Insanity in Calvin's Geneva

Welcome to "Really Calvin, is this an ideal life? A historical podcast." In today's episode, we delve into the complex world of mental illness in 16th-century Geneva under Calvin's leadership. The Council of Geneva's archives reveal a nuanced approach to managing madness, with authorities distinguishing between local residents and foreigners. The city's response varied depending on the individual's behavior, particularly whether they were calm or disruptive to public order.

Through compelling cases like those of Nicolas de Mollie, Claude Sautier, and Benoîte Jaccon, we'll explore the challenges faced by both authorities and families in dealing with mental illness. This episode sheds light on how religion and social norms shaped the perception and treatment of madness in Calvin's Geneva, offering a fascinating glimpse into a lesser-known aspect of life during the Reformation era.

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This historical popularization podcast is developed as part of the interdisciplinary project entitled "A semantic and multilingual online edition of the Registers of the Council of Geneva / 1545-1550" (RCnum) and developed by the University of Geneva (UNIGE), as part of funding from the Swiss National Scientific Research Fund (SNSF). For more information: https://www.unige.ch/registresconseilge/en.

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