Executioner tour
... where the pyres once blazed
Do you have nerves of steel? With Master Executioner Franz Schmidt from Hof, you will experience exciting and unforgettable moments. A historically based and lively journey through superstition, justice and healing. Medieval history comes to life when the executioner talks about his unusual craft: Where the funeral pyres once blazed, where the embarrassing interrogations took place, where evildoers stood in the pillory and the imperial blood court met - who would know better than someone who had to carry out capital and corporal punishments at the behest of the judiciary and who also tortured?
As an executioner, he was also a brothel keeper and dog beater, he cleaned the cesspools or disposed of the bodies of dead people and animal carcasses. He often also had medical knowledge and acted as a healer. The profession of executioner was considered ʹdishonestʹ, he lived for himself and was shunned by the people. He was usually trained by his father, who passed the job on to his son. After the master's test, the head of a condemned man cut off with a sword according to all the rules of the art, he was allowed to work.
Today, Master Franz Schmidt can be found in front of a historical backdrop and will take you on his tour.
Dates 2025: always Wednesday (February 5, March 12, April 2, May 14, June 4, July 9, September 10, October 15, November 5)
Meeting point is the town hall fountain, Klosterstr. 1, 95028 Hof
Price: 8,00 Euro/person
Duration: approx. 2 hours
Start: 8 p.m.
Please register at the Tourist Information Office by calling 09281/815-7777 or touristinfo(at)stadt-hof.de.
The tour is not suitable for sensitive persons and young people under the age of 14.
