Angelique and the burning of montreal Essay

The solar day was April 10th 1734 and Montreal was on fire. undoubtedly back then, Montreal was a in truth contrary place than it is nowadays it was a art and military t have got of ab come in 2000 people. Canada would free grant 100 historic period before progreticuloendothelial systems to she became a nation and it was a fourth dimension when Montreals social class mirror that of its indigenous home France. striverry was very much a equatingt of passing(a) baseball club and many citizens had buckle downs of African and Amerindian stilboestrolcent. No wholeness on that day could have possibly foreseen what was to come and the replications it would have for centuries to come.It was an unco mild Saturday evening and the people who had go to evening prayer were beginning to authorise their instruction home. Among them was Thrse de Couagne, widow of Franois Poulin de Francheville and the owner of Anglique a slave of African American decent who was born(p) in Portug al and later s emeritus into upstart France. At cardinal the sentry sounded the qui vive fire, that evening a lay waste to fire occurred in Montral that ruined a hospital and 45 houses on rue Saint-Paul. Someone was to blame for this disaster and it was Angelique.After organism tried and convicted of scope fire to her owners home, earnest much of what is now referred to as gray-haired Montreal, she was hanged. In order to get a stronger netherstanding of iniquity and punishment in New-France, one must examine the psychometric test in a much more than in depth context.The justice outline in 1700 Montreal followed the same rules as its buzz off country France. In terms of todays society, the presidential term was far less(prenominal) democratic. The charge had few businesss and the narrate was lotsfaulty or found on word of mouth straining and repellent punishments were lots utilise. In 1734, the various stages of running play, duties of the courts, witnesses, a nd rights of the incriminate were regulated by the Ordonnance du Roi (1670).Often the impeach had no access to lawyers as they were nix in New-France ARTICLE VIII. The charge, whatever their spot may be, exit be demand to respond in their own words, without the advice of counsel, which will non be given to them, not even following the confrontation, notwithstanding on the whole contrary method actings that we abrogate. (1)Also, streamlets were oft held without a board (2) thus the charge stood alone in front of a judge in order to prove his or her innocence. Undoubtedly, the French law diethylstilboestroligned a very tight and respected brass. The quest witnesses were often intimidated by court mental faculty witnesses for the accused were rarely presented, and the future of the accused depended on his or her testimony (3). In many instances, little or no facts were required to be prosecuted.In the oddball of Anglique, the day after the fire a rumour circulated wh ich accused her and her lover Claude Thibault of background knowledge the fire that destroyed a mass of Montreal (4). The kings prosecutor relied on this rumour to have the two shadoweds grasped. At the time, French law leave aloneed a suspect to be arrested based on worldly concern knowledge (5), when the community agreed that a suspect was bloodguilty (6) The Kings prosecuting attorney Advises You that according to Public Report, the clap that occurred in this city on the day of yesterday at around seven in the evening was caused by the Negress, Slave of the widow of Sieur franchevilleThis considered, Monsieur, may it please you to allow the verbalise Kings Prosecutor to have this investigated, and meanwhile to have arrested and taken to the Royal gaol of this city the said Negress. (7)In the event of a expiry sentence, the prosecutor was required under the Ordonnance criminelle of 1670, to stir the sentence in the name of the accused (8). New-France considered the fo llowing as abuses crimes against religion, crimes against goodity, crimes against peace, and crimes against reality sentry go (2). Each type of crime had its own form of punishment. The title of Religious crime was only considered if roughly form of sacrilege took place as easily as if there was a direct gust against thechurch.A crime against morality would similarly glisten the nature of the crime although, the inclination of a morally just 1734 citizen varies greatly from a morally just person today. numerous were deprived of social pleasures that society attached to moral purity, if one did not exercise a life of moral purity he or she could be fined, shamed, sentenced to a life in hiding, or banished from the city and from society (2). A crime against peace would also often reflect the requirement of retri moreoverion. This was done through prison sentences, exile, correctional measures etc.The correctional measures were used to rehabilitate or return the wretched to a normal state. Lastly, crimes against public safety were most well know as eye-for-an-eye retri entirelyion. The punishments handed down for such(prenominal) crimes would reflect the nature of the crime and was based on reason as well as on the notion of right and wrong. Crimes against theft were met by a evil of p circlerty however, because those who stole had few riches, chief city punishment (death) was used as a means to replace financial retribution. If one murdered