Françoise Filastre

Françoise Filastre (1645-1680), was a French poisoner. She was one of the accused in the famous Poison Affair. Her testimony was vital in the incrimination of Madame de Montespan in the affair.

Françoise Filastre was an associate of La Voisin, and provided aphrodisiac on her orders for Madame de Montespan, who used it to drug Louis XIV of France. In 1679, Montespan hired La Voisin to murder the monarch and his latest love interest Marie-Angelique de Fontanges. When the plans failed due to the arrest of La Voisin, Montespan hired Filastre to perform the murder on Fontanges. She was arrested in December 1679, after having applied for a position in the household of Fontanges.

In August 1680, after the execution of La Voisin in February, the connection between La Voisin and Montespan and the plan to assassinate the king was revealed by her daughter Marguerite Monvoisin, who on 9 October also confirmed the August statements by Adam Lesage of child sacrifice at the black masses. The 30 September, Françoise Filastre was condemned to death, and the 31 September-1 October, she was subjected to torture, during which she confirmed the testimonies of Monvoisin and Lesage. This was regarded as the final confirmation the police needed to consider the implication of Montespan as proved. The 1 October, the police informed the monarch, and the same day, he ordered the investigation to be stopped.

Françoise Filastre retracted her statements as soon as the torture stopped. Her testimony of child sacrifice was confirmed by Marguerite Monvoisin 9 October and Etienne Guibourg on 10 October. She was executed by burning in Paris 1680.

References

• Frantz Funck-Brentano: Princes and Poisoners Or Studies of the Court of Louis XIV
• H Noel Williams: Madame de Montespan and Louis XIV
• Anne Somerset - The Affair of the Poisons: Murder, Infanticide, and Satanism at the Court of Louis XIV (St. Martin's Press (October 12, 2003) ISBN 0-312-33017-0)
• Arlette Lebigre: 1679-1682, l'affaire des poisons