Near the start, the executioner mentions that the last execution of a Duke had been terribly bungled "back in the old days of the axe." He is referring to the execution of the Duke of Monmouth in July 1685. Monmouth had led an unsuccessful rebellion against the crown, and in order to make his execution as horrible as possible, an incompetent hangman, John Ketch, was hired. He had only carried out one beheading before, and had made a mess of that one too. As a result, Monmouth's execution required several strokes of the axe, and even then, he was only left severely wounded. Ketch had to finish off the job using a sharp knife.

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