Eugen Weidmann
His 1939 guillotine execution in Versailles was France's last public beheading, a spectacle so gruesome it ended the practice.
1908–1939 (age 31)·German serial killer·Birthday: February 5·The Greatest Generation
Biography
Eugen Weidmann’s criminality was brief, brutal, and ultimately historic for the macabre curtain call it provided. A German national operating in France, he was part of a small gang that kidnapped and murdered several people, including a American dancer, in 1937. His capture and trial revealed a cold, calculating personality. The significance of his story lies entirely in its ending. Sentenced to death, Weidmann was guillotined outside the Saint-Pierre prison in Versailles on June 17, 1939. The crowd that gathered behaved so raucously, pressing in for a better view and reportedly dipping handkerchiefs in his blood, that the French government was horrified. Within months, a decree mandated all future executions be conducted behind prison walls, making Weidmann the last person publicly executed in France.
The Greatest Generation
1901–1927
Grew up during the Depression, fought World War II, and built the postwar economic boom. Defined by shared sacrifice, institutional trust, and a belief that hard work and loyalty would be rewarded.
Eugen was born in 1908, placing them squarely in The Greatest Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Eugen Was Born
The biggest hits of 1908
Eugen's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1908Born
Ford Model T goes into production
President: Theodore Roosevelt
1913Started school
The Federal Reserve is established
President: Woodrow Wilson
1921Became a teenager
First commercial radio broadcasts
President: Warren G. Harding"My Man" — Fanny Brice
1924Could drive
First Winter Olympics held in Chamonix, France
President: Calvin Coolidge"It Had to Be You" — Isham Jones
1926Could vote
Robert Goddard launches the first liquid-fueled rocket
President: Calvin Coolidge"Baby Face" — Jan Garber
1929Turned 21
Wall Street crashes, triggering the Great Depression
Gas: $0.21/galPresident: Herbert Hoover"Singin' in the Rain" — Cliff EdwardsBest Picture: The Broadway Melody
1938Turned 30
Kristallnacht and the escalation toward WWII
Gas: $0.20/galHome: $2,850Min wage: $0.25/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Begin the Beguine" — Artie ShawBest Picture: You Can't Take It with You
1939Died at 31
World War II begins; The Wizard of Oz premieres
Gas: $0.19/galMin wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Over the Rainbow" — Judy GarlandBest Picture: Gone with the Wind
Did You Know?
The writer and future French culture minister André Malraux was among the spectators at his execution.
His crimes were committed with accomplices, including a woman named Jeanine Keller.
The execution was so poorly managed that the morning newspaper reports criticized the unruly crowd as much as the criminal.
“I have nothing to say to you.”
