The Assassination of Orléans: The Rise & Fall of a Medieval Detective

08/22/23 • 67 min

3 Listeners

On the eve of the worst winter for over a century and with France on the brink of war with the English, the 1400s in Paris were a tumultuous period. With a mentally unstable king and a collection of dukes, lords and nobles all vying for power in the background, catastrophe was only a single assassination away. Which is exactly what happened on the night of St Clements Day, 1407, when the Duke of Orleans was jumped by a gang of mysterious hooded men on his way to the palace, leaving the head of the investigation with a difficult choice to make, turn a blind eye to the crime and forgo any semblance of integrity, or uphold the law and throw the country into civil war.
SOURCES
Adams, Tracy & Rechtschaffen, Glenn (2013) Isabeau of Bavaria, Anne of France, and the History of Female Regency in France. Early Modern Women: An Interdisciplinary Journal, Volume 8, Fall 2013.
Jager, Eric (2014) Blood Royal: A True Tale of Crime and Detection in Medieval Paris. Little Brown & Co. NY, USA.
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The Dark Histories Butterfly was drawn by Courtney, who you can find on Instagram @bewildereye

Music was recorded by me © Ben Cutmore 2017

Other Outro music was Paul Whiteman & his orchestra with Mildred Bailey - All of me (1931). It's out of copyright now, but if you're interested, that was that.

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For almost anything, head over to the podcasts hub at darkhistories.com

Support the show by using our link when you sign up to Audible: http://audibletrial.com/darkhistories or visit our Patreon for bonus episodes and Early Access: https://www.patreon.com/darkhistories

The Dark Histories books are available to buy here: http://author.to/darkhistories

Dark Histories merch is available here: https://bit.ly/3GChjk9

Connect with us on Facebook: http://facebook.com/darkhistoriespodcast

Or find us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/darkhistories

& Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dark_histories/

Or you can contact us directly via email at [email protected]

or join our Discord community: https://discord.gg/cmGcBFf

The Dark Histories Butterfly was drawn by Courtney, who you can find on Instagram @bewildereye

Music was recorded by me © Ben Cutmore 2017

Other Outro music was Paul Whiteman & his orchestra with Mildred Bailey - All of me (1931). It's out of copyright now, but if you're interested, that was that.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Previous Episode

Mary Ellen MacDonald & The Haunting of Caledonia Mills

In the winter of 1922, a bizarre series of events fell across an isolated Nova Scotian farmhouse, leaving the locals grappling with a set of mysteries that were as terrifying as they were exciting. Unseen forces braided horses' tails and moved livestock, while bluish lights danced eerily around the property and soon, the situation escalated to a series of unexplained fires igniting within the farmhouse, forcing the occupants to flee their home amidst the harsh Canadian winter. As the press descended onto the farm, a series of investigations sought to dig deeper into the events, hoping to find answers for the phenomena and exonerate the occupants in the eyes of the locals, though their successes were mixed in their results and the answers given would prove to be inconclusive for many, leaving Canadian folklore with a new mystery.

SOURCES

Prince, Walter F. (1922) An Investigation of Poltergeist & Other Phenomena Near Antigonish. Journal of the American Society for Psychical Research. Volume 16. pp.422-441. ASPR. NY, USA.

Whidden, Harold B. (1922) Statement of Fact of My Experiences at the MacDonald Homestead. Self Published. Canada

Graham, Monica (2013) Fire Spook: The Mysterious Nova Scotia Haunting. Nimbus Publishing, Canada.

Colombo, John Robert (2000) Ghost Stories of Canada. Dundurn Press, Toronto, Canada.

Whidden, David Graham (1930) Genealogical Record of the Antigonish Whiddens. NS, Canada.

The Evening Mail (1922) Antigonish Farming Community Is Aroused By Mysterious Actions Believed To Be The Work Of Spooks. The Evening Mail, 19 Jan 1922. Canada.

The Evening Mail (1922) Story Of Spooks Setting Fires In Antigonish Farmers Home Confirmed. The Evening Mail, 24 Jan 1922. Canada.

The Evening Mail (1922) Eye Witnesses Tell Of Mysterious Fires In Home Of Antigonish Farmer. The Evening Mail, 25 Jan 1922. Canada.

The Evening Mail (1922) Antigonish Chief Of Police Puzzled Over Mysterious Fires. The Evening Mail, 03 Feb 1922. Canada.

The Evening Mail (1922) Where Detective And Reporter Will Live Until Mystery Is Solved. The Evening Mail, 04 Feb 1922. Canada.

