The Trial of Jeanne Catherine: Infanticide in Early Modern Geneva

by Sara Beam

In 1686 in Geneva, a single mother named Jeanne Catherine Thomasset was charged with poisoning two young children: her own illegitimate daughter and the son of a rural wet nurse. This began a protracted criminal trial during which authorities interrogated Jeanne Catherine several times, sometimes with torture, in order to determine the truth. Throughout, Jeanne Catherine consistently maintained her innocence and expressed distress at her daughter's death. The Trial of Jeanne Catherine is a suspenseful historical mystery offering key information about early modern motherhood, child rearing, gender, religion, local politics, and the practice of criminal justice in the seventeenth century. The book provides the complete trial transcript as well as the deliberations of the Genevan authorities and relevant correspondence, allowing students to analyse and draw their own conclusions about the reasons for infanticide prosecutions as well as their impact on the experience of motherhood in early modern Europe.

Genres: History

166 pages, Hardcover

Published February 2, 2021

Reviews

[Peggy Herring · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a worthwhile read! The author sets the scene with an introduction--very helpful--but then you'll find the bulk of the book is made up of transcriptions of archival documents that are entirely astonishing and engrossing. I could not stop turning the pages. Jeanne Catherine's story reads like a true crime novel.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting, would be great for a history course.