She was a swordswoman who could beat three men at once, an opera singer with the greatest voice Louis XIV had ever heard, and a woman so fearless she broke into a convent, stole a dead nun's body, set the place on fire, and escaped with her lover. She was 17 at the time.

In this episode, Johnny Vaughan and Gavin "The Woodman" Woods tackle Julie D'Aubigny, the 17th-century French hell-raiser who seduced counts, outfought noblemen, and became one of the most extraordinary figures you've never heard of, all before dying at 33.

What You'll Hear in This Episode:

⚔️ Sword-fighting child prodigy. By 12, she was fencing grown men, and by 14, she was the mistress of the Count of Armagnac

🏃‍♀️ On the run: after her fencing instructor boyfriend killed a man, they fled Paris and toured France doing sword exhibitions by day and singing in taverns by night

🔥 The convent escape: body snatching, arson, a dead nun used as a decoy, and a plan that almost worked… almost

🎭 Opera stardom: spotted singing in a Marseille tavern like a French Elvis in King Creole, she became one of the most celebrated voices in Paris

💔 The love that ended it all: she stole the most beautiful woman in France from the king's own son, fled to Belgium, and never recovered when her lover died two years later

If you love outrageous true stories, legendary women, French chaos, duels, opera, and comedy podcasts, this episode of Bloomin' Legends is for you.

🎥 Watch the full episode now on the Bloomin' Legends YouTube channel!

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Produced by Ben Fairclough

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