1634 жылы өрттен опат болған француз ділдары Урбен Грандье ісі

French Catholic priest convicted of witchcraft and burned at the stake in 1634

Urbain Grandier (1590 – 18 August 1634) was a French Catholic priest who was burned at the stake after being convicted of witchcraft, following the events of the so called "Loudun possessions". Most modern commentators have concluded that Grandier was the victim of a politically motivated persecution led by the powerful Cardinal Richelieu. The circumstances of Father Grandier's trial and execution have attracted the attention of writers Alexandre Dumas père, Eyvind Johnson, Aldous Huxley and the playwright John Whiting, filmmaker Ken Russell, composers like Krzysztof Penderecki and Peter Maxwell Davies, as well as historian Jules Michelet and various scholars of European witchcraft.

Grandier attended the Jesuit college of La Madeleine in Bordeaux. His uncle was a priest who held some influence with the Jesuits there. They held the right to appoint the parish priest for the Church of Saint Pierre du Marche in Loudun, and in 1617 chose Grandier. They also had the right to name a canon to the collegiate Church of Sainte Croix, also in Loudun, and Grandier was appointed to that as well. Thus, as the eldest son, he was able to support his widowed mother and siblings. That he should receive both valuable positions over a local candidate caused some resentment. Both benefices were in the Diocese of Poitiers. Sometime around 1629 or 1630, Philippa Trincant, daughter of Louis Trincant, the king's prosecutor and a friend of Grandier, gave birth to a son. It was widely suspected that Grandier was the father.

In 1632, a group of nuns from the local Ursuline convent accused him of having bewitched them, sending the demon Asmodai, among others, to commit evil and impudent acts with them. Aldous Huxley, in his non fiction book, The Devils of Loudun, argued that the accusations began after Grandier refused to become spiritual director of the convent, unaware that the Mother Superior, Jeanne des Anges, had become obsessed with him after having seen him from afar and heard of his sexual exploits. According to Huxley, Mother Jeanne, enraged by his rejection, instead invited Canon Jean Mignon, an enemy of Grandier, to become the director. Jeanne then accused Grandier of using black magic to seduce her. The other nuns gradually began to make similar accusations. However, Monsieur des Niau, Counsellor at la Flèche, said that Grandier applied for the position, but that it was instead awarded to Canon Jean Mignon,

Grandier had gained the enmity of the powerful Cardinal Richelieu, the chief minister of France. In its continuing efforts to consolidate and centralize power, the Crown had ordered the walls around Loudun to be demolished. The populace were of two minds concerning this, whether to keep the wall or rely on the central government for protection. Grandier supported those who wished to retain the walls. In addition, not only had Grandier written a book attacking the discipline of clerical celibacy, he had also penned a scathing satire on the cardinal. Around the time of the nuns' accusations, M. Jean de Laubardemont, a relative of the Mother Superior of the convent of Loudun, was sent to demolish the town tower. He was prevented from doing so by the town militia, and upon returning to Paris reported on the state of affairs in Loudun including the recent disturbance at the Ursuline convent. In November 1633, Laubardemont was commissioned to investigate the matter. Grandier was arrested and confined to the prison at Angers. Laubardemont returned to Paris, where letters in support of Grandier from the Bailly of Loudun to the Procurator General of the Parliament, stating that the possession was an "imposture", were intercepted. In his Treatise, it is stated that the causes of the injustice committed at Loudun were a mixture of political ambition, the need for attention, and a basic desire to dispose of political opponents. The Loudun affair took place in the reign of Louis XIII; Cardinal Richelieu is accused of having caused this tragedy, in order to ruin Grandier, the Curé of Loudun, for having written a cutting satire against him.

An 18th century book written by historian Nicholas Aubin contains his findings on the Devils of Loudun. The book is titled, "The Cheats and Illusions of Romish Priests and Exorcists Discovered in the History of the Devils of Loudun." Grandier's trials were the subject of two treatments by Alexandre Dumas, père: an entry in volume four of his Crimes Célèbres (1840) and a novel, Urbain Grandier (1850). The French historian Jules Michelet discussed Grandier in a chapter of La Sorcière (1862). The Swedish author Eyvind Johnson based his 1949 novel Drömmar om rosor och eld on Grandier and the Loudun possessions. The same subject was revisited in the book length essay The Devils of Loudun, by Aldous Huxley, published in 1952. Huxley's book was adapted for the stage in 1961 by John Whiting (commissioned by the Royal Shakespeare Company). The play was adapted for the movie screen by Ken Russell in 1971 (as The Devils). The novel was also adapted for the opera stage in 1969 by Krzysztof Penderecki (as Die Teufel von Loudun). It was also an inspiration for Matka Joanna od Aniołów (Mother Joan of the Angels) – a film by Jerzy Kawalerowicz after the story ("Matka od Aniołów|Mother Joan of the Angels") by Jarosław Iwaszkiewicz. Grandier is the subject of "Grandier's Funeral Pyre", a song by Elvenking off the album The Pagan Manifesto (2014). Grandier is also the subject of the song "Devils" by the pagan rock band Inkubus Sukkubus from their 1993 album Wytches. Florida death metal band Morbid Angel used Grandier's life as one of the main themes for their album Covenant. The Loudun possessions and Grandier's trial are the subject of Les brasiers ne s'éteignent jamais ("The Braziers Never Go Out") by Michel Gaudo, an adventure module for the French horror RPG Malefices. Learning about the historical case helps the investigators solve the mystery. Grandier is portrayed by Oliver Reed in the 1971 Ken Russell film The Devils.