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Blanche Monnier was born on 1st March 1849 in Poitiers, France. She was the daughter of well-respected, upper-class parents with strict conservative values. Her father, Emile Monnier, was a director of a Poitiers arts faculty. Her mother, Louise, was a member of the Poitier family, whom the city had been named after; she had also received an award from the Committee of Good Works for her financial contributions to the city. Blanche also had a brother, Marcel. As they grew up, Marcel became a lawyer with his own family. There was a lot of pressure on Blanch to marry, and she had plenty of suitors; the New York Times later described her as a ‘beautiful tall brunette, with a wealth of hair and big, brilliant eyes. She was a belle of the neighbourhood of Poitiers and was sought by more than one.' Unfortunately for Blanche, she fell in love with a lawyer, an older man with little money or social status. Her mother was furious, declaring her daughter would not marry a penniless lawyer. To Louise, what friends and neighbours thought was more important than her daughter’s happiness. Blanche was spirited and dismissed her mother’s demands, threatening to elope with her love.
It was in 1876 that Blanche went missing at the age of 25. Some assumed she had run away, starting a new life away from her overbearing mother. Some thought Blanche had died. Some accounts say Louise and Marcel said they didn’t know what had happened, publicly mourning their daughter and sister. The most common reports I’ve read recorded that the family said Blanche had gone insane and was being locked away for her safety. Unfortunately, this was pretty standard practice at this time. Those with any mental illness were considered a dirty secret to be hidden from the public. Nice. The lawyer Blanche was in love with was distraught over her disappearance.
Blanche, sadly, was neither dead nor enjoying herself away from her family. After attempting to defy her mother, she had been dragged upstairs and locked in the attic of their shared home. The room was tiny, with blacked-out windows and no access to sunlight. No one saw Blanche publicly, even after her father died in 1879. In 1885, the lawyer sadly died, having never known what had happened to the woman he loved and intended to marry. Even after this, Blanche was kept prisoner. I find it incredibly sad that a 25-year-old woman can go missing and no investigation takes place; nobody outside of her family thought, ‘Hang on a minute, this is a little bit fucking weird’. Later, neighbours would admit they could hear Blanche’s screams: ‘Oh God, when will they set me free? Why am I imprisoned here? I am suffering the tortures of the damned’.
On 23rd May 1901, the Paris Attorney General received a letter. It read: ‘Monsieur Attorney General: I have the honour to inform you of an exceptionally serious offence. I speak of a spinster who is locked up in Madame Monnier’s house, half-starved and living on a putrid litter for the past twenty-five years – in a word, in her own filth’. The letter was unsigned. Twenty-five years after Blanche had gone missing, police attended the house. They investigated upstairs and found the attic room locked. The door was broken down, and what they found shocked even the hardiest of the police. One account read: ‘The unfortunate woman was lying completely naked on a rotten straw mattress. All around her was formed a sort of crust made from excrement, fragments of meat, vegetables, fish, and rotten bread… we also saw oyster shells, and bugs, running across Mademoiselle Monnier’s bed. The air was so unbreathable, the odour given off by the room was so rank that it was impossible to stay any longer to proceed with our investigation’.
Poor Blanche was terrified; the only human contact she had for 25 years was the brief moments when a family member or a servant threw her table scraps. She had been left alone in this dark room, deprived of fresh air, sunlight and even the most basic sanitary needs; her only company was the bugs and rats attracted by the appalling conditions. She hadn’t worn clothes for the last 20 years, was covered in a dirty blanket, and weighed just 55 pounds (3.93 stone). The word liberté was written on the walls – the French word for freedom. Blanche was immediately removed and taken to the hospital. During this, Louise sat, looking wholly stunned by what was happening. The police questioned her and Marcel; Marcel tried to claim that Blanche was ‘foul, angry, overly excited and full of rage’. However, she displayed none of these signs once in the care of the authorities. She was happy and calm when finally given a bath and clothed after all those years. Louise and Marcel were arrested.
Reporters soon heard about the disturbing story, which became international news, referring to Blanche as ‘la Séquestrée de Poitiers’ (The Sequestered of Poitiers). There was, and rightly so, public outrage at what had happened. Two of the Monnier’s servants had their home threatened, the public believing them to be complicit in this treatment of Blanche (and, as was found out later in court, the servants were aware of what was happening). Louise Monnier had been having heart problems and was already in ill health, and it wasn’t helped by the threats of revenge from people who had previously looked up to her. Just 15 days after her arrest, on 1st June 1902, she died from heart complications. Her last words were reported, ‘Oh, my poor Blanche!’ (It's a little bit too late there, lady). For some reason, guilt maybe, Louise had altered her will and left everything towards the care of Blanche. This left Marcel to face trial alone. Due to the viciousness of the public, his wife and daughter were hidden in a convent for their safety; both claimed to know nothing about the situation with Blanche. The 17-year-old socialite daughter had her impending marriage cancelled due to the fallout from Blanche’s discovery. During the trial, Marcel argued that it was all his mother’s doing and he had nothing to do with it. Then he claimed that his near-sightedness stopped him from seeing how awful Blanche’s living conditions were (did it stop your sense of smell as well???), and he had personally tried to make her as comfortable as possible (of course you did). The servants also testified, claiming they knew about Blanche but were too scared to say anything, saying, ‘It had been like that when they got there’. Marcel received a 15-month sentence on 11th October 1901, much to the joy of the crowds. However, this was short-lived.
At the time, it was not considered a crime to not free someone if you didn’t imprison them yourself; as Marcel hasn’t imprisoned Blanche, it wasn’t his responsibility to free her. As a lawyer, he appealed his sentencing, explaining that Blanche had been free to leave anytime she wanted (!!), and he would not be blamed. On 30th November, his sentence was overturned, and he was free. I read that he inherited his family estate, but this would conflict with the will, so I’m unsure which part is genuine. He died in 1913.
Now, most importantly, what happened to Blanche? One newspaper reported: ‘When she was removed from her mother's house to the hospital, she had almost lost the use of her tongue. She could only stammer a few words and could not frame a complete sentence. Little by little, the power of speech has returned to her. She recognises flowers, birds, and articles which were once familiar to her. Miraculously, she wasn’t in immediate danger of dying, and slowly, she improved day by day, even being able to communicate and gaining weight. In 1913, 12 years after her rescue, Blanche Monnier died in a sanatorium in Bois.
And that is the sad, sad story of Blanche Monnier. So many unanswered questions. Who wrote the anonymous letter to the police? Was it her mother or brother who could no longer deal with the guilt? Was Marcel aware of his mother’s failing health issues and didn’t want to be lumbered with the responsibility of Blanche? Was it a servant, desperate to help the poor woman? Why didn’t anyone tell the police that a young woman had gone missing? This case infuriates me so much. I’m glad Blanche had some comfort in her latter years, but I still can’t get my head around what she must have suffered for 25 years, and I hope she finally has some peace now. Blanche Monnier's story is a haunting reminder of the depths humans can sink to when driven by fear or prejudice. Her ordeal starkly warns against the dangers of unchecked power within families and society. As always, let me know in the comments, take care of yourselves, and I will see you next time.
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