History of Crucifixion
Persia and Alexander
Crucifixion probably originated with ancient Persians. There is evidence, that captured pirates were crucified in the port of Athens in the 7th century BC. Alexander the Great introduced the practice throughout his empire. He once crucified a general who disagreed with his campaign plans.
Roman Empire
Romans adopted the custom from Carthage and used it for slaves, rebels, and especially despised enemies and criminals. Condemned Roman citizens were usually exempt from crucifixion except for high crimes against the state, such as treason. The Romans used it during the Spartacus rebellion, during the Roman Civil War, and the destruction of Jerusalem. Crucifixion was considered an ignominious way to die.
A common prelude was scourging, which would cause the victim to lose a large amount of blood, and approach a state of shock. The prisoner then usually had to carry the horizontal beam (patibulum in Latin) to the place of execution, not necessarily the whole cross. Crucifixion was typically carried out by specialized teams, consisting of a commanding centurion and four soldiers. When it was done in an established place of execution, the vertical beam (stipes) was sometimes permanently embedded in the ground. The victim was usually stripped naked. The "nails" were tapered iron spikes approximately 5 to 7 in (13 to 18 cm) long with a square shaft 3/8 in (1 cm) across.
The Romans often broke the prisoner's legs to hasten death. Burial afterwards was not usually permitted. In some cases, the nails were gathered afterwards and used as healing amulets.
Emperor Constantine abolished crucifixion in the Roman Empire, when Christianity became the state religion.
Islamic world
Some medieval Muslim rulers used crucifixion sporadically.
Medieval Japan
Crucifixion was used in Japan before and during the Tokugawa Shogunate. It was called Haritsuke in Japanese. The victim—usually a sentenced criminal—was hoisted upon a T-shaped cross. Then, executioners killed him with spears. The body was left to hang for a time before burial.
Mesoamerica
There are some reports that, after the Spanish conquest of Mesoamerica in the 16th century, some natives performed human sacrifice by crucifixion due to their superficial understanding of Christianity.
Modern crucifixions
Crucifixion, while rare in recent times, was used at Dachau during the Holocaust and in a number of wars, such as in Cambodia under the Khmer Rouge and during the Sino-Japanese war, where it was used among the many methods of torture and execution used by Japanese soldiers against Chinese civilians--largely in emulation of medieval Japanese military practices.
During World War I, there were persistent rumors that German soldiers had crucified an Allied (Canadian) soldier on a tree or barn door with bayonets or combat knives. The event was initially reported in 1915 by private George Barrie of the Canadian First Division, as follows:
"On 24 April at St Julien I saw a small party of Germans about 50 yards away. I lay still and in about half an hour they left. I saw what appeared to be a man in British uniform. I was horrified to see that the man was literally crucified, being fastened to the post by eight bayonets. He was suspended about 18" from the ground, the bayonets being driven through his legs, shoulders, throat and testicles. At his feet lay an English rifle, broken and covered with blood."
The event supposedly happened to, according to a Red Cross Nurse and multiple testimonies from men of the same unit, a Harry Banks of Canadian 48th Highland Regiment. This story was widely used in the black propaganda of the time, together with a similar rumor that Germans had bayoneted Belgian babies. Such rumours made for highly graphic and disturbing pictures and were ideal for helping to demonize the enemy.
After the war, investigators tried to determine the veracity of the story of the crucified soldier, but it was inconclusive.
There are persistent stories that crucifixions continue to occur in certain parts of Africa, particularly in Sudan.
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