The Evening Mail (1922) Detective Carroll Becomes More Mystified Over Mysterious Fires At Caledonia Mills. The Evening Mail, 06 Feb 1922. Canada.

The Evening Mail (1922) Detective And Reporter Leave For House Of Mystery As New Rumours Of FIre Origin Open Up. The Evening Mail, 07 Feb 1922. Canada.

The Evening Mail (1922) Detective And Reporter Are Mystified As They Probe Mysterious Fires And Play Forty-Fives In House Of Mystery. The Evening Mail, 11 Feb 1922. Canada.

The Evening Mail (1922) Mystery At Caledonia Mills Deepens As Detective And Reporter Get Slap. The Evening Mail, 13 Feb 1922. Canada.

The Evening Mail (1922) Detective And Reporter Driven From House Of Mystery And Move To Barn To Start Probe Into Strange Antics There. The Evening Mail, 14 Feb 1922. Canada.

The New York Times (1922) Scientist To Seek Antigonish Ghost. The New York Times, 26 Feb 1922. NY, USA.
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For almost anything, head over to the podcasts hub at darkhistories.com

Support the show by using our link when you sign up to Audible: http://audibletrial.com/darkhistories or visit our Patreon for bonus episodes and Early Access: https://www.patreon.com/darkhistories

The Dark Histories books are available to buy here: http://author.to/darkhistories

Dark Histories merch is available here: https://bit.ly/3GChjk9

Connect with us on Facebook: http://facebook.com/darkhistoriespodcast

Or find us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/darkhistories

& Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dark_histories/

Or you can contact us directly via email at [email protected]

or join our Discord community: https://discord.gg/cmGcBFf

The Dark Histories Butterfly was drawn by Courtney, who you can find on Instagram @bewildereye

Music was recorded by me © Ben Cutmore 2017

Other Outro music was Paul Whiteman & his orchestra with Mildred Bailey - All of me (1931). It's out of copyright now, but if you're interested, that was that.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Next Episode

Hypnotism & Murder: The Bloody Trunk of Eyraud & Bompard

1 Recommendations

Amid the opulence of Belle Époque France, a trial took place that threatened to unravel the very meaning of human legal justice. Michel Eyraud and Gabrielle Bompard, two French citizens living their lives quietly in Paris were launched into the spotlight following the discovery of a decomposing corpse, the reconstruction of a destroyed wooden trunk and an international manhunt. Whilst their names eventually disappeared into obscurity, the crime they were involved in left an indelible mark of legal history, as the first case using hypnosis as defence for murder, offering the jury the unique opportunity to not only decide the fate of the convicted, but to reshape the legal definition of free will in a courtroom forever.
SOURCES

Levingston, Stephen (2014) Little Demon in the City of Light. Doubleday Publishing, London, UK.

The Daily Telegraph (1889) Paris Day By Day. The Daily Telegraph, Wed 25 Dec 1889, p5. London, UK.

The Standard (1890) The Trial of Michel Eyraud and Gabrielle Bompard. Wed 17 Dec 1890, p5. London, UK.

The Pall Mall Gazette (1890) The Extraordinary Paris Murder Trial. Thurs 18 Dec 1890, p6. London, UK.

The Pall Mall Gazette (1890) The Eyraud-Bompard Murder Trial. Fri 19 Dec 1890, p6. London, UK.

The Pall Mall Gazette (1890) The Eyraud-Bompard Murder Trial. Sat 20 Dec 1890, p5. London, UK.

The Pall Mall Gazette (1890) Eyraud-Bompard Murder Trial - Sentences. Mon 22 Dec 1890, p7. London, UK.

Corydon Hammond, D. (2013) A Review of the History of Hypnosis Through the 19th Century. American Society of Clinical Hypnosis, Routledge, USA.

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This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp, check out betterhelp.com/darkhistories to get 10% off your first month.
-------

For almost anything, head over to the podcasts hub at darkhistories.com

Support the show by using our link when you sign up to Audible: http://audibletrial.com/darkhistories or visit our Patreon for bonus episodes and Early Access: https://www.patreon.com/darkhistories

The Dark Histories books are available to buy here: http://author.to/darkhistories

Dark Histories merch is available here: https://bit.ly/3GChjk9

Connect with us on Facebook: http://facebook.com/darkhistoriespodcast

Or find us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/darkhistories

& Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dark_histories/

Or you can contact us directly via email at [email protected]

or join our Discord community: https://discord.gg/cmGcBFf

The Dark Histories Butterfly was drawn by Courtney, who you can find on Instagram @bewildereye

Other Outro music was Paul Whiteman & his orchestra with Mildred Bailey - All of me (1931). It's out of copyright now, but if you're interested, that was that.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices