The Soap Maker of Correggio

(Trigger Warning: This blog post contains extremely disturbing and graphic descriptions of murder, dismemberment, and cannibalism. Reader discretion is strongly advised.)

This is the story of Leonarda Cianciulli, a woman whose name is synonymous with horror in Italian history. Her life, marked by abuse, tragedy, and a chilling belief in the occult, culminated in acts of unspeakable violence that continue to shock and disturb.

Leonarda was born in 1894 in Montella, Italy. Her childhood was a living nightmare. Her mother, Emilia, was a victim of rape, forced to marry her attacker. Leonarda's father, Mariano, was a violent alcoholic, creating a home filled with fear and abuse. Adding to the trauma, Leonarda suffered from epilepsy.

Even after her father's death and her mother's remarriage, the abuse persisted. At just 13, desperate for an escape, Leonarda attempted suicide – twice. Her mother's reaction was cold indifference. Marriage, she hoped, would offer a way out. In 1917, she married Raffaele Pansardi, a low-paid clerk. But her mother, believing he was beneath her daughter, disowned Leonarda and, according to Leonarda, placed a curse upon her.

Life seemed to go from bad to worse. Leonarda was imprisoned and fined for fraud, revealing a prior criminal record including theft and threatening someone with a dagger. After her release, they moved. Interestingly, she found a sense of community and solace with the Romani people, learning palm reading and fortune telling – skills that would later take a dark and sinister turn.

They eventually settled in Correggio. Leonarda opened a shop selling clothes and furniture, and cultivated an image of a wise, motherly figure. She was even described as a "fervent fascist." She welcomed people into her home, entertained them with stories, and offered them sweets. This seemingly idyllic domesticity masked a horrifying secret.

Over the course of her marriage, Leonarda endured immense personal tragedy. She became pregnant 17 times, but 13 of these pregnancies ended in miscarriage or the death of her newborns. This devastating loss deepened her belief in the family curse. She became obsessed with the occult, devouring books on palmistry, astrology, and spells, desperately searching for a way to protect her remaining children.

In 1937, her eldest son, Giuseppe, her favorite child, announced his enlistment in the army. With World War II on the horizon, Leonarda's fear reached a fever pitch. She became convinced that human sacrifice was the only way to ensure his safety. She claimed that the ghost of her mother appeared to her, instructing her to commit these horrific acts.

And so, she began her search for victims. She targeted lonely, older women in her community, preying on their vulnerabilities and offering false promises of companionship or assistance. Her first victim was 70-year-old Faustina Setti. Leonarda promised to find her a husband. She even wrote letters for Faustina, who was illiterate. Then, she laced wine with poison, killed Faustina with an axe, and dismembered her body. The details of what followed are truly gruesome. Leonarda dissolved the remains in caustic soda (which she had bought, ironically, to make soap), and then, in an act of unimaginable depravity, used the victim's blood to bake cakes. These cakes, she then served to unsuspecting visitors, including her own son, Giuseppe.

A year later, believing she needed more sacrifices to protect all her children, she claimed two more lives: Francesca Suavi, a kindergarten teacher, and Virginia Cacioppo, a 59-year-old widow and former singer. The pattern was the same: lies, murder, dismemberment. This time, she received money for her "services" to Suavi. Giuseppe even helped by sending letters on behalf of the victims. Francesca Suavi had confided in a neighbor about her plans, but with the backdrop of the war, her disappearance went unnoticed at first.

For her final victim, Virginia Cacioppo, Leonarda received a substantial sum of money and jewels. The pattern of murder and dismemberment remained, but this time, instead of cakes, she melted the victim's fat and made soap. This soap she then gave to her neighbors. She chillingly remarked, “The cakes, too, were better.”

But her horrific crimes eventually came to light. Suspicious of Virginia's sudden disappearance, her sister-in-law contacted the police. The investigation led directly to Leonarda. She denied everything at first, but the overwhelming evidence forced her to confess. “I ate my friends,” she chillingly stated. “If you want to be eaten too, I’m ready to devour you.” She even claimed she identified with the Greek goddess Teti.

Her trial was a spectacle. She showed no remorse. She even attempted to justify her actions by claiming she donated the ladle she used to skim the fat to the country for the war effort. There's a disturbing legend that she dismembered a corpse in just 12 minutes during the trial to prove she acted alone. She was only 4'9," raising questions about whether she could have committed these acts unassisted.

She was found guilty and sentenced to 30 years in prison and a stay in a mental asylum, eerily mirroring the prophecy she had tried so desperately to avoid. Giuseppe served five years before being released. Leonarda died in the asylum in 1970.

The story doesn't end there. Much of what we know about Leonarda comes from her memoir, "Confessions of a Bitter Soul." But the authenticity of this document is highly questionable. Given that she only had a third-grade education, many believe her lawyers actually wrote it. Even details of her early life, including the story of her conception, are disputed by historians.

So, what is the truth about Leonarda Cianciulli? Was she truly cursed? Was she mentally ill? Or was she simply a monstrous individual driven by her own twisted desires? We may never know the answers. But her story remains a chilling testament to the darkness that can reside within the human soul. It’s a story that raises complex questions about the nature of evil, the impact of trauma, and the power of superstition.

Our podcast on Leonarda Cianciulli can be found here