Barthelemy de Chasseneuz Defends Rats

In early 16th-century France, villagers brought a group of rats to trial for destroying their barley crops and summoned them before the court. The animals received a formal legal defense from Barthélemy de Chasseneuz, a young lawyer who argued that the rats could not appear because traveling to court was dangerous due to the presence of cats. His clever procedural arguments led the court to drop the case, giving the rats a rare legal victory.

Previous Fact Next Fact