When Courts Prosecuted Animals | Tales From the Bottle

Added: 2026-05-10

[00:00:02]In 1457 in France, 5-year-old Jahan Marton was found dead and partially eaten by a pig. The SA's six piglets were also discovered to be covered in blood and as such were placed alongside their mother on trial for murder. Animal trials occurred across Europe from the 13th to the 18th century as hundreds of surviving accounts attest, mostly from France. It's unknown if this is because the French were particularly ligious when it came to their non-human neighbors or they were just more meticulous in keeping records than everyone else. And even though there are more than enough records to tell us legal trials of animals did really occur, there's not a huge amount of information detailing how they fit into the legal frameworks of the time. Were animal trials impromptu events held on the discretion of local authorities, or was this a wellestablished practice? Did they occur all over the place or only in places where people who thought it was a good idea had power? In the places they did occur, was it common place or an unusual event? It's really unknown. But in the cases we know about, the proceedings seem to have been treated seriously enough to suggest there was an accepted precedent and animals could expect the same treatment a human might receive from the legal system. The murderous mother pig was found guilty of killing Jan Marton and sentenced to be hanged by the hind feet to a gallows tree, which assumably preceded a particularly humiliating time to be executed. However, the defense for the six piglets argued that there had been no direct proof of the piglets engaging in the eating of the child and their presence at the scene of the crime was attributable to their young age, incapable of straying from the bad influence of their mother. The pigs were restored to their owner, but in a following procedure 3 weeks later, it was put to him that he would be fined should any further evidence incriminate the piglets in the crime or should they engage in any crimes in the future. The owner would not speak to the good character of the piglets and denied responsibility for them, seemingly himself suspicious of their moral uprightness. Ownership of them was therefore passed to a local noble lady.

[00:02:16]There are quite a number of records of pigs engaging in infanticide and being sentenced to execution for their efforts. In 1394, a pig was hanged in France after being convicted of sacriiggiously eating a consecrated wafer intended for holy communion.

[00:02:31]Usually crimes committed by pigs, cows, dogs, etc. were triled in secular courts because these were domesticated animals understood to be under the control of man. But some crimes and some criminals especially were considered matters for a higher power and were handled by ecclesiastical courts. In 1474 Switzerland, a rooster was sentenced to be burned at the stake for the heinous and unnatural crime of laying an egg.

[00:02:59]It's thought this may have just been a chicken that developed male plumage, as can happen with rare medical conditions in poultry. But to the court, a rooster laying an egg was a sign of witchcraft.

[00:03:11]the work of Satan.

[00:03:15]The rooster was burned alongside his egg. But many cases heard in church courts centered around beasts that could not easily be brought to heal by man.

[00:03:26]Pests, vermin, and creepy crawies bringing plague and destroying crops couldn't be meaningfully punished by any judge except for the judge. Sentences in these trials often involved church rituals, exorcisms, and incantations. A guilty party may have first found itself receiving mercy in the form of exile or banishment, which bizarrely was a fairly common punishment in animal trials. But if a pest refused to honor its exile, it could expect the full wrath of God.

[00:03:59]Jesus did once curse a fruitless fig tree, so perhaps that's fair enough.

[00:04:04]French jurist Bartel de Shazanuz made a name for himself in one such case against rats. In the early 1500s, the French province had its barley crop ravaged by rats who were then formally presented with a summons from the magistrate, citing the defendants to appear on a certain date and appointing the Shazanuz to defend them. The Shazunus formally objected to this action, pointing out that as the many defendants were spread across numerous villages all over the province, a single summon was legally insufficient to properly notify the rats. This appeal was successful and a second citation was displayed in every parish affected. The authorities also made sure to give the rats ample time to learn of their summons and get their affairs in order for the journey to court. On the day of the trial, the rats surprisingly did not show up. the craven actions of the guilty. I knew it. Hang those bastards now. In a long speech to the court, the Shazanuz attempted to explain the defendant's absence by pointing out the arduous length and perilous difficulty of the journey for the tiny suspects during which they would be vulnerable to all manner of predator, not least of all the pet cats that roamed the villages of the region freely. In short, his clients feared for their lives. If a defendant is cited to appear at a place which he cannot safely come, he has the right to argue the citation. Since the court could not guarantee the rat's safety, it could not compel them to appear, whereupon the case could not proceed and was abandoned. Once again, information surrounding animal trials is limited.

[00:05:37]So, it's not really known what level of philosophical opposition to subjecting animals to legal proceedings they could not understand existed at the time.

[00:05:45]Obviously, somewhere along the line, this opposition increased dramatically, and today most people see no rationale in animal trials, explaining their disappearance from society. I have another video about Mary the elephant, who was executed for murder as recently as 1916. But this was done largely for spectacle and was not a genuine legal trial. Animals deemed incompatible with society are largely just killed nowadays. In a strange way, I guess you could argue that means we've gone backwards from a time when they got a fair trial and legal representation.

[00:06:19]Probably best not to think too hard about that. Instead, watch more of my videos and subscribe to see more in the future. You can join the channel membership to support me monetarily and gain some perks when you comment on my videos. And until next time, stay safe.

[00:06:35]In the places they did occur was a common place or an unusual event. I think he must be [ __ ] up at the end there and unusual event. The murderous mother pig was found guilty of killing Jan Mart and certain to be a there are quite a number of records of pigs engaging in infanticide and being sentenced to in 1394 a pig was hanged in France after being convicted of sacriiggiously eating a consecrated wafer intended for holy communion after being convicted of sacriiggiously eating a consecrated wafer intended for hydula.

[00:07:09]But many cases heard in church courts centered around beasts that man could not eat.

[00:07:17]That's not right.

[00:07:20]Jesus did once curse a figless fruit tree. What? No. A fruitless fig tree.

[00:07:27]Jesus did once curse a fruitless who were then formally presented with a summons from the magistr magistr.

[00:07:37]magistr um no in a long speech to the court they shaz attempted to explain the defendant's absence by pointing out the arduous length and perilous difficulty no hang those bastards Ow.