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Martin Daguerre was born around 1524 in the Basque town of Hendaye. In 1527, his family left Hendaye and settled in the Pyrenean village Artigat in southwestern France, where they changed their name to Guerre. When he was about fourteen years old, he was married to Bertrande, daughter of a well-off family. For eight years, the marriage remained childless, then a son was born. After having been accused of stealing grain from his father, he abruptly left his family in 1548 without leaving a trace. Catholic law governing France did not allow his abandoned wife to remarry (unlike the law of the Protestants, who were slowly gaining ground).
In the summer of 1556, a man appeared in Artigat, claiming to be Martin Guerre. He looked similar and knew many details of Martin Guerre's life and so managed to convince most villagers, his uncle, Martin Guerre's four sisters and Bertrande that he was indeed the true Martin Guerre, though doubts about his appearance remained. The "new" Martin lived for three years with Bertrande and her son, and the two had two daughters together, with one surviving. He claimed the inheritance of Guerre's father, who had since died, and he even sued Guerre's uncle, Pierre Guerre, for part of the inheritance.
Pierre Guerre, who had earlier married Bertrande's widowed mother during Martin Guerre's absence, then became suspicious again. He and his wife tried to convince Bertrande that the new Martin was an impostor. A soldier who passed through Artigat claimed that the new Martin Guerre was a fraud: the real one had lost a leg in the war. Pierre even tried to kill the new Martin, but Bertrande intervened.
In 1559, the new Martin was accused of arson and also of impersonating Martin Guerre; Bertrande remained on his side and he was acquitted in 1560.
In the meantime, Pierre Guerre had asked around and believed to have found the true identity of the impostor: Arnaud du Tilh, a man with a poor reputation from the nearby village Sajas . Pierre then initiated a new case against the man by falsely claiming to act in Bertrande's name. He and his wife, Bertrande's mother, then pressured Bertrande to support the charge, and eventually she obliged.
In 1560, the case was tried in Rieux . Bertrande testified that at first she had honestly believed the man to be her husband, but that she had since realized that he was a fraud. Both Bertrande and the accused independently related an identical story about their intimate life from before 1548. The new Martin then challenged her: if she would swear that he was not her husband, he would gladly agree to be executed--Bertrande remained silent. After hearing more than 150 witnesses, with many recognizing Martin Guerre (including his four sisters), many recognizing Arnaud du Tilh and many refusing to take a side, the accused impostor was sentenced to death.
He immediately appealed to the parliament in Toulouse. Bertrande and Pierre were arrested: Bertrande for possible adultery, Pierre for possible false accusation and soliciting perjury. The new Martin eloquently argued his case, and the judges in Toulouse tended to believe his version of the story: that Bertrande was pressured to perjury by the greedy Pierre Guerre. The accused had to undergo detailed questioning about his past; his statements were double checked and no contradictions were found. But then dramatically the true Martin Guerre appeared during the very trial, with a wooden leg. When asked about their past, the new Martin was able to answer some question better than the "old" one, who had forgotten several details. But when the two were presented to the Guerre family, the case was closed: Pierre, Bertrande, and Martin's four sisters all agreed that the old one was the true one. The impostor was convicted and sentenced to death for adultery and fraud; the public sentencing on September 12, 1560, during which the accused maintained his innocence, was attended by the young Montaigne. Afterwards, Arnaud du Tilh confessed: he had learned about Guerre's life after two men confused him with Guerre, and he had then decided to take Guerre's place, with two conspirators helping him with the details. He begged for forgiveness and was hanged in front of Martin Guerre's house in Artigat four days later.
Pierre Guerre and Bertrande were set free; the judges believed that Bertrande was indeed honestly defrauded by Arnaud du Tilh.