Marie Louise Mignot Marie Louise Mignot Marie Louise Mignot (1712–1790) was a French literary figure. She was the daughter of Voltaire's sister, Catherine Arouet (1686–1726) and her husband Pierre-François Mignot (d. 1737). After the death of her widowed father in 1737, Voltaire provided her with a dowry and she married army supply officer Nicolas-Charles Denis, giving rise to her married name of Madame Denis. After her husband's premature death in 1744, she was taken in by Voltaire and became his housekeeper, hostess and companion. She also adopted his protégée Reine Philiberte de Varicourt when the latter's marriage to the marquis de Villette foundered
Marie Besnard best writer. The 2006 television film "Marie Besnard, l'empoisonneuse" (Marie Besnard, the Poisoner), resulted in the 2007 Best Performance by an Actress Emmy Award for Muriel Robin in the title role. The English historian Richard Cobb presents a sympathetic portrait of Besnard in a lengthy essay in his book about French life, "A Second Identity" (1969). Marie Besnard Marie Besnard (15 August 1896 – 14 February 1980), also known as 'The Good Lady of Loudun', was accused serial poisoner in the mid-20th century. Besnard was first charged with multiple murder on July 21, 1949, under her maiden name, Marie Joséphine