Christine and Léa Papin
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Léa and Christine Papin (left to right)
Christine Papin (8 March 1905 – 18 May 1937) and Léa Papin (15 September 1911 – 1982, or 24 July 2001) were two French sisters, live-in maids, who were convicted of murdering their employer's wife and daughter in Le Mans, France, on 2 February 1933. This incident had a significant influence on French intellectuals Jean Genet, Jean-Paul Sartre and Jacques Lacan, who sought to analyze it, and it was thought of by some as symbolic of class struggle. The case has formed the basis of a number of publications, plays and films as well as essays, spoken word, songs, and artwork.
Christine Papin, stated to be the main domineering influence
Christine and Léa had grown up in villages south of Le Mans. They grew up in an alcoholic household, abused by their father and neglected by their mother. They had an older sister, Emilia, who became a nun. Both of them spent time in institutions as a result of the breakdown of their parents' marriage. As they grew older, they worked as maids in various Le Mans homes, preferring, whenever possible, to work together.
From about 1926, they worked as live-in maids in the home of Monsieur René Lancelin, a retired solicitor, in Le Mans. The family was made up of his wife and adult daughter, who was still living with her parents (another daughter was married). The two maids were extremely quiet and retiring young women, who kept to themselves and appeared to have no interests but each other.
On 2 February 1933, Monsieur Lancelin was supposed to meet his wife and daughter for dinner at the home of a friend. When they did not turn up, he was concerned and went back to their home. He was unable to get into the house because the doors were locked on the inside, but he could see the glow of a candle through the window of the maids' room. He then went to the police and one of them got into the house by climbing over the back wall. Inside, he found the bodies of Madame Lancelin and her daughter. They had both been beaten to the point of being unrecognisable, and one of the daughter's eyes was on the floor nearby. Madame Lancelin's eyes had been gouged out and were found in the folds of the scarf around her neck. The two maids were found in their room upstairs, naked[1] in bed together. They confessed to killing the two women. The weapons used had been a kitchen knife, a hammer, and a pewter pot that had stood at the top of the stairs.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Léa and Christine Papin (left to right)
Christine Papin (8 March 1905 – 18 May 1937) and Léa Papin (15 September 1911 – 1982, or 24 July 2001) were two French sisters, live-in maids, who were convicted of murdering their employer's wife and daughter in Le Mans, France, on 2 February 1933. This incident had a significant influence on French intellectuals Jean Genet, Jean-Paul Sartre and Jacques Lacan, who sought to analyze it, and it was thought of by some as symbolic of class struggle. The case has formed the basis of a number of publications, plays and films as well as essays, spoken word, songs, and artwork.
Christine Papin, stated to be the main domineering influence
Christine and Léa had grown up in villages south of Le Mans. They grew up in an alcoholic household, abused by their father and neglected by their mother. They had an older sister, Emilia, who became a nun. Both of them spent time in institutions as a result of the breakdown of their parents' marriage. As they grew older, they worked as maids in various Le Mans homes, preferring, whenever possible, to work together.
From about 1926, they worked as live-in maids in the home of Monsieur René Lancelin, a retired solicitor, in Le Mans. The family was made up of his wife and adult daughter, who was still living with her parents (another daughter was married). The two maids were extremely quiet and retiring young women, who kept to themselves and appeared to have no interests but each other.
On 2 February 1933, Monsieur Lancelin was supposed to meet his wife and daughter for dinner at the home of a friend. When they did not turn up, he was concerned and went back to their home. He was unable to get into the house because the doors were locked on the inside, but he could see the glow of a candle through the window of the maids' room. He then went to the police and one of them got into the house by climbing over the back wall. Inside, he found the bodies of Madame Lancelin and her daughter. They had both been beaten to the point of being unrecognisable, and one of the daughter's eyes was on the floor nearby. Madame Lancelin's eyes had been gouged out and were found in the folds of the scarf around her neck. The two maids were found in their room upstairs, naked[1] in bed together. They confessed to killing the two women. The weapons used had been a kitchen knife, a hammer, and a pewter pot that had stood at the top of the stairs.
