CURSED BY A WITCH

 

I first heard of Marie Pontonnier and Pierre Gadios being cursed by a witch in a fact based novel.  I later found many references about the event in other books about the early French settlers in Canada. Pierre Gadois was my 7^th great grand uncle, the son of Pierre Gadios 1694-1667 and Louise Mauger 1598-1690. He was born in 1661 in Basse-Normandie France and travelled to Montreal in New France and was an upstanding good man and alter attendant.  Marie Pontonnier was born in France in 1643 and went to New France as a Fille a Marier in 1656 at the age of 14.  She was first interested in a man named Rene Benard but was cautioned by her friends that Rene was not a good man. She then transferred her affections to Pierre, and they were married in 1657.  

Rene  was upset that he lost Marie, and he told her “If you marry Pierre I will put a curse on you. Never will you have children. The couple travelled to  Quebec to ask the bishop for advice, and Pierre was told to recite a Psalm backward during the ceremony. Pierre tried, but Rene was in the church silently mouthing the words of his curse.  He was escorted out but the damage was done.  The marriage could not be consummated.  Later he suggested to Marie that if she slept with him, he would remove the curse.

On November2, 1658 Rene appeared before the seignueral court of Montreal. Rene admitted telling Marie “that if she desired to allow him to derive pleasure from her, then it would follow that she would have pleasure with her husband.”  After lengthy interrogation under oath he admitted that he told Marie that he would remove the curse if she had sex with him.   Rene Benard was sentenced to time in prison, a fine of 300 livres and exile from Montreal for a distance of 30 leagues.  This did not solve the problem for Marie and Pierre, and after 3 years the marriage was annulled.

Marie married again, but while expecting her first child her spouse was slain by the Iroquois. She married again only to lose that spouse after 4 months.  Her third marriage fared better.  She was the mother to a total of 11 children.

Pierre was more reluctant to move on.  He waited over 3 years to marry, but he was blessed with 14 children, including several sets of twins. 

Although Salem was hanging witches at this time, Canada chose to banish them from the community. Rene settled in Trois Rivieres and joined church and civic groups.  He had several children.  But when he died in 1688 he was deeply in debt.