Convulsionaries

The tomb of a young Jansenist,* François de Paris, was the scene of a series of supposed miracles after 1727. Jansenists regarded them as a vindication of their cause, and thousands visited the cemetery of St. Medard. Ecstatic behavior led to the nickname “Convulsionaries,” and even after the cemetery was closed by the authorities, portions of earth from the graveyard induced the same results. The movement ended in discredit.