In the olden times, could some be put on death row because of committing a murder in self defense?

There are many circumstances, especially if the person that committed the color was a different color than the jury/posse/mob/etc.

Self defense is not murder. It is justifiable homicide and therefore not a crime. Provided that the court ruled in this manner, the person would be free. It's possible that a wrongly convicted person could find themselves on death row.

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If it was proven self-defense, no. However, if you are talking about pre-1900, there wasn't much of a death row. Executions tended to be within weeks of conviction. In the west, it was even quicker.

How olden? The principle of justifiable homicide is fairly recent. Two or three centuries ago if you killed an attacker, you were still a murderer. They didn't split hairs, especially not for the common people.

In the Torah it states: “If a thief is caught breaking in at night and is struck a fatal blow, the defender is not guilty of bloodshed; but if it happens after sunrise, the defender is guilty of bloodshed". - Exodus 22.

The distinction between day or night is if the thief can be presumed not to intend to kill the master of the home. But where the presumption is that the intruder would murder the homeowner, then the principle is: He who comes to kill you, stand up and kill him first. - Talmud

Damn, in victorian times, a kid Was executed for stealing 3 spoons.

Yes.

Good luck