Catherine Lepère (1601–1679) was a French

midwife A midwife is a health professional who cares for mothers and newborns around childbirth, a specialization known as midwifery. The education and training for a midwife concentrates extensively on the care of women throughout their lifespan; co ...

. She was an associate of

La Voisin Catherine Monvoisin, or Montvoisin, née ''Deshayes'', known as "La Voisin" (c. 1640 – 22 February 1680), was a French fortune teller, commissioned poisoner, and professional provider of alleged sorcery. She was the head of a network of fo ...

and one of the accused in the famous

Poison Affair Poison is a chemical substance that has a detrimental effect to life. The term is used in a wide range of scientific fields and industries, where it is often specifically defined. It may also be applied colloquially or figuratively, with a broa ...

. Lepère was a licensed midwife who had delivered La Voisin's own children. She performed

abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pre ...

s for clients remitted to her by La Voisin. Lepère was arrested in 1679, as were many other associates of La Voisin, after having been pointed out by Marie Bosse. She admitted having performed abortions, which were illegal at the time, but pointed out that she had prevented many scandals involving upper class ladies by doing so, and that she considered that she had performed a community service. She received her clients from La Voisin, who took almost all the profit. Marie Bosse claimed that fetuses who had been aborted late in the pregnancy were burned in an oven at La Voisin or buried in the garden of La Voisin, but this was never investigated and therefore unconfirmed, as Louis XIV had given the order that the part of La Voisin's enterprise which had to do with abortions should not be pursued further. Lepère was sentenced to death for abortion on 11 August 1679. She was also sentenced to be tortured, but because of her advanced age, she was merely fastened in the torture device without it being put to actual use, as there was a fear that she would die of the torture rather than the execution if the torture was actually applied. She was executed by hanging.

In fiction

Catherine Lepère is portrayed in a novel by Judith Merkle Riley: ''The Oracle Glass'' (1994).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lepere, Catherine 1601 births 1679 deaths French midwives Executed French people 17th-century executions by France Executed French women French abortion providers People executed by France by hanging 17th-century French criminals 17th-century French businesspeople Affair of the Poisons