Tag: Animal Trials in Medieval Europe
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Medieval Europe Held Animal Trials in Courts of Law
In a surprising chapter of legal history, animals were put on trial for various offenses in medieval European courts of law from the 13th to 18th centuries. These peculiar proceedings took place in both secular and ecclesiastical courts, with the earliest documented case often cited as the execution of a pig in 1266 at Fontenay-aux-Roses,…