During the Middle Ages, almost all forms of punishment, torture, execution were held in a public place. The reason for why it was held in a public area was:
- By having someone being punished in public it brought maximum shame and humiliation to the criminal.
- Punishing, torturing, executing someone in public was a form of warning sign of what would happen to you if you broke the law.
- Also, for the many on-lookers, this was a form of entertainment.
