François Simonet de Coulmier (30 September 1741 – 4 June 1818) was a French

Catholic priest The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the Holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in layman's terms ''priest'' refers only ...

, originally a member of the Premonstratensian

canons regular Canons regular are priests who live in community under a rule ( and canon in greek) and are generally organised into religious orders, differing from both secular canons and other forms of religious life, such as clerics regular, designated by ...

, and an active member of the French legislature at the start of the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in coup of 18 Brumaire, November 1799. Many of its ...

and again during the

First French Empire The First French Empire, officially the French Republic, then the French Empire (; Latin: ) after 1809, also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental E ...

Life

Coulmier was born in

Dijon Dijon (, , ) (dated) * it, Digione * la, Diviō or * lmo, Digion is the prefecture of the Côte-d'Or department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in northeastern France. the commune had a population of 156,920. The earlies ...

in 1741. While serving as the pastor of Abbéville, he was elected as a representative of the

First Estate The estates of the realm, or three estates, were the broad orders of social hierarchy used in Christendom (Christian Europe) from the Middle Ages to early modern Europe. Different systems for dividing society members into estates developed and ...

in the Estates General, later serving in the National Constituent Assembly. It is not clear whether or not he was a part of the juring clergy, who swore to the Civil Constitution of the Clergy. He again served in the French legislature under

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

. After that period, Coulmier became the Director of the Charenton

insane asylum The lunatic asylum (or insane asylum) was an early precursor of the modern psychiatric hospital. The fall of the lunatic asylum and its eventual replacement by modern psychiatric hospitals explains the rise of organized, institutional psychiatry ...

, despite his lack of any professional degree in the field of medicine. He was often criticized by the medical establishment for his "overly liberal" methods of treatment, as he favored allowing patients the right to express themselves via art, and discouraged the widespread practices of physical restraint and punishment of asylum patients in that day. He did not believe in many of the treatment practices which are nowadays termed brutal, including locking patients in a wicker cage, as well as the use of straitjackets and dunking. He also employed treatments that at the time were considered quite advanced, including

diet Diet may refer to: Food * Diet (nutrition), the sum of the food consumed by an organism or group * Dieting, the deliberate selection of food to control body weight or nutrient intake ** Diet food, foods that aid in creating a diet for weight loss ...

bleeding Bleeding, hemorrhage, haemorrhage or blood loss, is blood escaping from the circulatory system from damaged blood vessels. Bleeding can occur internally, or externally either through a natural opening such as the mouth, nose, ear, urethra, vag ...

and purges. After

's fall and the restoration of the

Bourbons The House of Bourbon (, also ; ) is a European dynasty of French origin, a branch of the Capetian dynasty, the royal House of France. Bourbon kings first ruled France and Navarre in the 16th century. By the 18th century, members of the Spani ...

, Coulmier was relieved of his duties, probably because of his revolutionary past. Despite his significant contribution in the field of

mental health Mental health encompasses emotional, psychological, and social well-being, influencing cognition, perception, and behavior. It likewise determines how an individual handles stress, interpersonal relationships, and decision-making. Mental hea ...

, today Coulmier is known primarily for his interactions with the Marquis de Sade, having been the asylum director when Sade was institutionalized. Coulmier provided Sade with writing supplies, permitted Sade's wife to live in the asylum, and allowed Sade to produce a play which featured other asylum residents as actors.

Fictional portrayals

In the film '' Quills'', Coulmier was portrayed by

Joaquin Phoenix Joaquin Rafael Phoenix (; né Bottom; born October 28, 1974) is an American actor. He is known for playing dark and unconventional characters in independent films. He has received various accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academ ...

; this drew criticism on the part of historians and disabled activists, as the real Coulmier was extremely short, and has been described as a

hunchback Kyphosis is an abnormally excessive convex curvature of the spine as it occurs in the thoracic and sacral regions. Abnormal inward concave ''lordotic'' curving of the cervical and lumbar regions of the spine is called lordosis. It can result ...

. Nor did he end up as a patient in the asylum himself. Coulmier was also represented in

Peter Weiss Peter Ulrich Weiss (8 November 1916 – 10 May 1982) was a German writer, painter, graphic artist, and experimental filmmaker of adopted Swedish nationality. He is particularly known for his plays ''Marat/Sade'' and ''The Investigation'' and hi ...

's 1963 play '' The 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'', and its 1967 film adaptation, ''

Marat/Sade ''The 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'' (german: Die Verfolgung und Ermordung Jean Paul Marats dargestellt durch die Schauspielgrupp ...

'', in which he is portrayed by

Clifford Rose John Clifford Rose (24 October 1929 – 6 November 2021) was a British actor. Life and career Rose was born in Herefordshire. He was educated at the King's School, Worcester, and King's College London, before appearing in rep and began his ass ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Coulmier, Francois Simonet de 1741 births 1818 deaths Clergy from Dijon Premonstratensians 18th-century French Roman Catholic priests 19th-century French Roman Catholic priests People of the French Revolution Heads of psychiatric hospitals Politicians from Dijon Physicians from Dijon