Crime, Justice and Public Order in Old Regime France
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ROUTLEDGE LIBRARY EDITIONS: THE HISTORY OF CRIME AND PUNISHMENT Volume 8 CRIME, JUSTICE AND PUBLIC ORDER IN OLD REGIME FRANCE This page intentionally left blank CRIME, JUSTICE AND PUBLIC ORDER IN OLD REGIME FRANCE The Sénéchaussées of Libourne and Bazas, 1696–1789 JULIUS R. RUFF First published in 1984 by Croom Helm Ltd This edition first published in 2016 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN and by Routledge 711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 1984 Julius R. Ruff All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library ISBN: 978-1-138-94552-4 (Set) ISBN: 978-1-315-67131-4 (Set) (ebk) ISBN: 978-1-138-94104-5 (Volume 8) (hbk) ISBN: 978-1-138-94358-2 (Volume 8) (pbk) ISBN: 978-1-315-67236-6 (Volume 8) (ebk) Publisher’s Note The publisher has gone to great lengths to ensure the quality of this reprint but points out that some imperfections in the original copies may be apparent. Disclaimer The publisher has made every effort to trace copyright holders and would welcome correspondence from those they have been unable to trace. CRIME, JUSTICE AND PUBLIC ORDER IN OLD REGIME FRANCE The Senechaussees of Li bourne and Bazas, 1696-1789 JuliusR.Ruff v CROOM HELM London • Sydney • Dover, New Hampshire © 1984 Julius R. Ruff Croom Helm Ltd, Provident House, Burrell Row, Beckenham, Kent BR3 1AT Croom Helm Australia Pty Ltd, First Floor, 139 King Street , Sydney, NSW 2001, Australia Croom Helm, 51 Washington Street, Dover, New Hampshire, 03820 USA British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Ruff, Julius R. Crime justice and public order in Old Regime France. 1. Crime and criminals-France-History 2. France-History 18th century I. Title 364\9444’7 HV6969 ISBN 0-7099-2256-6 Printed in Great Britain by Biddles Ltd, Guildford, Surrey CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES LIST OF TABLES LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND NOTE ON SPELLING ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS INTRODUCTION CHAPTER I. LIBOURNE AND BAZAS................................... 1 II. THE OLD REGIME CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM................ 24 III. OLD REGIME JUSTICE IN PRACTICE........................ 44 IV. CRIMES OF VIOLENCE . 68 V. CRIMES AGAINST PROPERTY ............................ 112 VI. CRIMES AGAINST THE POLITICAL, RELIGIOUS AND MORAL ORDER ........................................... 146 EPILOGUE ...................................................... 182 APPENDIX: THE SOCIAL CLASSIFICATION SCHEME................... 185 BIBLIOGRAPHY ................................................. 187 INDEX........................................................... 204 This page intentionally left blank For Laura This page intentionally left blank LIST OF FIGURES 1.01 Map of Southwestern France Showing the Senechauss£es ofLibourne and Bazas •••••••• 2 1.02 Map of the Sen£chauss£e of L i b o u r n e ................ 3 1.03 Map of the Senechaussee of Bazas....................... 14 2.01 Map of Southwestern France Showing the Boundaries of the Generality of Bordeaux and the Jurisdiction of the Parlement of B o r d e a u x . ......................... 36 3.01 Map of the District of the Marechaussee Company of Bordeaux. ...................... 51 4.01 Number of Crimes of Physical and Verbal Violence, by Month, in All Periods. ..................•••• 82 4.02 Number of Crimes of Physical and Verbal Violence, by Day of the Week, in All Periods. ............ 84 4.03 Age Structure of a Sample of Defendants in Crimes of Physical and Verbal Violence Tried in the Senechaussee of Libourne.................................90 4.04 Map of the Sen£chaussee of Libourne Showing the Sites of Reported Violent Crimes for All Sample P e r i o d s ................................................ 101 4.05 Map of the Senechaussee of Bazas Showing the Sites of Reported Violent Crimes for All Sample P e r i o d s .............................. 102 5.01 Comparison of the Number of Thefts Per Year, the Number of Thieves Charged Per Year and the Average Annual Price of a Boisseau of Wheat in Bordeaux . 126 5.02 Map of the Senechaussee of Libourne Showing the Sites of Property Crimes for All Sample Periods . • 130 5.03 Map of the Senechaussee of Bazas Showing the Sites of Property Crimes for All Sample Periods ......... 131 5.04 Age Structure of a Sample of 92 Accused Thieves in the Senechaussee of Libourne 133 6.01 Map of the Disorders of 1773...................... 