Jean Corolère (after 1752) was a resident of

New France New France (, ) was the territory colonized by Kingdom of France, France in North America, beginning with the exploration of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence by Jacques Cartier in 1534 and ending with the cession of New France to Kingdom of Great Br ...

, who held the position of the colony's chief

executioner An executioner, also known as a hangman or headsman, is an official who effects a sentence of capital punishment on a condemned person. Scope and job The executioner was usually presented with a warrant authorizing or ordering him to ...

in the early 1750s.André Lachance
"COROLÈRE, JEAN"
''

Dictionary of Canadian Biography The ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography'' (''DCB''; ) is a dictionary of biographical entries for individuals who have contributed to the history of Canada. The ''DCB'', which was initiated in 1959, is a collaboration between the University of Toro ...

'', vol. 3, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–, accessed July 5, 2019. Born near

Quimper Quimper (, ; ; or ) is a Communes of France, commune and Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Finistère Departments of France, department of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in northwestern France. Administration Quimper is the ...

, France, Corolère is believed to have come to New France as a military recruit. By 1750 he was a military drummer in the grenadier and gunner company. On January 26, 1751, he was involved in a

duel A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two people with matched weapons. During the 17th and 18th centuries (and earlier), duels were mostly single combats fought with swords (the rapier and later the small sword), but beginning in ...

against a man named Coffre; however, as duelling was illegal in New France, Corolère was arrested and sentenced to death. Coffre could not be arrested or tried, as he fled to parts unknown as soon as he learned that he was at risk of arrest. In New France in that era, a man who had been sentenced to death could have his life spared if he agreed to accept the job of executioner; a female prisoner, meanwhile, could have her life spared if the executioner agreed to marry her."Historic love". ''

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'', February 14, 2011. While in prison, Corolère's cell was next to that of Françoise Laurent, a young servant who had been sentenced to death for stealing clothes from her employers, and the two appear to have developed a relationship inside the prison walls; on August 17, 1751, Corolère petitioned to accept the job of executioner, saving his own life, and the following day, he petitioned to marry Laurent, saving hers. He appears to have held the job of executioner for approximately a year, and there are no known historical records of his or Laurent's whereabouts after April 1752. The story of Corolère and Laurent has been explored in several contemporary works, including

Margaret Atwood Margaret Eleanor Atwood (born November 18, 1939) is a Canadian novelist, poet, literary critic, and an inventor. Since 1961, she has published 18 books of poetry, 18 novels, 11 books of nonfiction, nine collections of short fiction, eight chi ...

's poem "Marrying the Hangman","Atwood poem inspires stage production"
'' Toronto.com'', August 3, 2010. Naomi McCormack's short historical drama film '' The Hangman's Bride'',"The Hangman's Bride". '' The Beaver'', Vol 79, No. 2 (April 1999). and Kate Cayley's theatrical play ''The Hanging of Françoise Laurent'' and novel ''The Hangman in the Mirror''."The Hangman in the Mirror, by Kate Cayley"
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'', September 2011. Nearly all such works explore the story from Laurent's perspective rather than Corolère's, often positing that Laurent was in fact the one who convinced Corolère to accept the job and marry her, although none of the original historical records establish whether Corolère or Laurent was the real architect of the decision.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Corolere, Jean People of New France Executioners People from Finistère 18th-century French civil servants 1730s births Year of death missing