Martyr or murdered?

To the people of Brittany, that September day in 1440 must have seen like the ending of the world. The magnificent, prodigiously wealthy Baron Gilles de Rais had been arrested and charged with sorcery, sacrilege and the ritual murder of little children.

Even in the brilliant and extravagant court of 15^th century, few careers had been so meteoric as that of Gilles. Heir to the greatest barony of Brittany, he had fought with Joan of Arc against England and was marshal of France at the age of 24. So rich did he become, that the number and splendor of his castles were second only to those of the King.

Then the blow fell. The prosecutors alleged that he maintained an Italian magician, Francesco Prelati, with whose assistance he had kidnapped and murdered large number of children. Their blood was alleged to have been used by Gilles, in fearsome potions, to gain magical powers over his enemies.

On October 21, the marshal confessed to all the crimes with which he had been charged, and explained that his motives were simply to gratify his passions. ‘I tell you there was no other motive. Have I not already told you enough to put ten thousand men to death?’

Gilles was hanged with his associates in Nantes, before the end of October. Few people doubted his guilt. After all, surely no man, not even Gilles, could have achieved so much without the assistance from the devil?

But the trial was held behind closed doors and there were some disquieting doubts. Gilles henchmen were certainly tortured, and the baron may have been subjected to the same treatment himself. Was he the victim of a conspiracy? If so, suspicion falls on John, Duke of Brittany, who stood to gain de Rais’ Lands.

Gilles was an easy target for accusations of sorcery, for he paid scant regard to conventional morality and interested himself in alchemy and astrology. Also, his gluttony, extravagance and sexual activities were notorious. Regrettable, perhaps, but no evidence that he was murdered of children.

Why then, if he was innocent, did he confess to such foul crimes? Perhaps he did so under torture. But there is a more likely explanation.

Gilles knew that once under the power of his enemies he was doomed, and since his life was forfeit in any case, his only concern would be the safety and welfare of his family.

If Gilles denied the charges and was found guilty, his lands and wealth would be confiscated. But, if he confessed and died repentant, then the law provided that at least part of his estate would pass to his children.

And so it happened. Although Gilles castles were granted to the Duke of Brittany, most of his wealth remained with this family who suffered no great disgrace.

Some of them rose to high office in royal service-but none became so dangerously rich and powerful as Gilles himself.

However, many still believe that his confession was real. He himself stated that the first assault to children was in the Spring of 1432 in Champtoce-sur-loire. He then moved to Machecoul were he killed or ordered children to be killed after he sodomise them. 40 bodies are said to have been recovered from Machecoul in 1437.

The first boy that was said to have been kidnapped and latered killed was a boy, named Jeudon. He was 12 years old at the time of his dissaperence. According to the records, the boy was asked by a cousin of Gilles to take a message to Machecoul, when the boy disappeared an investigation was began, but Gilles said he had never arrived, and so he was thought to have been lost in the trail to thieves.

Jean bennedetti wrote a biography about Gilles, in which he says the boys were always invited into the house, dressed like a king and then allowed to eat a feast were they drank alcoholic beverages. Gilles then would take the boy into a private room where he would rape and kill them.

 Gilles' bodyservant Étienne Corrillaut, known as Poitou, was an accomplice in many of the crimes and testified that his master hung his victims with ropes from a hook to prevent the child from crying out, then masturbated upon the child's belly or thighs. Taking the victim down, Rais comforted the child and assured him he only wanted to play with him. Gilles then either killed the child himself or had the child killed by his cousin Gilles de Sillé, Poitou or another bodyservant called Henriet. The victims were killed by decapitation, cutting of their throats, dismemberment, or breaking of their necks with a stick. A short, thick, double-edged sword called a braquemard was kept at hand for the murders. Poitou further testified that Rais sometimes abused the victims (whether boys or girls) before wounding them and at other times after the victim had been slashed in the throat or decapitated. According to Poitou, Rais disdained the victim's sexual organs, and took "infinitely more pleasure in debauching himself in this manner ... than in using their natural orifice, in the normal manner."

In his own confession, Gilles testified that “when the said children were dead, he kissed them and those who had the most handsome limbs and heads he held up to admire them, and had their bodies cruelly cut open and took delight at the sight of their inner organs; and very often when the children were dying he sat on their stomachs and took pleasure in seeing them die and laughed”.

Poitou testified that he and Henriet burned the bodies in the fireplace in Gilles' room. The clothes of the victim were placed into the fire piece by piece so they burned slowly and the smell was minimized. The ashes were then thrown into the cesspit, the moat, or other hiding places. The last recorded murder was of the son of Éonnet de Villeblanche and his wife Macée. Poitou paid 20 sous to have a page's doublet made for the victim, who was then assaulted, murdered, and incinerated in August 1440.

In 1438, according to testimony at his trial from the priest Eustache Blanchet and the cleric François Prelati, de Rais sent out Blanchet to seek individuals who knew alchemy and demon summoning. Blanchet contacted Prelati in Florence and convinced him to take service with his master. Having reviewed the magical books of Prelati and a traveling Breton, de Rais chose to initiate experiments, the first being in the lower hall of his castle at Tiffauges, to summon a demon named Barron. De Rais provided a contract with the demon for riches that Prelati was to give to the demon at a later time.

As no demon manifested after three tries, the Marshal grew frustrated with the lack of results. Prelati responded the demon summoned, named Barron, was angry and required the offering of parts of a child. De Rais provided these remnants in a glass vessel at a future invocation.

Now you decide….