AdamRed222
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The Angel Makers of Nagyrev were a group of 26 women and two men from the village of Nagyrev, Hungary, who were suspected of poisoning a confirmed 45–50 people, but the number of victims could be as high as 300.
Firstly, it is important to understand the context at the time. During the First World War, many Hungarian men from the village of Nagyrev went and joined the Austro-Hungarian army. The village would later become a prisoner-of-war camp, and it hosted a large number of soldiers who fought in the Triple Entente. The women of the village took advantage of this and started to have affairs with the prisoners. However, problems arose when the Hungarian men of the village started to return home. In response, a midwife who lived in the village, Zsuzsanna Fazekas, started persuading women who wished to escape this situation to poison their husbands using arsenic made by boiling flypaper and skimming off the lethal residue. Some women even went as far as to poison their parents, lovers or sons. Eventually, the crimes were exposed, but there are differing accounts on how they were exposed. One account states that one of the Angel Makers, Szabo, was caught in the act by two visitors. She blamed another woman, who then pointed the finger at Fazekas. Another account states that it was an anonymous letter to a local newspaper which revealed the crimes.
Ultimately, 28 suspects were arrested and put on trial. 6 of the women were sentenced to death, but only 3 of them were executed. The other 3 had their sentences commuted. 8 of the women were sentenced to life imprisonment.
www.irishtimes.com
Firstly, it is important to understand the context at the time. During the First World War, many Hungarian men from the village of Nagyrev went and joined the Austro-Hungarian army. The village would later become a prisoner-of-war camp, and it hosted a large number of soldiers who fought in the Triple Entente. The women of the village took advantage of this and started to have affairs with the prisoners. However, problems arose when the Hungarian men of the village started to return home. In response, a midwife who lived in the village, Zsuzsanna Fazekas, started persuading women who wished to escape this situation to poison their husbands using arsenic made by boiling flypaper and skimming off the lethal residue. Some women even went as far as to poison their parents, lovers or sons. Eventually, the crimes were exposed, but there are differing accounts on how they were exposed. One account states that one of the Angel Makers, Szabo, was caught in the act by two visitors. She blamed another woman, who then pointed the finger at Fazekas. Another account states that it was an anonymous letter to a local newspaper which revealed the crimes.
Ultimately, 28 suspects were arrested and put on trial. 6 of the women were sentenced to death, but only 3 of them were executed. The other 3 had their sentences commuted. 8 of the women were sentenced to life imprisonment.
The story of the village where women poisoned their husbands
The Women’s Podcast with Róisín Ingle
