The Serial Killer Coven of Women Poisoners

Dr. Kate Lister is on the podcast to talk about the Affair of the Poisons, the women who were poisoners in French society and their deadly consequences. In 17th-century France, Louis XIV's court sparkled with luxury. It also teemed with poison, occult rituals and aristocrats trying to murder their way up the social ladder. What started with one poisoned Easter pie uncovered a criminal network stretching from the backstreets of Paris to the bedchamber of the Sun King himself. Joining Anthony to uncover this criminal underworld is special guest co-host, and host of our sister podcast Betwixt the Sheets, Dr. Kate Lister! Edited by Anna Brant. Researched by Phoebe Joyce. Produced by Stuart Beckwith. Senior Producer is Freddy Chick. 0:00 Introduction 1:00 Welcome to Teresa 2:10 Special guest co-host reveal: Kate Lister 4:15 Why poison is historically linked to female murderers 7:00 The rise of European poisoning syndicates 9:40 Who was Marie Bosse, and why is she important 12:50 The sinister plot against her own family 15:40 Torture, confessions and the execution of Marie Bosse 20:30 How the panic percolated back to the surface 21:35 The arrest of fortune tellers 25:00 Dropping big names and reaching French royalty 31:15 King Louis the Fourteenth shuts down the investigations 33:20 The heavy price paid by the public 38:00 What the affair of the poisons reveals about 17th-century society 41:45 The reality of life and death in historical France 43:40 Final dark thoughts After Dark: Myths, Misdeeds & the Paranormal is a History Hit podcast. Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe. All music from Epidemic Sounds. #HistoryHitPodcast #AfterDark #Poison