January
08
/ 2017
During the first half of the 18th century, the Catholic Church’s authority and religious intolerance had reached new heights in France, which in many cases led to irrationally harsh punishment for those who dared not obey the commandments and adhere to religious dogma. One such case was the heartbreaking story of Jean-François de la Barre, also known as Chevalier (“knight”) de la Barre. De la Barre and Voltaire De la Barre was a young French nobleman and descendant of Joseph-Antoine de la Barre, a governor of the French Antilles and New France. Well-known for his good looks and intractable and rebellious character, Chevalier de la Barre often got in trouble with the local religious authorities of Abbeville, which ended up
