“We hereby make known by visiting in person the parish of the Holy Mary at Nantes, in which is built the house or château vulgarly called “la Suze,” the frequent habitation of Gilles de Retz hereinafter described, a parishioner of this church and of other parish churches designated further on. Upon public rumour and on the numerous reports that have come upon us by the denunciatory clamour of Agatha, wife of Denis de la Mignon; of Donété, widow of the defunct Regnaud Donété of St. Marie; of Jean Guibert and his wife of St. Vincent; of the widow Eonnet Kerguen of St. Croix, Nantes; of Jeanne, wife of Jean Darell of St. Similien near Nantes; of Theophanie, wife of Eonnet le Charpentier of St. Clement outside the walls; fortified by the depositions of the synodical witnesses of these churches and by men who, thanks to their probity and their well known prudence, are above suspicion, and who, in the course of our pastoral visit in the same churches, we ourselves have interrogated with the greatest care upon the facts below indicated, or of still others pertaining to the duty of the bishop in his pastoral visits, we have discovered, and the depositions of the witnesses have proved to us, among other things, that Gilles de Retz, our subject and justiciable, by himself or by certain men his accomplices, has strangled, killed, and inhumanly massacred a very large number of infants; that he has committed upon them crimes against nature; that he has made, or has caused to be made, numerous horrible invocations of demons; he has made to them sacrifices and offerings, and has passed a compact with them, without counting other crimes, numerous and enormous, all of which belong within our jurisdiction; and, finally, by several other visits made by us or by the Commissary acting in our name, we know that Gilles de Retz has perpetrated and committed these crimes and still others, within the limits of our diocese. “For which cause he was, and is now, and publicly for the knowledge of all, rendered infamous towards all grave and honest men. And to the end that no person shall have doubt upon this subject, we have ordained, or fixed, or caused to be fixed, our seal to these present letters. “Given at Nantes, the day before the last of July, in the year of our Lord, 1440. “By the command of Monseignior, Bishop of Nantes. (Signed) “J. PETIT.”