Marguerite Zelie Aubry (née Deleau)

Marguerite Zelie Deleau was born in Glageon, in the Nord department of northern France, on 21 May 1872, the daughter of Adolphe Louis Deleau, a mason, and his wife Rose Pauline Morel.

Nothing is known of Marguerite’s early life, except that she had an older sister Marie Pauline who was born in Rouen in 1857 and lived in Paris.

Birth of a Son

By 1903 Marguerite was in London, where her first child, Roger, was born on 26^th June at 9 Goodge Street. Sadly Roger was born dumb and with mental health problems and was to spend most of his short life in asylums.

Roger’s birth record reveals that Marguerite had been working as a milliner’s assistant, and it may be that exposure to the mercury compounds used by milliners contributed to her future psychological problems (and possibly to her son’s birth defects).

By 1907 she had formed a relationship with Jean Baptiste Aubry, a French chef working in London, and a daughter (Marguerite Marie Jeanne) was born at 22 Edgeley Road, Clapham on 13 April.

Marguerite and Jean were married in 1908 but Marguerite’s behaviour soon became very erratic and in September of that year she was admitted to the Bethlem Hospital.

Bethlem Hospital

Extracts from the medical reports:

“She is very depressed and persists in the delusion that the nurses are going to kill her. She prays and screams at times – to be saved. She says ‘strange and very nasty” men have come to her house at night for the past month to annoy her but she cannot give any details concerning them. “

“Husband states that she imagines people want to kill her & fancies he may be connected with the Bloomsbury Murder.”

“She suspected everyone with whom she came in contact of being in league against her, being anxious to kidnap her. She was sure that her children’s milk had been tampered with in such a way as would affect them mentally. She accused her husband of crimes and said the house was watched so she should not approach the police.”

“Her husband tells me that she will not let him come into her room, that she lies awake and throughout the night would continually get up & rush to the window expecting to see the watchers or him departing.”

“Patient is rather below the average stature; but well built – though her face is thin. Small face & features, blue-grey eyes, russet hair & freckled complexion. She talks with a French accent. She lived most of her life in Normandy but went to Paris to stay with her sister & then got married. She has been in England about ten years. She is depressed & unnaturally anxious and nervous about her children. One of the children – a boy – is mentally deficient & is in Tooting Bec Asylum. The younger, a girl aged 18 mos., was born prematurely (8th month) & delicate. She is very suspicious of everyone including her husband – she has accused him of immorality & infidelity.”

Marguerite was discharged from the Bethlem Hospital – uncured – in April 1909 but less than a year later she was admitted to the asylum at Bexley, and from there she was transferred to the Manor Asylum.

The visitors’ book for Manor indicates that her husband Jean did visit her. At the time of his visit(s), he was living at 55 Studley Road, Clapham, London. In November 1919, a letter was returned from that address marked ‘gone away’. The address is crossed through and no new address is given.

Does this suggest that her husband did not make contact again before her death? The record also tells us that she was transferred from private class (to pauper class).