The Martyrs of Compiègne

On 18th December the Pope announced the canonisation of  the "martyrs of  Compiègne",  sixteen Discalced Carmelite nuns executed by order of the Revolutionary Tribunal on 17th July 1794.  A procedure known as "equipollent" or "equivalent" canonisation dispensed with the need for intercessory miracles and instead recognised the long-standing veneration enjoyed by the nuns, who are held to have met their deaths with inspirational courage and unwavering faith.  At the time of their beatification in 1906 they had been declared as martyred "in odium fidei" ("in hatred of the faith"). The nuns' story is well-known through art and literature.  It was the subject of a  novella written in 1931 by the German Catholic Gertrud von Lefort and also of Georges Bernanos's Dialogues des carmélites, which provided the libretto for the highly successful opera by Francis Poulenc, first performed in 1957.

G. Molinari (1906), The Carmelite martyrs mount the scaffold, 1906. Carmel de Compiègne

 

What were the circumstances surrounding the condemnation of the nuns of Compiègne and what do they tell us about the religious policies of the Revolution?

The following is translated from an essay published in 2009 in the Annales of the Historical Society of Compiègne, by Jacques Bernet, a historian who has researched and written extensively on Revolutionary dechristianisation in the local area.  In his preface, he emphasises the need to move beyond hagiography to uncover the historical context.  In his view, the Carmelites were victims of a tragic conjunction of personalities and political circumstances rather than a generalised ideology of anti-religious violence.

The Château de Haroué - heritage rescued

The Château de Haroué in Lorraine offers an illuminating case study of the issues surrounding recent heritage policy in France.

Sometimes known as the "Chambord lorrain", the Château was built by Germain Boffrand in the 1720s for Marc Beauvau-Craon, Prince de Craon, and has the indubitable distinction of having remained in his family ever since. It was first opened to the public in 1964.

The small village of Haroué (pop.500) is located just south of Nancy, near the border of Belgium, Luxembourg and Germany.  It is billed as within easy driving distance of Basel, Strasbourg and Karlsruhe -  though, more problematically in terms of the tourist map, it is a solid 2.5 hours from Paris.

The proprietor and châtelaine,  until her death in May 2023, was the splendid Princess Marie Isabelle ("Minnie") de Beauvau-Craon. We are reminded that in France "Princess" is only a courtesy title, but Minnie still boasted a direct line of descent from Duke Leopold's favourite.  Her father,  Marc - who died of a heart attack in 1982 - was the last Prince of Beauvau-Craon.  Minnie, who resided partly in the U.K. for 35 years and spoke fluent English, had just the right combination of blue blood and affability to inspire affection in the readers of Vogue and The Tatler.  In an interview with the New York Times in 2013 she expressed her deep commitment to the upkeep of the Château, "When you inherit something, you owe some respect to your forebearers"; "I'm determined to put life into Haroué.  I want to put it on the map, to make it a destination" (See Reading).  

Minnie de Beauvau-Craon, photographed for the New York Times in 2013