In medieval France, a pig was formally arrested, given a defense lawyer, brought before a judge, found guilty, dressed in human clothing, and publicly hanged. This was not an isolated incident. Between the thirteenth and eighteenth centuries, there are documented records of over two hundred animal trials across Europe — pigs, bulls, rats, weevils, caterpillars, and at least one rooster accused of the capital crime of laying an egg. Every proceeding was conducted with complete legal seriousness. Every sentence was carried out by a professional executioner who received new gloves afterward, as they did after hanging a human being.

Host Shawn Spainhour takes you inside the worldview that made this not just possible but perfectly logical — a medieval understanding of justice, order, and humanity's place in creation that was coherent, deliberate ...