Thomas Derrick () was an English

executioner An executioner, also known as a hangman or headsman, is an official who effects a sentence of capital punishment on a condemned person. Scope and job The executioner was usually presented with a warrant authorizing or ordering him to ...

during the

Elizabethan Era The Elizabethan era is the epoch in the Tudor period of the history of England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558–1603). Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history. The Roman symbol of Britannia (a female ...

.A Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue, Francis Grose Derrick served as a sailor in the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

during the Anglo-Spanish war and under the command of

Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex (; 10 November 1565 – 25 February 1601) was an English nobleman and a favourite of Queen Elizabeth I. Politically ambitious, he was placed under house arrest following a poor campaign in Ireland during th ...

, he took part in the

capture of Cádiz The capture of Cádiz in 1596 was an event during the Anglo-Spanish War (1585), Anglo-Spanish War, when Kingdom of England, English and Dutch Republic, Dutch troops under Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, and a large Anglo-Dutch fleet under C ...

. After the sack of the city, Derrick was one of 24 sailors sentenced to death by

hanging Hanging is killing a person by suspending them from the neck with a noose or ligature strangulation, ligature. Hanging has been a standard method of capital punishment since the Middle Ages, and has been the primary execution method in numerou ...

, after they were convicted of committing rapes against local women. Since none of the other soldiers were willing to execute the delinquents, the Earl of Essex pardoned Derrick on the condition that he executed his co-accused. Derrick did so with startling efficiency on one of the fleet's ships, by using blocks to string up the men on the spar. In English history, executioner was not a commonly chosen career path because of the risk of friends and families of the deceased knowing who the executioner was and where to find him. Executioners were sometimes coerced into the role and following the fleet's return to England, Derrick became an executioner at

Tyburn Tyburn was a Manorialism, manor (estate) in London, Middlesex, England, one of two which were served by the parish of Marylebone. Tyburn took its name from the Tyburn Brook, a tributary of the River Westbourne. The name Tyburn, from Teo Bourne ...

. Derrick executed more than 3,000 people in his career, including his pardoner, the Earl of Essex, when he was convicted of

treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state (polity), state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to Coup d'état, overthrow its government, spy ...

in 1601. As a

nobleman Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...

, the Earl of Essex was allowed to choose his own execution method and opted to be beheaded via axe. Derrick, unused to the sharp tool as a hangman, took three strokes to decapitate Essex. Derrick devised a beam with a topping lift and

pulley Sheave without a rope A pulley is a wheel on an axle or shaft enabling a taut cable or belt passing over the wheel to move and change direction, or transfer power between itself and a shaft. A pulley may have a groove or grooves between flan ...

s for his hangings, instead of the old-fashioned rope over the beam method in use since 1388. Around 1610, he constructed a gallows with which over a dozen people could be hanged at the same time. The word ''

derrick A derrick is a lifting device composed at minimum of one guyed mast, as in a gin pole, which may be articulated over a load by adjusting its Guy-wire, guys. Most derricks have at least two components, either a guyed mast or self-supporting tower ...

'' became an

eponym An eponym is a noun after which or for which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. Adjectives derived from the word ''eponym'' include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Eponyms are commonly used for time periods, places, innovati ...

for the frame from which the

hangman's noose ''Hangman's Noose'' (French: ''Le collier de chanvre'') is a 1940 French mystery film directed by Léon Mathot and starring Jacqueline Delubac, André Luguet and Annie Vernay.Oscherwitz & Higgins p.279 It is based on the 1932 novel ''Rope to Spar ...

was supported and through that usage (by analogy) to modern day cranes. Derrick was also the first executioner to be subject of a

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and song of Great Britain and Ireland from the Late Middle Ages until the 19th century. They were widely used across Eur ...

in the English-speaking world.

References

16th-century births 17th-century deaths Year of birth missing Year of death missing English executioners English sailors English rapists 16th-century English people {{England-crime-bio-stub 17th-century English people