Last Meal

The last meal is a customary part of a condemned prisoner's last day. Often, the day of or before the appointed time of execution, the prisoner receives a last meal and religious rites, if they desire. In the United States, inmates generally may not ask for an alcoholic drink. Other countries have different traditions, such as the "little glass of rum" granted to the condemned in historical France in the minutes before execution; but no formal last meal as they were told of the impending executions only on the fatal morning, generally minutes before the actual event.

In many countries the prisoner may, within reason, select what the last meal will be and the authorities do their best to satisfy the request.