Charenton (asylum)
Encyclopedia
Charenton was a lunatic asylum
, founded in 1645 by the Frères de la Charité in Charenton-Saint-Maurice, now Saint-Maurice
, Val-de-Marne
, France
.
Charenton was known for its humanitarian treatment of patients, especially under its director the Abbé de Coulmier
in the early 19th century.
Famous prisoners were held in the Charenton asylum including Latude, the Comte de Sanois and Marquis de Sade
(from 1801 until his death in 1814 at the age of 74).
The noted Belgian-born musicologist and composer Jérôme-Joseph de Momigny
also died at the Charenton asylum, in 1842. The caricaturist
André Gill
died there in 1885. The mathematician André Bloch
spent the last three decades of his life there.
Today, the psychiatric hospital is known as the Esquirol Hospital (l'Hôpital Esquirol), after Jean-Étienne Dominique Esquirol
who directed the institution in the 19th century. The architect of the 1845 structure was Émile Gilbert
.
Psychiatric hospital
Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental hospitals, are hospitals specializing in the treatment of serious mental disorders. Psychiatric hospitals vary widely in their size and grading. Some hospitals may specialise only in short-term or outpatient therapy for low-risk patients...
, founded in 1645 by the Frères de la Charité in Charenton-Saint-Maurice, now Saint-Maurice
Saint-Maurice, Val-de-Marne
Saint-Maurice is a commune in the southeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. The insane asylum Charenton was located in Saint-Maurice; it is now a psychiatric hospital.-History:...
, Val-de-Marne
Val-de-Marne
Val-de-Marne is a French department, named after the Marne River, located in the Île-de-France region. The department is situated to the southeast of the city of Paris.- Geography :...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
Charenton was known for its humanitarian treatment of patients, especially under its director the Abbé de Coulmier
Abbé de Coulmier
François Simonet de Coulmier was a French Catholic priest and abbot, and the director of the Charenton insane asylum in France in the early 19th century...
in the early 19th century.
Famous prisoners were held in the Charenton asylum including Latude, the Comte de Sanois and Marquis de Sade
Marquis de Sade
Donatien Alphonse François, Marquis de Sade was a French aristocrat, revolutionary politician, philosopher, and writer famous for his libertine sexuality and lifestyle...
(from 1801 until his death in 1814 at the age of 74).
The noted Belgian-born musicologist and composer Jérôme-Joseph de Momigny
Jérôme-Joseph de Momigny
Jérôme-Joseph de Momigny was a Belgian/French composer and music-theorist.He was born in Philippeville, Belgium, and composed music and wrote books, which he printed himself. He was very good at writing poetry and other types of books.His theories about rhythm and musical phrasing were ahead of...
also died at the Charenton asylum, in 1842. The caricaturist
Caricature
A caricature is a portrait that exaggerates or distorts the essence of a person or thing to create an easily identifiable visual likeness. In literature, a caricature is a description of a person using exaggeration of some characteristics and oversimplification of others.Caricatures can be...
André Gill
André Gill
André Gill was a French caricaturist. Born Louis-Alexandre Gosset de Guînes at Paris, the son of the Comte de Guînes and Sylvie-Adeline Gosset, he studied at this city's Academy of Fine Arts. He adopted the pseudonym André Gill in homage to his hero, James Gillray. Gill began illustrating for...
died there in 1885. The mathematician André Bloch
André Bloch (mathematician)
André Bloch was a Jewish-French mathematician who is best remembered for a result called Bloch's theorem. Bloch was institutionalized in a mental asylum for thirty-one years of his life, during which all of his mathematical output was produced.- Early life :Bloch was born in 1893 in Besançon,...
spent the last three decades of his life there.
Today, the psychiatric hospital is known as the Esquirol Hospital (l'Hôpital Esquirol), after Jean-Étienne Dominique Esquirol
Jean-Étienne Dominique Esquirol
Jean-Étienne Dominique Esquirol was a French psychiatrist.Born and raised in Toulouse, Esquirol completed his education at Montpellier...
who directed the institution in the 19th century. The architect of the 1845 structure was Émile Gilbert
Émile Gilbert
Émile-Jacques Gilbert was a French architect.In 1838 Gilbert was commissioned to reconstruct the hospital for the insane at Charenton along modern more humane lines recommended by Jean-Étienne Dominique Esquirol; the new structure was completed in 1845...
.
See also
- Marat/SadeMarat/SadeThe Persecution and Assassination of Jean-Paul Marat as Performed by the Inmates of the Asylum of Charenton Under the Direction of the Marquis de Sade , almost invariably shortened to Marat/Sade, is a 1963 play by Peter Weiss...
, a play by Peter WeissPeter WeissPeter Ulrich Weiss was a German writer, painter, and artist of adopted Swedish nationality. He is particularly known for his plays Marat/Sade and The Investigation and his novel The Aesthetics of Resistance....
set at Charenton and featuring Coulmier and de Sade. - QuillsQuillsQuills is a 2000 period film directed by Philip Kaufman and adapted from the Obie award-winning play by Doug Wright, who also wrote the original screenplay. Inspired by the life and work of the Marquis de Sade, Quills re-imagines the last years of the Marquis' incarceration in the insane asylum at...
, a film set at Charenton and featuring Coulmier and de Sade.