The Femme Fatale & The French President

This is the story of Marguerite Steinheil, the woman who shook Paris at the turn of the 20th century with one scandal after the next…one of which involving the French president apparently dying in the midst of a sex act.Marguerite is an ambitious woman, but being born into a middle-class family and trapped in a marriage with a failed artist 20 years her senior, she knows her life choices are limited.So how did Marguerite, who became known as ‘the Red Widow’, find herself at the centre of a scandal (and it’s not even the one involving the president) with both her husband and mother dead?Author Sarah Horowitz joins Kate Betwixt the Sheets to share Marguerite’s story.You can find out more about Sarah’s book here.*WARNING There are adult themes and explicit descriptions about sex and death in this episode. *Produced by Charlotte Long and Sophie Gee. Mixed by Annie Coloe.Betwixt the Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal & Society. A podcast by History Hit. This episode includes music by Epidemic Sound.

Om Podcasten

Why did kings and queens have spectators on their wedding night? Who had the very first boob job? And did our ancestors have their unmentionables pierced?Join historian, Kate Lister, Betwixt the Sheets as she unashamedly roots around the topics which seem to have been skipped in history class.Everything from landmark LGBTQ+ court cases, to political scandal, to downright bizarre medieval cures for impotence. The etymology of swear words, gender bias in medicine, and satanic panic and cults - there’s nothing off limits.She'll be bed-hopping around different time periods; from ancient civilisations, to the middle ages, to renaissance and early modern...right up to now.You’ll laugh, you’ll wince, and you’ll ask yourself how much has actually changed.So join Kate Betwixt the Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal & Society - a podcast from History Hit.Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Get a subscription for £1 per month for 3 months with code BETWIXT sign up at historyhit.com/subscribe.You can take part in our listener survey here.