Descartes was 'poisoned by Catholic priest'
French philosopher was killed by arsenic-laced holy communion wafer after airing 'heretic' views, says academic
For more than three and a half centuries, the death of René Descartes one winter's day in Stockholm has been attributed to the ravages of pneumonia on a body unused to the Scandinavian chill. But in a book released after years spent combing the archives of Paris and the Swedish capital, one Cartesian expert has a more sinister theory about how the French philosopher came to his end.
From: Books: Books + News | guardian.co.uk
Sunday, 14 February, 2010
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