EXILI  , an

Italian chemist and poisoner in the 17th century: His real name was probably Nicolo Egidi or Eggidio . Few authentic details of his life exist . Tradition, however, credits him with having been originally the salaried poisoner at Rome of Olympia Maidalchina, the mistress of Pope Innocent X . Subsequently he became a gentleman in waiting to Queen Christina of Sweden, whose taste for chemistry may have influenced this appointment . In 1663 his presence in France aroused the suspicions of the French government, and he was imprisoned in the Bastille . Here he is said to have made the acquaintance of Godin de Sainte-Croix, the lover of the marquise de Brinvilliers (q.v.) . After three months' imprisonment, powerful influences secured Exili's release, and he left France for England . In 1681 he was again in Italy, where he married the countess Fantaguzzi, second cousin of Duke Francis of Modena .