A Tale of Two Murders: Passion and Power in Seventeenth-Century France.

Lynn, Michael R.

A Tale of Two Murders: Passion and Power in Seventeenth-Century France, by James R. Farr. Durham, North Carolina, Duke University Press, 2005. xi, 225 pp. $74.95 US (cloth), $21.95 US (paper).

Murder! Lust! Deception! James R. Farr's A Tale of Two Murders: Passion and Power in Seventeenth-Century France reads like a cross between a lurid tabloid expose, an episode of "Law and Order," and some twisted version of an old-fashioned murder mystery with the detectives dragging the lake for a body while simultaneously trying to determine what the butler saw through the keyhole, which couple was having the affair, and why the cousin nobody liked seems to have vanished without a trace.

The story starts in 1638 and centers on the alleged murder of Pierre Baillet, a judge in the Chambre des Comptes, and his valet, Philibert Neugot. The accused, Philippe Giroux, was also a judge in the highest court in Burgundy, a cousin of the murdered man, and a client of the powerful Conde family. Further complicating the story, rumour had it that Giroux was in love with Baillet's wife, the beautiful Marie Fyot. Possible witnesses and accomplices had the disturbing habit of disappearing or dying, as did Giroux's wife, who had died somewhat mysteriously (perhaps poisoned?) in 1636, not long after allegedly discovering her husband's affair. The absence of a body also made things somewhat for the prosecution. However, in 1643, after a lengthy investigation and the discovery of some bones among the possessions of the accused, the court returned a verdict of guilty. Soon thereafter, the executioner in Dijon removed Giroux's head (albeit with some difficulty, as it took five swings of the axe).

Such a story, like those of Menocchio and Martin Guerre, almost demands to be told. Farr, like the authors of these other microhistories, has a set of amazingly complete, but suitably opaque, court records which form the basis of his analysis. He tells the story roughly in chronological order, starting with the murders and progressing forward through the various stages of the investigation, interrogations (including torture), and trial. Interspersed within this narrative account are brief digressions that offer pertinent background information, such as the chapter outlining the formation and rise of the Giroux family. In this way we are introduced to all the major figures of the case as well as many of the minor ones. Farr provides a blow-by-blow or, more accurately, a question-by-question account of the proceedings, starting with the first accusation, and includes an account of every interrogation, the changes in the composition of the investigative team, the judges, and the final decision. He takes great pains to tease out all the personal relationships between the actors in this drama, detailing who worked where, when and with whom, their past exploits, and so on.

Although the detail with which Farr explains the course of the investigation dominates the book, ultimately this work is not about the murder. Instead, Farr uses this case to reveal a number of other complex behaviours, relationships, and concepts from seventeenth-century France. Perhaps most interestingly, Farr offers a fascinating illustration of the nature of various social and political relationships. Master-servant relations, patron-client relations, and familial relations are all revealed in stark detail. In addition, Farr demonstrates the complex workings of the power structure found in Dijon, with its courts and judges, along with all of their connections to Louis XIII, Cardinal Richelieu, and other national power players. The nature of patronage in old regime France, at both a regional and national level, emerges clearly as this convoluted case progresses from crime to verdict. In addition, the importance of personal and familial honor, attitudes toward social and political power, and the machinations of the early modern legal system all receive treatment by Farr.

Farr takes full advantage of the possibilities inherent in this case to explore seventeenth-century society and politics. Unfortunately, the extreme complexity of the case forces Farr to spend considerable time and space narrating the various stages of the investigation. This means that much of the significant analytic work appears to take a back seat to the overall course of events. Farr's devotion to a clear explication of what happened causes him, on occasion, to put his analysis to one side. A list of the principal characters, to help the reader keep track of the names, along with a brief analytic essay found at the end of the book help alleviate this focus on the details. In the end, Farr has crafted an excellent study of early modern political and social history.

Michael R. Lynn

Agnes Scott College