How difficult it is sometimes to understand the motives of other people's actions, especially if it is a brutal murder. And if this murder was committed by two respectable girls, about whom everyone around spoke only positively. In the 1930s of the last century, France was in shock and bewilderment: how could this happen? The story of the murder of mother and daughter is the terrible story of the Papin sisters.
Where is everyone?
On the late evening of February 2, 1933, the policemen who arrived at the house on the Rue Bruyère on the call of the lawyer Monsieur Lancelin were ready for a lot. But even the battered law enforcement officers were amazed by what they saw.
It all started with the fact that Mr. Lancelin, approaching his house, got worried, not seeing the light and movement in the windows. "Where is the wife and daughter, where are the servants?" – restless thoughts rushed about. Noticing the flickering flame of a candle on the second floor, which quickly went out, he assumed the worst: thieves got into the house. Monsieur Lancelin's annoyance was intensified by the fact of the forgotten keys of the house, and the loud blows of his fist on the dooronly silence answered. In anxiety, he ran to his brother-in-law - perhaps his wife and daughter could be there, but they were not there. Returning to the house with a relative, the lawyer called the police.
Breaking down the door, the guards carefully began to inspect the house. The ominous atmosphere was exacerbated by the lack of electricity in the house and complete silence. In the dim light of flashlights, an eerie sight appeared before the police as they climbed the steps. At first, the light of a flashlight caught what looked like an eye. Looking closer, the gendarme realized that it was indeed a human eye torn from its socket.
We were waiting for you
A chill ran down the back of the policeman, he understood that nothing good awaited him further. In the chaotic dance of the light of a small flashlight, he saw the body of a woman lying on her back, and nearby was the corpse of a young girl. The bodies were mutilated, there were puddles and splashes of blood everywhere, a lot of blood, and three eyes were lying around. The policeman shouted at Monsieur Lancelin not to follow him, he wanted to save the lawyer from a terrible sight. He had to shout several times to let the people around him know that something terrible had happened in the house.
But where are the servants? Where are the girls who didn't leave the house even on holidays? Maybe they were killed too? Assuming such an outcome of events, the policeman began to inspect the rooms on the second floor. Pushing open the door of the servants' room, he saw in the darkness two female figures lying on the bed. Having illuminated the bed, the gendarme realized that the girls were alive and did not suffer. At sightpolice officers, the youngest of the girls said quietly: “It was we who killed them. It’s better for them …”And the eldest added:“We were waiting for you. They were the Papin sisters.
On trial
The story of the murder of hostesses by servants stirred up the whole of France. The case received huge publicity. It was impossible to get to the court session, literally crowds of people wanted to be present during the judicial investigation. In order not to turn the court into a farce, it was decided to restrict access to the courtroom only for participants in the process.
The judge looked at the Papen sisters: modest, at first glance, decent girls, dressed in simple clothes, and confessed to such an atrocity. The interrogation of the injured Monsieur Lancelin, whose wife and daughter were killed, showed that in seven years of work he did not notice anything bad for the sisters. Quiet, hardworking, decent girls lived modestly, did not meet guys, spent holidays and weekends in their room. Only went to church on Sundays, that's all.
What the sisters said
Everyone was worried about what Leah and Christina Papen would say. How will they explain their actions? From the story of the girls appeared the following picture. Due to a power outage, there was no light in the house that evening, so the sisters, after finishing work, went to their rooms and went to bed. A little later, the hostesses returned to the house: mother and daughter Lancelin. The eldest, Christina, threw on her nightgown and ran out to meet Madame, whom she ran into on the stairs.
An unpleasant conversation took place between them: the hostess scolded Christina. Then the girl grabbed a pewter jar andhit Madame Lancelin on the head. Genevieve Lancelin rushed up the stairs to help her mother. Christina hit her too, and then with her bare hands tore out the eyes of the young mistress. The youngest, Leia, ran up to the noise and joined in the beating of the already mortally wounded victims. In a fit of rage, Leia tore out Madame Lancelin's eyes and finished her off with the same jug. After that, both sisters brought a knife, scissors, a hammer and abused the lifeless bodies. The massacre took half an hour, after which they washed off the blood, went to bed and waited for the police.
Why did you do it?
The judge was interested in the motive for the murder. What made previously unconvicted girls commit such an atrocity. But neither Leia nor Christina gave an intelligible answer. Leading questions that maybe they were treated badly, paid little, mocked them, also did not shed light on the reason for the murder. The family of the lawyer Lancelin treated the servants well, paid a decent salary: the Papen sisters even saved up a decent amount.
