BRINVILLIERS, MARIE MARGUERITE, Marquise de, notorious as a poisoner in the time of Louis XIV., was the daughter of Dreux d'Aubray, lieutenant of Paris, and re ceived a careful education. In 1651, she was married, while still young, to the marquis de l3rinvilliers. This nobleman seems to have been a gay and careless spendthrift, who allowed his wife to do very much as she pleased. He even introduced to her a young officer named Jean Baptiste de Gaudin, Seigneur de St. Croix, who was exceedingly handsome, and who inspired her with a violent passion. Iler easy husband, however, was wholly indifferent to his wife's conduct; but her father, who seems to have had a stricter sense of duty, caused St. Croix.to be arrested and imprisoned in the Misfile. It was here the latter learned the art of preparing poisons. from an Italian, and on his release he imparted his fatal knowledge to his mistress, who, during his incarceration, had affected the greatest piety, spending most of her time in visiting the hospitals and in attending the sick. The marchioness now resolved to destroy her father. St. Croix eagerly abetted her, in the hope of obtaining a portion of the paternal inheritance; but in order to test the efficacy of the poison, she tried its effects upon the invalids of the hotel _Dieu. Having satisfied herself, she commenced operations on her parent. kissing and poisoning him continually for eight months, until her diabolical patience was exhausted, and she was at last induced to administer a very violent dose. He died, and no one suspected the marchioness. With St. Croix's assistance, and that of a domestic servant, Jean Amelin, alias Chaussee, she next poisoned, with the same fearful indiffer once to crime, her two brothers and her sisters; her object being to find means of sup porting her extravagant style of living with her paramour. Several times she attempted
to poison the marquis, her husband; but he escaped, and, as was said, by means of anti dotes given by St. Croix, who dreaded that he should be compelled to marry the widow. St. Croix died suddenly in 1672—his glass mask having fallen off while he was engaged in preparing a poison—leaving documents inculpating the marchioness. She was also accused about the same time by her accomplice Chaussee, who being arrested, confessed all, and was condemned to be broken alive. The marchioness escaped to England;. afterwards she traveled into Germany, and next went to Liege, where she took refuge in a convent. From this, however, she was craftily decoyed by an officer of justice dis guised as an abbe, and conveyed to Paris. Among her papers was found a general con fession of her crimes, including the above-mentioned murders, and many others. One strange confession stated that, out of pity for a virtuous young lady who had been imprisoned in a convent, the marchioness had poisoned a whole family! It is a singular fact, that this infamous woman was a bigot in her religious tenets, and was quite exem plary in her attendance at Church. At her trial in Paris, she at first denied all charges brought against her, and pretended that the "general confession" had been written dur ing the insanity caused by a fever; but after being put to the torture, she made a full confession, and was beheaded, July 16, 1676. Her career had excited such terror in France, that Louis XI.V. instituted a distinct tribunal, the elambre ardente (q.v.), to investigate cases of poisoning by the " succession powder" used by the marchioness.