Francis de Civille: Man Buried Alive Three Times

Being buried alive is one of humankind's most primitive fears, and for good reason. Premature burial is not and never was out of the realms of possibility, particularly in earlier ages when medical science relied more on sense than on science. Nowadays, the embalming of a future corpse will prevent the horrors of premature burial and the growing popularity of cremation makes absolutely certain that the deceased will indeed be deceased at the time of burial. But before these methods were commonly used, being buried alive wasn't all that unusual, at least not for Francis de Civille of Normandy.

Francis de Civille has the distinct pleasure of being the only man in history to be buried alive not once, not even twice, but three times. According to Jan Bondeson's book, "Buried Alive," Civille's he was first buried alive even before his birth, when his dead mother was interred while pregnant with him. His father had his mother exhumed and Francis was delivered by cesarean section, from the grave to the cradle. He went on to become an officer in the army and was wounded in battle at the siege of Rouen in 1563. He was thrown into a common grave, where he was presumed dead for seven hours. It was only when a servant dug him up to move him to a more fitting grave (or possibly to rob him of his jewelry) that Civille was found to be buried alive. He was given nourishment and during his slow recovery, the house where he was recuperating was raided by the enemy. Civille's body was thrown from a window, landing in a dung heap, where he stayed buried alive for three days without any aid or nourishment. When friends found him days later, he was again nursed back to health. He lived a long and healthy life after all of those premature burial shenanigans.

When Francis de Civille wasn't being buried prematurely, he enjoyed spending time with his family and serenading his wife, Jeanne. In fact, it is said that when he really did die, at the tender age of 105, it was after contracting a chill from "serenading the lady of his heart all night long." No one believed it, of course. They didn't bury him for three days, just to make sure he was dead.

He is buried in Milan, Italy, or at least he will be until he is dug up again and revived.

SOURCE: "Buried Alive: The Most Terrifying History of our Most Primal Fear" by Jan Bondeson, Copyright 2001,pg 26.