Official Table of Drops
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The Official Table of Drops, published by the British Home Office, is a manual which was used to calculate the appropriate length of rope for long drop hangings.
Following a series of failed hangings including those of John 'Babbacombe' Lee, a committee chaired by Henry Bruce (Baron Aberdare) was formed in 1886 to discover and report on the most effective manner of hanging. The results of the committee's report were published in 1888.
A significantly revised edition of the Table of Drops was published in 1913, when the length of rope previously used for a 14 stone individual was prescribed for an 8 stone individual.
| Body weight | 1888-1913 drop | Modern drop | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stone | lb | kg | ft | cm | ft | cm |
| 14.0 | 196 | 89 | 8′0" | 244 | 5′5" | 165 |
| 13.5 | 189 | 86 | 8′2" | 249 | 5′6" | 168 |
| 13.0 | 182 | 82¾ | 8′4" | 254 | 5′8" | 173 |
| 12.5 | 175 | 79½ | 8′6" | 259 | 5′11" | 180 |
| 12.0 | 168 | 76¼ | 8′8" | 264 | 6′1" | 185 |
| 11.5 | 161 | 73¼ | 8′10" | 269 | 6′4" | 193 |
| 11.0 | 154 | 70 | 9′0" | 274 | 6′6" | 198 |
| 10.5 | 147 | 66¾ | 9′2" | 279 | 6′8" | 203 |
| 10.0 | 140 | 63¾ | 9′4" | 284 | 7′1" | 215 |
| 9.5 | 133 | 60½ | 9′6" | 290 | 7′5" | 226 |
| 9.0 | 126 | 57¼ | 9′8" | 295 | 7′7" | 231 |
| 8.5 | 119 | 54 | 9′10" | 300 | 7′9" | 236 |
| 8.0 | 112 | 51 | 10′0" | 305 | 8′0" | 244 |
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