, The Law of Suspects. Paris, France, September 1793.
  • Queen Victoria's first assassination attempt

    Queen Victoria's first assassination attempt
    Drawn by GH Miles in 1840, the painting is currently in the British Museum. It is of the first attempted assassination of Queen Victoria on June 10th, 1840. Where the Queen and her husband were near Buckingham Palace when Oxford took two shots, missing both. This drawing would have been seen by the general public to inform them of the event.
    Miles, GH, “Edward Oxford’s attempted assassination of Queen Victoria” watercolour strengthening with gum on paper, 1840, London, The British Museum.
  • The Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand

    The Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
    In Sarajevo on June 28 1914 Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated by Gavrilo Princip. This sparked World War One. This image was printed in an American newspaper, indicating that the whole world was aware of this event and the potential implications it had. It shows the wreckage of the first attempt on his life.
    “Wreckage after bomb explosion in Sarajevo”. Arizona Republican. July 18, 1914, https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84020558/1914-07-18/ed-1/seq-6/ (accessed March 30, 2022).
  • Execution of the Romanov Family

    Execution of the Romanov Family
    This execution of the family along with some staff took place in the middle of the night July 16th to 17th 1918, in the midst of the Russian Revolution in order to ensure there would be no further claims on the throne. This is an account of the death of the Romanov family, and would have been read by Russian scholars interested in the events of that fateful night.
    Bulygin, Paul, and Alexander Fyodorovich Kerensky. The Murder of the Romanovs: The Authentic Account. London: Hutchinson, 1935.