Now Ferrand gratified Berlioz's eagerness to write his first opera by providing him with a three-act libretto, Les francs-juges.

The work is set in Mediaeval Germany and the title literally means "The Free Judges", referring to the secret Vehmic trials held in the region during the late Middle Ages.

The plot, with its stormy passions and theme of rescue from oppression, offered Berlioz the opportunity to compose a work in the style of the French Revolutionary operas of Méhul and Cherubini.

Berlioz intended Les francs-juges for performance at the Odéon theatre and the management accepted it on the basis of Ferrand's libretto.

Unfortunately for Berlioz, the Odéon could not obtain government licensing to stage new French operas and Les francs-juges was shelved.