Louis XIV took the scandal very seriously. He appointed a special court, the Chambre Ardente, to investigate. Dozens of people were arrested, tortured, and many were executed. La Voisin herself was burned at the stake in 1680. Some of the accused were linked to high-profile individuals. The case raised suspicions about Madame de Montespan, the k

Despite the outward splendor, Louis XIV’s court was notorious for secrets, conspiracies, and especially for a notorious scandal involving poison that terrified the aristocracy and cast a shadow over the reign. The Affair of the Poisons (1677–1682) The most infamous episode was the "Affair of the Poisons" (L’Affaire des Poisons), a scandal t

King Louis XIV of France, often called the Sun King, is one of the most famous and longest-reigning monarchs in European history. His rule, from 1643 to 1715, marked the height of absolute monarchy and French cultural dominance in Europe. However, beneath the grandeur of his court at the Palace of Versailles lurked a darker side—tales of poison,

The epithet “sorrowful poet” reflects both the melancholic tone of Lucretius’s work and the tragic dimensions of his philosophical quest. His poetry is suffused with a sense of human vulnerability, the inevitability of death, and the fleeting nature of happiness. Yet, it is also a poem of hope—a hope that understanding the natural world can