A Case of Witchcraft: The Trial of Urbain Grandier

Leonard Adams is a professor of French Studies at the University of
Guelph.

The blatant manipulation of justice by religious zealots of the
Counter-Reformation, crime and punishment in the heyday of demon
possession and exorcism, witchcraft and witch-hunts, the basis of trials
under civil and canon law, collusion between religious and political
authorities, and the horrors of torture and execution in 17th-century
France—these elements provide the framework of this book on the rise
and fall of Urbain Grandier (1590–1634), Jesuit-trained appointee to
the benefice of Saint-Pierre-du-Marche and the canonry of the cathedral
church of Sainte-Croix in Loudun, a town north-east of Poitiers, with
historical notoriety dating from the Middle Ages.

The early 17th century witnessed efforts on the part of the state and
church to affirm the power of the central government, to rid the kingdom
of France of the wave of heterodox ideas that the Reformation had
created, and to deal systematically with what was perceived as
Beelzebub’s assault on the faithful. Brilliant and handsome, Grandier
was caught in the web of intrigue weaved by his powerful enemies in the
French court and their connections in Loudun who considered him a
fractious intruder. In the end, he faced accusations of casting spells
on the members of the local Ursuline convent, predisposing them to
erotic emotions and to his seductions.

Although recounted many times since Grandier’s fiery execution in the
town square in 1634, the tale receives new poignancy in this book. Where
solid evidence is lacking, the author creates usually credible scenarios
that move the story forward. As it were, he invites his readers to
follow the train of events in their imagination. We observe with
fascination the manifestations of a mentality of demonism that Loudun
shared with many other towns, and its experience under the absolute
monarchy that Richelieu was bent on creating. There is perhaps a subtle
suggestion that the religious culture so evident in Loudun was a
microcosm of clerical France under Louis XIII.

Copious notes and informative appendixes complete this well-presented
work. It is to be hoped that an index will appear in future printings.