[samkater]

Fascinating read - I must confess I only made it through half at the moment.

I used to play Crusader Kings 2 and there was an event about a “Hole from Hell” which was essentially a bottomless pit. I always assumed that was just a made up thing to add variety to the game. Apparently it’s no so far fetched?

[azalemeth]

One of the particularly horrible medieval torture devices it the oubilette -- a hole below ground with a ceiling out of reach, optionally with spikes at the bottom. You'd be thrown in, and left to die of thirst.