Albert Pierrepoint was an English hangman who executed between 435 and 600 people in a 25-year career that ended in 1956. His father Henry and uncle Thomas were official hangmen before him. During his tenure he hanged 200 people who had been convicted of war crimes in Germany and Austria, as well as several high-profile murderers including Gordon Cummins, John Haigh, John Christie, and Ruth Ellis. He executed the fastest British hanging on record in 1951, taking just seven seconds from the time that JamesInglis was removed from his cell to the moment that the trapdoor opened.