Posted on July 19, 2022 (Updated 07/19)
By Laura Salamon
The Jean-Jaurès museum in Castres (Tarn) is presenting an exhibition on “The Sirven affair” until September 18.
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The Jean-Jaurès museum in Castres, in the Tarn, is exhibiting “The Sirven Affair” until September 18. As in the better known Calas affair, Voltaire intervenes to defend a Protestant. Pierre-Paul Sirven, a Protestant land surveyor from Castres, is accused of the murder of his daughter Elisabeth, who was found dead in a well in January 1762. However, Elisabeth, who had neurological disorders, had been taken from her family and taken to a convent. Catholic. The aim was to put pressure on these Protestants to convert. Sentenced to death for this murder, Pierre-Paul Sirven fled to Switzerland with his family. Voltaire will defend the man and obtain the cancellation of his conviction in 1771. The exhibition presents unpublished documents and was produced in partnership with the Museum of Protestantism in Ferrières.
L . S .
“The Sirven Affair” at Jean-Jaures museum in Castres (Tarn), until September 18
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