Martha (or Marthe) Brossier (1556 – after 1600) was a French woman, known for claiming

demonic possession Spirit possession is an unusual or altered state of consciousness and associated behaviors purportedly caused by the control of a human body by spirits, ghosts, demons, or gods. The concept of spirit possession exists in many cultures and reli ...

at the age of 22.p. 22. According to

Augustin Calmet Antoine Augustin Calmet, O.S.B. (26 February 167225 October 1757), a French Benedictine monk, was born at Ménil-la-Horgne, then in the Duchy of Bar, part of the Holy Roman Empire (now the French department of Meuse, located in the region of L ...

, Martha was the daughter of a weaver in

Romorantin Romorantin is a traditional French variety of white wine grape, that is a sibling of Chardonnay. Once quite widely grown in the Loire, it has now only seen in the Cour-Cheverny AOC. It produces intense, minerally wines somewhat reminiscent of ...

who claimed to have been demonically possessed, drawing considerable notoriety. The case was interpreted as fraud by Charles Miron, bishop of either the

Diocese of Angers The Roman Catholic Diocese of Angers (Latin: ''Dioecesis Andegavensis''; French: ''Diocèse d'Angers'') is a diocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in France. The episcopal see is located in Angers Cathedral in the city of Anger ...

or the Diocese of Orléans.p. 132.

Demonic torment

The maladies from which she was said to suffer included extreme shortness of breath, an ability to stick out her tongue unreasonably far, and the gnashing of her teeth. She would writhe and move her mouth as if she had convulsions, while contorting her face, rolling her eyes, and appearing to show deep vexation and torment. She would also contort her body parts. A rumbling noise was heard from the area of her spleen under her short ribs on her left side, causing her left thigh to spasm. She often spoke in a violent and roaring voice. She was recorded to have lain flat on her back and skipped from the altar to the door of a great chapel in four or five lifts, which onlookers described as giving an impression of her being dragged or lifted, presumably by demons. During her demonic fits, she was able to endure pinpricks to her hands and neck with limited bleeding. She was also able to speak with her mouth shut, often speaking English and Greek with apparent fluency.

Discovery

Charles Miron thought that Marthe Brossier's claim that she was possessed was fraudulent. He made her drink holy water under the guise of normal water. He also had the exorcists present her with a key wrapped up in red silk, stating that the silk contained a

relic In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains of a saint or the personal effects of the saint or venerated person preserved for purposes of veneration as a tangi ...

of the

true cross The True Cross is the cross upon which Jesus was said to have been crucified, particularly as an object of religious veneration. There are no early accounts that the apostles or early Christians preserved the physical cross themselves, althoug ...

, and recite various verses from

Virgil Publius Vergilius Maro (; traditional dates 15 October 7021 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: t ...

, which she mistook for the rite of

exorcism Exorcism () is the religious or spiritual practice of evicting demons, jinns, or other malevolent spiritual entities from a person, or an area, that is believed to be possessed. Depending on the spiritual beliefs of the exorcist, this may be ...

. Both the wrapped key and the lines from Virgil agitated her immensely. Henri de Gondi, Cardinal Bishop of Paris, had her examined by five members of his faculty. Three were of the opinion that she was an impostor with little indication of malady. The Parlement of Paris nominated eleven physicians who all unanimously reported that there was nothing demonic in the matter,p. 132. suggesting that she used the physical strength of her stomach and breast to speak with her mouth shut.p. 24.

Notes

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Demonic torment

Discovery

See also

Notes

Further reading