Johann Christian Woyzeck

Johann Christian Woyzeck (born 3 January 1780 in Leipzig, Electorate of Saxony; executed 27 August 1824 in Leipzig, Kingdom of Saxony) was a German criminal.

He became famous for the murder of his mistress, Johanna Christiane Woost. This case is known for the long and elaborate report on the murderer's mental state that it spawned.

Biography Born and raised in Leipzig, he lost his mother at the age of 8 and his father at the age of 13: he began his apprenticeship with a barber and, in 1798, he began to travel until his enlistment. It was during this time that he had a son by a woman he did not marry, however. He returned to Leipzig in 1818 and began a relationship with Johanna Christiane Woost, widow of a famous surgeon. The relationship was undermined by the constant betrayals of Johanna, who used to hang out with soldiers with whom she amused herself. Out of jealousy, Woyzeck stabbed Johanna on 2 June 1821. Quickly arrested near the scene of the crime, Woyzeck immediately admitted the facts.

The trial

The legal proceeding lasted more than three years.

On 11 October 1821 and, for the second time, after a long psychiatric controversy, on 12 July 1824, the court sentenced Woyzeck to death. Amid a crowd of spectators who flocked to the scene, Woyzeck was beheaded.