Humans can be quite sadistic. Throughout the centuries humankind has come up with many inventive ways to torture people. Many of these creations came about during medieval times. Incredibly, at one point in time torture was legal. It was seen as an appropriate way to punish people for breaking the law or those who were witches. It then became widely used as a way of getting information out of people, especially during the many wars that took place during the Middle Ages. These days torture is frowned upon, even though it is still used by many countries, including America. While the torture devices may have changed, they are still no less terrifying. 

Torture devices such as the rack and the iron chair might not be in use, but they have been replaced by waterboarding and music torture (it is much worse than it sounds). In an attempt to shed more light on these barbaric methods of information gathering and punishment, here are 20 terrifying torture devices that will give you the creeps. 

1. The Rack

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If you’ve ever watched a movie set in the Middle Ages and there’s been a torture scene, there’s a good chance it involved a torture rack. Arguably the most famous medieval torture device, the rack was a wooden bench with wrist and ankle straps. Once the victim was strapped down, the roller at one end (sometimes both) was pulled by a lever, stretching either the arms, legs, or both. 

This was a nasty and painful torture device that often resulted in arms and legs being pulled out of their sockets. Shoulders and knees would be dislocated and bones snapped. Sometimes those doing the torturing would also tear out fingers and toenails or burn the soles of the victim’s feet. Horrible stuff. 

Guy Fawkes is one of the most famous people who was believed to be put on the racks. While popular throughout Greek and British history, the last known use of the rack was by the Russians in the 18th century.