Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Tuesday Guest Post: Yves Fey



Released to public domain by Rafabuto

Gilles de Laval, baron de Rais and his decadent crimes are the inspiration for my fin-de-siècle murderer in Floats the Dark Shadow. Gilles de Rais is Western civilization’s most evil and prolific serial, but few people have heard of him—among mystery buffs, at least.  Some devotees of horror are more sanguine, though his name is often missing from the “worst serial killers” lists, despite his having one of the most flamboyant profiles of any of these infamous murderers.  Jack the Ripper remains the most vivid in our collective consciousness, but that is because he was never caught.  Red Jack remains a nightmare.  But Gilles de Rais is buried under the ever-growing pile cases that often demonstrate the banality of evil, such as the Honeymoon Killers.  He is a forgotten superstar of depravity, with a body count at minimum in the dozens and perhaps in the hundreds.  His victims were pretty young peasant boys (sometimes girls in a pinch).  Their names were seldom recorded, peasants being considered little better than cattle at the time, and their children even less worthy of note.  We know a number of doleful tales from their parents, who often thought they were sending their children into service at court, a life brushed by magnificence.  Because Gilles was so far above his chosen victims, he was almost untouchable.  His servants and accomplices carried out his orders, bringing him victims, joining him in their rape and torture, then disposing of the mutilated corpses, usually in a huge furnace.  Gilles’ murders were only the icing on the cake when he was finally arrested—for heresy.  In matters of Faith, the Church had more power than the aristocracy.  No doubt it helped that Gilles had plummeted from the richest man in France into bankruptcy.  

Joan of Arc (Medieval Depiction)
According to the contemporary accounts of the 15th century, Gilles de Rais was a handsome, dashing, and courageous warrior whose bravery (and contributions to the king’s coffers) earned him the title of Marshal of France.  Early on, Gilles had an arranged marriage and his wife bore him a daughter, but he lived separately from them. For a time he wielded power at the Court of the Dauphin. The most astonishing thing about Gilles de Rais was that he served as lieutenant to Joan of Arc.  As his exact body count is unknown, so is the date when he began his pedophiliac crimes.  He may, like many serial killers, have begun early.  Yet the hideous drama is enhanced if he began his killing spree after Joan’s death, in a crisis of faith, his soul incinerated on Joan’s pyre.  By Gilles own confession, he did not begin murdering children until after her death.

He also experimented with alchemy and devil-worship.  Perhaps feeling that God had abandoned him, Gilles summoned one fake alchemist after another to bring him face to face with the Devil.  What fortune he didn’t fritter away on this always abortive blind date was spent in staging gigantic extravaganzas (he wrote a play commemorating Joan’s capture of Orleans), in decorating his castles and their chapels, enhancing his stables, bejeweling his huge library of books, and dressing the least of his performers in cloth of gold.  His pretty choir boys were particularly indulged.

Gilles' power and wealth waned after Joan’s death.  At some point his psyche shattered and he devolved, taking more and more foolish risks both with his murders and his attempts to bolster his crumbling fortune.  When arrested, he went overnight from scornful arrogance to piteous repentance.  At one point in his interrogation, Gilles suggested that his overly spiced diet might have unbalanced his mind—the earliest version of the Twinkie defense.  But he took credit for his crimes, vast shame alternating with pride in his own uniqueness.  Guilt (combined with fear of torture) led him to prostrate himself and beg the Church and the families of the children he slaughtered for forgiveness.  Stunned by his theatrical humility, forgiveness was granted, at least formally.  One suspects there were some parents who mumbled a bit. 

The baron asked to be killed before his accomplices.  He wanted to set a good example.  Gilles de Rais was hanged and his body burned on October 26, 1440.  For some reason, the stone erected by his daughter at the site of his execution became a place of pilgrimage for pregnant women who wanted to increase the flow of their breast milk.  The holy site was destroyed during the French Revolution.

Life is strange.


Author Bio:

Yves Fey’s debut mystery, Floats the Dark Shadow, is set in the decadent world of Belle Époque Paris and mingles classic detection with occult revelation.
 

Yves Fey
Paris is a mystery…

 


 

12 comments:

Teresa Reasor said...

I found this really fascinating.
Teresa R.

Patricia said...

That is one of THE weirdest tales I've heard. That's terrible what he did to those children and to think that they were considered no better than cattle! Thank you for the history lesson.
Patti

Taryn Raye said...

Wow...That is interesting and weird. I remember in 5th grade having to read a book on Joan of Arc and do a book report on her, but I don't remember anything about this man.

Thanks for sharing. It's intriguing what is sometimes hidden or downplayed in history. I love finding out new things like this.

Taryn

Debbie Christiana said...

I love to read and write about lesser know and obscure things in history. This was so very interesting as well as sad that children were raped and tortured.

Good luck with your book.

Debbie

Marian Lanouette said...

Yves, you're right I never heard of him and I've been researching serial killers for my third book. It's sad the predators pick on children and women. Good luck with your book.

Anonymous said...

I had never heard this sad tale, and to have a connection to Joan of Arc - I can't wait to read this!

KL Mullens

Yves Fey said...

I remember how stunned I was the first time I read about Gilles de Rais and his bizarre connection with Joan of Arc. When I first started researching the book, there was very little on the net about him. Since then he's made his appearance on some serial killer blogs, and also gained fame inspiring some death metal rock musicians.

Kaye George said...

You're right, it IS strange. Especially this tale. This post made me wonder if there's any connection between Red Jack and The Mentalist's Red John. I didn't know that nickname. Thanks for a most interesting post!

Yves Fey said...

I think The Mentalist must have been playing off Red Jack, even though Red John is more eclectic in his victims than the Ripper.

Anonymous said...

It is amazing what you can find when you research crimes of the past. It is sad that Baron blame his actions on the lost of his faith. I guess you could say for him 'the devil made me do it'. Thanks for sharing this.

Unknown said...

Wow, very interesting. Sounds like a fantastic read! Thanks for sharing.

Julie Robinson said...

This was a great post! I love obscure history because it makes me wonder why such an important piece of history was hidden or not popularized like other parts. Therein lies the truth.

Your book sounds very interesting.