150 LIST OF TABLES 1.01 Criminal Accusations Tried by the S§n£chaussees of Libourne and Bazas in Six Half-Decades . • 1.01 Witnesses Who Signed Testimony Transcripts by Social Group, Sex and Period in the Sen£chauss£e of Libourne . ............................... 13 3.01 Plaintiffs and Verdicts by Major Crime Types in the Senechaussees of Libourne and Bazas • • • • 46 3.02 Rate of Actual Convictions (Those Not Subse quently Reversed on Appeal or by Pardon) in the Senechaussees of Libourne and Bazas ........... 57 3.03 Primary Penalties by Crime Type in the Senechaussees of Libourne and Bazas ........... 59 4.01 Origins of Crimes of Physical and Verbal Violence in Libourne for All Sample Periods • • 76 4.02 Indications of Spontaneity or Premeditation in 199 Trials Involving Charges of Homicide or Physical Assault Tried in the Sen£chauss£e of Libourne. •••• ............................... 79 4.03 Crimes of Physical and Verbal Violence by Hours of Daylight or Darkness Tried by the Senechauss£e of Libourne ..••••••• ................ < 84 4.04 Social Relationships in 603 Cases of Physical and Verbal Violence ................... • . 86 4.05 Geographic Origins of Main Defendants and Victims in 603 Cases of Physical and Verbal Violence. , 87 4.06 Distribution by Sex of All Defendants in Cases of Physical and Verbal Violence. .................. 88 4.07 Distribution by Sex of All Victims in Cases of Physical and Verbal Violence.................... 88 4.08 Social Status of Defendants in 386 Trials on Charges of Physical Violence. ................ , 93 4.09 Social Status of Victims in 386 Trials on Charges of Physical Violence............................ 94 4.10 Social Status of Defendants in 217 Trials on Charges of Verbal Violence. • • • , 95 4.11 Social Status of Victims in 217 Trials on Charges List of Tables of Verbal Violence. • • . .........................96 5.01 Thefts Reported to the Sen£chauss§e of Libourne in All Sample Periods, By Type........................ 114 5.02 Social Status of Defendants in 179 Trials on Charges of Theft....................................... 123 5.03 Social Status of Victims in 179 Trials on Charges of Theft.............................. 123 5.04 Number of Thefts per Month by Vagrants in All P e r i o d s ........... 125 5.05 Number of Thefts per Month by Non-vagrants in All Periods ..................................... 125 5.06 Residences of Main Defendants in 179 Theft Cases and the Scenes of Their Crimes................. 129 5.07 Distribution by Sex of All Defendants in 179 Cases of Theft......................................... 132 5.08 Articles Stolen in 179 Reported Thefts............... 134 5.09 Non-theft Crimes Against Property .................. 135 5.10 Status of Defendants in Cases of Unauthorised Removal or Seizure............. • • • 135 5.11 Status of Defendants in Cases of Agricultural Offenses................... 138 ABBREVIATIONS ADG Archives Departemen tales de la Gironde AML Archives Municipales de Libourne AN Archives Nation ales DES Diplome des Etudes Superieures TER Travail des Etudes et de Recherches AHDG Archives historiques du Departement de la Gironde Actes Actes des congres d'etudes regionales de la Federation Historique du Sud-Ouest An.ESC Annales: Ecomonies, Societes, Civilisations An.HRF Annales historiques de la Revolution frangaise AN. Midi Annales du Midi An. Nor. Annales du Normandie BSBx. Bulletin de la Societe Historique et Archeologique de Bordeaux BSHPF Bulletin de la Societe de PHistoire du Protestantisme frangais BSP Bulletin de la Societe Historique et Archeologique du Perigord Ec.HR Economic History Review FHS French Historical Studies JSH Journal of Social History PWSFH Proceedings of the Western Society for French History REc.Bx. Revue economique de Bordeaux RGPSO Revue geographique des Pyrenees et du Sud-Ouest RH Revue historique RHAL Revue historique et archeologique du Libournais RHBx.G Revue historique de Bordeaux et du Departement de la Gironde RHDFEtr. Revue historique de droit frangais et etranger RHEc.S Revue d'histoire economique et sociale RHMC Revue dTiistoire moderne et contemporaine RPBx.SO Revue philomatique de Bordeaux et du Sud-Ouest Abbreviations NOTE ON SPELLING The sources for this study present many problems of orthography: the spelling used in seventeenth and eighteenth-century court records is often quite different from modern French usage; and the spelling of a particular word may vary within one text. All quotations from French manuscript sources have been translated into modern English, using modern punctuation, with an attempt to retain some of the flavour