E295: MURDER - To Die in a State of Grace

Fresh Hell Podcast

freshhellpodcast

True Crime, History

4.8 • 1.2K Ratings

🗓️ 5 September 2025

⏱️ 61 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In the 16th to 18th centuries, hundreds of people across Central Europe engineered their own executions in the hope of dying “in a state of grace.” Suicide was a mortal sin, but murder was a capital crime, and execution after confession was seen as a path to salvation. In this episode we discuss several real cases of so-called “suicide by proxy,” including Agnes Catherina Schickin in 1704, Eva Lizlfellnerin in 1762, and Ursula Waserin in 1723. We’ll look at how religion, law, and despair combined to create a tragic pattern of crimes that were all eerily similar, and ask why authorities took so long to shut down the deadly loophole.

If you or someone you know is struggling, please know you’re not alone. In the US, dial or text 988 for the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. In Canada, call 988. In the UK & Ireland, call 116 123 for Samaritans. In Austria, dial 142, and in Germany call 0800 111 0 111 or 0800 111 0 222. In Australia, call 13 11 14 for Lifeline. You can also find international resources at findahelpline.com.

The State of Grace, suicide by proxy, Agnes Catherina Schickin, Eva Lizlfellnerin, Ursula Waserin, 18th century crime, Central Europe history, Austria history, Württemberg history, religious history, capital punishment, public execution, state of grace, salvation, absolution, Fresh Hell Podcast

Transcript

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0:00.0	You are listening to the Fresh Hell podcast.
0:14.6	Fresh Hell contains stories of a disturbing and often graphic nature and is intended for a mature audience.
0:20.6	Please don't let your kids listen to this,
0:22.4	or they might turn out like us.
0:30.0	Hi, I'm Annie back in the U.S. And I'm Johanna, who never left Austria, and you're listening to
0:36.8	your favorite international podcast.
0:39.9	A podcast hosted by two women who've never met in real life, but have learned enough from each other to be very,
0:46.7	and I mean, very dangerous at trivia night.
0:51.1	Yeah, that's right. Look out. We are, we're every pub quiz is a nightmare. I had been quite cagey
0:57.7	about my whereabouts for a little bit because we went over to surprise Paul's aunt for her 80th
1:06.9	birthday. And it was absolutely amazing. We get to see so many family members that, to be
1:13.4	honest, we, we often only get to see them at memorial services, which is lovely and
1:20.5	and important, but sad. And so it was just so nice to gather for just such a joyous occasion,
1:26.7	see everybody. And then while we were there,
1:29.2	so Paul's aunt turned 80, and then my dad turned 82, and my late husband's dad turned 81,
1:37.6	and his wife turned 80. Just a great time. We didn't do much. We did, we had a few outings,
1:43.4	and I'm going to be sharing some pictures and videos, probably mostly in Patreon, a little bit on my Instagram. But for the most part, we were just sitting around and spending time with family, not really doing anything, which is about all I'm up for these days. But it was amazing. So that's why it was all a surprise. I couldn't mention
2:03.7	that we were coming over because she might have listened to an episode and spoiled the whole
2:08.8	thing. So that's where I've been, and I'm very happy to be back. And before we get into today's
2:16.2	episode, I want to send a quick thank you to all of our
2:19.4	newest Patreon supporters. They are Michelle Hoxie, Natalie McQuilkin, Dr. Robin Belamarek, Belamarek,
2:30.1	Rosa Egaday, and Kate Sander, Thank you all so very much. Thank you.
	...

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