This execution method , used mostly for people accused of
witchcraft or heresy , was used in two different methods . The first one,most
commonly depicted , consisted of using a heap of faggots with a wooden stake on
top where the unfortunate prisoner was attached with chains and ropes . The
Spanish Inquisition preferred this method as it had the highest visual impact on
the public.
The other method , mostly used especially on witches , consisted of tying the condemned on a pole and heaping up the faggots around him, so that he died inside of the flames . It is said that Joan of Arc died at such a stake, despite the popular depictions showing her on top of the burning heap.
Sometimes the executioner used the "retentum" just before setting fire to the stake , in doing so he quickly strangulated the victim with a rope so that the fire just burned an already dead body.
