Procédure pour deux viols contre Jacquot Marchal en 1610 dans la prévôté d’Arches (Archives départementales de Meurthe-et-Moselle, B 2550)

In the 17th century, rapes are rarely recorded in judicial archives. These archives are almost the only source of information on rape. The act is seldom discussed elsewhere. As a crime, it is characterized by the scarcity of complaints, trials, and convictions. Any surviving record is important. This is what makes our case so significant. It has some unusual features. Jacquot Marchal attacked two women on a road and raped them both. The complaint was not filed by the women or their husbands, but by the priest, the brother of one of the victims. Without him, the victims might not have been heard. The judgment reveals the limitations of the law against rape.