To all the judge's questions about the motive for the crime, Leia and Christina remained silent, lowering their eyes to the floor. Also, to the question of the judge, “Why did Madame Lancelin scold Christina?” there was also no answer. The cryptic words that Leia said to the police on the day of the crime ("They will be better off") only aggravated the situation.
Crime of the Papin sisters
The investigation turned to the identity of the killers. All previous employers and Monsieur Lancelin himself gave only positive feedback. And then the court drew attention to the strong attachment of the sisters. They were alwaystogether, even slept in the same bed. Haven't dated any of the guys. After the murder, the police found them naked in bed. And also the strange behavior of the older sister in prison, which resembled a sexual breakdown. Christina demanded a meeting with her younger sister, and when she was brought in, she attacked her and began to caress her shamelessly. The guards had to take Leia to the cell. At the same time, Christina shouted: “Give me back my husband!” Christina called her sister her husband.
To the direct question of the judge about whether the sisters are in a sexual relationship, Christina vehemently denied, and Leia was silent. It is significant that this pair was dominated by the older sister, Christina, who had a strong and excitable character. She subjugated her younger sister, who was weak and driven. Therefore, there were suspicions that Christina was suffering from some kind of mental illness that could rationally explain such a brutal murder.
Doctor's testimony
The expert at the trial was Dr. Schwarzimmer, a well-known psychiatrist. He dismissed all the defense's assumptions about the insanity of the sisters due to mental pathologies. He stated that both Papen sisters are mentally he althy, with preserved intelligence and can be held criminally liable under article 64 of the criminal code.
Requests from the defense to appoint an independent examination by the court were not satisfied. The court also did not take into account the testimony of Dr. Logr, who did not agree with Dr. Schwarzimmer. He argued that tearing out the eyes of the victim is an indicator of the strongest sexual impulse, which found an outlet in sadism. He insistedon the study of the previous life of the accused. And when sentencing, he asked to take into account the psychological trauma received in childhood.
Apple from apple tree
The biography of the Papen sisters is a common story of children from a dysfunctional family. The father is an alcoholic, the mother was a windy woman who liked to take a walk on the side, and one day she completely disappeared. The girls were brought up by relatives, and then - in shelters. In addition, in front of their eyes, their father raped their older sister Emily when she was 11 years old. No one loved or protected them. Nobody developed them. Sisters from childhood were not needed by anyone. Therefore, their affection for each other is understandable.
The biography of Christina and Leia Papin and the family is typical even today. All modern orphanages are filled with children from dysfunctional families, where the history of parents is almost the same: alcoholism, prostitution, pedophilia and complete indifference to the needs of children. Growing up in such a family and not getting psychological trauma that will lead to moral ugliness is almost impossible. Therefore, Daddy's sisters have a very revealing story.
Sentence
The trial lasted several hours, after which the verdict was pronounced. Christina was convicted of two murders and sentenced to death by guillotine. Leah was convicted of the murder of Madame Lancelin and sentenced to 10 years in prison and 20 years in exile. The story of the famous Papen sisters does not end there. Later, Christine's death pen alty was commuted to life imprisonment. But three years later she diedin a psychiatric clinic from physical exhaustion: she refused food due to the fact that she was separated from her sister.
Leah was released after eight years for good behavior. She found her mother and settled with her in the provinces, where she took a job as a maid in a hotel, but under a different surname. Leia did not marry, lived a quiet life and died just as quietly.
Secret of sisters
The biography of Christina and Leia Papin stirred up society in 1933 and is still interesting because the motive for the murder has not been voiced. But assumptions are still under construction. It is important for people to understand how a lamb turns into a monster, what pushes it? The art world also did not remain indifferent, and works were created based on this story. In Jacques Genet's one-act play The Maids by the writer Jacques Genet, the author made an attempt to explain the reason why quiet maids can kill their masters: envy, hatred and repressed desires.
Psychoanalysts tried to explain the special cruelty of the Papen sisters with the paranoid psychosis of the older sister. Perhaps Madame Lancelin caught the sisters in a sinful relationship and threatened to expose her, after which Christina, in a fit of anger and rage, killed her, and her sister fell under the influence of these strong emotions and helped her in the crime. However, these are just assumptions, and only four knew what really happened: the victims and the killers. But the sisters took their secret to the grave.
