Scharfrichterhaus

The executioner's house stands at the foot of the former defense tower, which has been preserved from the medieval city fortifications of Verden.

It is a half-timbered house from 1553, which was structurally altered in 1714/15. The house is also known colloquially as the "Bödelei". Until 1831, the Verden executioners lived here in the house with a courtyard and a small garden.

In the executioner's house, in the semi-underground prison cell, an unadorned cellar hole, the prisoners sat behind several solid oak doors. The only source of light was a barred window opening high above the inmates' heads. This is also where the "embarrassing interrogation" took place, i.e. the accused was forced to confess.

In 1838, the fortified tower was converted into a prison with eight cells and a guardroom.