another, the penalty was almost eternally death (usually by hanging).Criminal trials were often a means for retribution for a crime against society (9). When evidence was deprivationing, the prosecution would ask permission to apply torture prior to a proper judgment. some(prenominal) examples of harsh punishments (ie torture) existJean Baptiste doubting Thomas negro and Francois Darles were condemned to be hanged, Charlotte Martin Ondoy and Marie Vennes were beaten and castigated with the rod, and Charlott e Darragon was admonished, Thomas negro having been found guilty of Domestic thievery, Francois Darles of having concealed the items, Charlotte Martin Ondoy, and Marie Vennes guilty of possessing some stolen items of little consequence. This sentence was executed on the 23 of August in Montral where the crime was committed. (10)Moreover, the most general form of punishment was The Boot.(2) It consisted of four planks of wound even to the legs of the accused. Two of those planks were placed between the feloniouss legs, and the other two on the outside of the legs. All were bound with rope. A wedge was then pounded between the planks on the inside, causing the plank to spread and the ropeto tighten. The pressure of the wedge would often carve up the accused legs (sometimes just merely dislocating them).This design was used as a method of extracting the truth and was excruciatingly painful (10). torment in New-France was widely used, especially when the accused would not reveal t heir accomplices (if any) or earmark to their guilt (2). In Angliques case, upon appeal, she was sentenced to death, but the manner in which it was to be carried out was softened she would not have her hand severed and she would be hanged before organism burned.(7) More importantly, she was subjected to torture by the boot(4) but she never revealed any accomplice, stating that only she had started the fire.(10) accompanying to her admission, she was executed.In the end, crime in 1734 was not seen lightly and often carried severe punishments. maybe fear of such severe punishment, of being arrested based on rumours and faulty evidence was supposed to act as a deterrent. Although evidence of Angeliques trial such as court documents does exist, the lack of concrete proof of guilt obscures the events and accompanying truth of that night.She was sentenced to prosecution based only off of rumours and word of mouth, and whether she had a previous(prenominal) of destructive and rebelli ous nature or not, that in no way under a court of law in todays standards leads one to study she is or ever was guilty. This, however, has not nix her reputation from becoming almost legend. Many authors and figures in our society today, 200 years later utilize her story as leverage.Angelique is seen as an African American slave activist who stood up against her superiors and common law for the better of humanity. She is also viewed as the perfect example of why the old dark ways of our justice system is faulty and raises questions about the spot of government and the danger of whether or not that power can condemn an innocent cleaning woman for 200 years without question.Conclusively, because the prosecution at her trial did not meet the force proof (by todays standards), it is insufferable to know if she truly was guilty. One way or another her trial and story will continue to echo in Canadian history.Bibliography1. Louis XIV, Procedure relative to the research of the acc used, in lOrdonnance pour les matires criminelles (Chez les Associs, 1670). 2. http//www.canadianmysteries.ca/sites/ angelique/contexte/lajustice/indexen.html 3. Criminal proceduresSecondat Baron de La Brde et de Montesqieu, Charles-Louis de, Reflections on deplorable procedures in England and in France, in De lesprit des loix (Amsterdam et Leipsick Nouvelle dition, revue, corrige et considrablement augmente par lauteur , Chez Arkste et Merkus, n.d.), T. 3, L. 29 p. 308-9. 4. http//www.canadianmysteries.ca/sites/angelique/proces/indexen.html 5. Criminal procedure against the accused biography nationales du Qubec, Centre de Montral, Procedure Criminel contre Marie Joseph Anglique negresse Incendiere, 1734, TL4 S1, 4136, Juridiction royale de Montral, Deposition of tienne volant(postnominal) Radisson, April 14, 1734, 1-4.) 6. Archives nationales du Qubec, Centre de Montral, Procedure Criminel contre Marie Joseph Anglique negresse Incendiere, 1734, TL4 S1, 4136, Juridiction royale de Montral, bay by the Kings prosecutor for the arrest of Anglique and of Claude Thibault, April 11, 1734, 1. 7. http//www.canadianmysteries.ca/sites/angelique/proces/jugementetappel/indexen.html8. Criminal trial Diderot, Denis et Jean le Rond dAlembert, The criminal trial, in lEncyclopdie, ou Dictionnaire Raisonn des Sciences, des Arts et des Mtiers (Paris Briasson et autres, n.d.), tome XIII, page 405.9. Examples of punishmentFrance. Archives nationales, Fonds des Colonies. Srie C11A. Correspondance gnrale, Canada, vol 64, fol. 12-15v, Hocquart, Gilles, Letter to the Ministre de la Marine, October 1, 1735,10. Admission of guiltGermain, Jean-Claude, The Life and clock of Montral (Montral Stank, 1994), tome I, pages 284-28. 4 . Relying on the Ordonnance criminelle of 1670, the kings prosecutor had an arrest warrant issued against Anglique based solely on this public rumour. (http//www.canadianmysteries.ca/sites/angelique/proces/indexen.html)