Did they hang people in medieval times?

Answer 1

Many punishments were carried out on those convicted of crimes in Western Europe during the Dark ages. Hanging was one of them. There were many methods of hanging from simply tying a rope around a person's neck, throwing the other end over a strong branch on a tree and then hoisting them up with manpower or tying the rope to a horse or donkey and having the animal walk forward to raise the person up to more complex methods. One variation on the tree hanging was to have the person stand on a bucket or other easily moved object, then put the noose around their neck and then kick the bucket away leaving the person to dangle from the rope. Hence the phrase "Kicking the bucket" refering to dying. One of these other methods was to construct a wooden gallows with a raised platform that had a trap door. People were hung or otherwise killed for many offences. Some of these were stealing livestock, hunting without permission on a landowner's property (especially if he was a chieftain or king), fornicating with another man's wife, striking or threatening to strike a titled person (king, duke, lord etc.) or that person's guards among other things. Once the church got established, some people accused of heresy were hanged. There were many other punishments too, like drawing and quartering; scourging; boiling in oil or water; burning at the stake; being tied to rocks below the high tide so you drowned; being locked away without food or water (unless your offense was not so serious or the sentencer was rather merciful, then you might get enough food and water to stay alive); etc. If your sentencer was especially merciful, he might just cut off one or two of your fingers, burn one of your eyes out, confiscate your property (if you had any), or if you were especially lucky, he might just make you publicly apologise to the person you wronged and put you in the stock for a day or two so that the villagers could curse at you and throw stuff at you. The powers that were were much more imaginative and varied in how they punished people than we are today.

Answer 2

yes they did sometimes for something as little as stealing a loaf of bread

Answer 3

Hanging was one form of medieval execution for capital crimes.