Max Hödel

A German tinsmith and anarchist from Leipzig. He is best known for the  assassination attempt on Kaiser Wilhelm I, one of the first instances of propaganda by the deed in history.

On 11 May 1878, Hödel carried out a plan to assassinate Kaiser Wilhelm I. Catching the Emperor during a public appearance, he stepped forward and fired three shots, missing every time.

Arrested and violently beaten, Hödel was sentenced to death shortly after his capture, a fate that did not seem to trouble him excessively. After writing a final letter signed 'Long live the Commune!', he was executed at the guillotine.