But the count, infuriated by the accusation against his favorite, declared at a legal hearing that Marguerite must have dreamed it and summarily dismissed the charges, ordering that no further questions ever be raised about it.. After the sexual assault, Le Gris told Marguerite, Lady, if you tell anyone what has happened here, you will be dishonored. Marguerite remained silent of her ordeal for several days, until her husband's return on the 21 or 22 January. | READ MORE. (Le Gris and Carrouges both started out as squires and vassals to Count Pierre, but Carrouges was knighted for his military service in 1385.) Meilan Solly is Smithsonian magazine's associate digital editor, history. According. Born in 1388, two years after the fatal duel, Juvnal, a bishop, wrote at an even greater remove in time and may have been influenced by Pintoins account. Skoda adds, Its all too tempting to talk about the Middle Ages as this horrible, misogynist, patriarchal, oppressive society, as a way of even implicitly just saying, Look how far weve come. Whereas to complicate what things looked like in the 14th century complicates what were doing now.. The film adaptation traces the trios relationship from its auspicious beginnings to its bloody end. We gave Ridley, This is what took place. Because it was such a famous event, there was a record. Marguerite herselfnow pregnant, perhaps as a result of the rapecame to Paris and testified in great detail about the alleged attack by Le Gris and his accomplice. It was the equivalent of a kind of forensics case., Damon adds, It was the case about one very evil man doing something everybody recognized was evil. RMN-Grand Palais/Art Resource, NY. There is a brief coda that reveals Marguerite outlived her husband and never remarried. Wife of Sir Jean De Carrouges IV, Chevalier d'Honneur. Not understanding the effect they were having on someone else. "Do you swear on your life that what you say is true?". We gathered from research that she was really capable and educated, Holofcener says. From a practical perspective, pulling back on the brutality of the moment was also essential for simply getting the audience to sit through the scene. It states that Le Gris innocence was later recognized by all, for a man condemned to death by the law confessed to having committed the heinous crime. So in his deluded sense of pride, Le Gris could believe it was consensual. Speak without regard for the consequences, and it is too late for silence when disaster strikes. He saw the marriage as a chance to get the better of Le Gris as well, for Le Gris had been gifted by Pierre a parcel of land previously owned by Marguerite's father. And clearly it wasnt.. According to Jager, Le Gris took an immediate liking to Marguerite when Carrouges introduced her to the court in 1384. That was at the root of everything. As it turns out, the description of the event in Eric Jager's book The Last Duel is rather different from the five surviving medieval accounts of the fight. (Writing for History News Network, Jager explains that the ferocious logic of the duel implied that proof was already latent in the bodies of the two combatants, and that the duels divinely assured outcome would reveal which man had sworn falsely and which had told the truth.) Marguerite, as chief witness in the case, will be executed if her husband loses the duel, thereby proving both of their guilt. Like, I couldnt have gotten there. According to court documents and testimony, Le Gris accomplice, Adam Louvel (Adam Nagaitis), participated in the rape. Pierre favours de Carrouges' friend Le Gris, and the friendship between the men begins to deteriorate. I dont want your money! Marguerite replied. Later encyclopedia entries echoed this view, seemingly solidifying the question of Le Gris innocence. Being caught beneath a horse would mean certain death. That was really sad. But Marguerite certainly made an impression on Le Gris, who likely still held a grudge against his litigious former friend: After running into the newly knighted Carrouges in January 1386, Le Gris sent a fellow courtier, Adam Louvel, to keep an eye on Marguerite, whod been left behind with her mother-in-law while Carrouges traveled to Paris. HIP/Art Resource, NY. The duel took place on December 29, 1386, and was presided over by French king Charles VI. Seemingly resolving their differences, the men greeted each other and embraced, with Carrouges telling Marguerite to kiss Le Gris as a sign of renewed peace and friendship, according to Jager. The book, exhaustively compiled from existing documents and records, recounts how Carrouges' wife, Marguerite, accused Le Gris of rape, leading to the pair fighting to the death with. We gave this great filmmaker the opportunity to dramatize the essence of it and make it compelling to an audience, rather than do literally what happened.. Enlightenment thinkers Diderot and Voltaire favored Le Gris cause, decrying his barbaric and unjust trial by combat as an example of the supposed ignorance and cruelty of the Middle Ages, writes Jager. Carrouges, now in control, shouted one word at his enemy: Confess. The burden of proof lay almost entirely on victims, who had to prove theyd resisted the rapists advances while recounting their testimony in precise detail. Because rape was viewed less as an act of sexual violence than a property crime against the victims husband or guardian, rapists often avoided harsh penalties by paying a fine to the man in question. But that doesnt mean that women were silenced. Comer brought that sense of history into her performance as well, recognizing what was and wasnt acceptable for women of the time. de Carrouges also says that she must have sex with him, as Le Gris can't be the last person to have 'known' her Marguerite is, effectively, raped again. But conceptions of rape varied widely, with some commentators arguing that women enjoyed being taken by force and others accusing survivors of falsely accusing men in order to trick them into marriage. Her father had sided against the king twice, and. I would have had to have taken this many horses, and I didnt have time to get back. It would have become about whether or not it could have been him, or it must have been somebody else. Schools educate you, and religious services deliver sermons, and movies at their best can generate empathy and generate compassion, says Affleck. She has everything to lose. Ultimately, that [would have been] a movie about a courtroom evidence drama, Affleck explains. Still, the theory cannot plausibly account for Louvels having named Le Gris while in conversation with Marguerite. Louvel then added a greeting from Jacques Le Gris, who he said greatly admired her and was eager to speak with her. A century and more after the philosophes had popularized the theory, it solidified as hard fact in authoritative encyclopedias. When youre doing scenes where you really want to fight back with Carrouges and tell him what it is you really think, you have to go, Hang on a minute, would she do this? Comer recalls. We dont have transcripts or historical records that say that on a given day [Marguerite] was doing this or something of that nature, but thats completely consistent with what such women did, the author confirms. Or did he trip? Part One of this article examined the famous judicial duel between Jean de Carrouges and Jacques Le Gris, which was held in Paris in 1386. [3] Se trata del caballero Sir Jean. The fly in this ointment is another aspect of Marguerites testimony that has not been given due attentionnamely, the inclusion of Adam Louvel in the criminal charges. Much like Jagers book, the film doesnt offer a sympathetic portrayal of either of its leading men. Scott and the films stunt coordinator used the outline of the actual combat to create something slightly more exciting for the screen. Jager, for his part, tells Medievalists.net that he never would have embarked on writing this book if I had not believed Marguerite. Le Gris lawyer, Jean Le Coq, arguably summarized the case best, noting in his journal that no one really knew the truth of the matter.. While this should have added weight to Marguerite's claim, it did not. Of the judicial duels that actually took place, few ended in death. On the morning of 18 January 1386, Dame Nicole de Carrouges departed her chateau at Capomesnil for the neighbouring town of Saint-Pierre-sur-Dives where she had legal business to attend to. Soon after, de Carrouges went on a campaign to Scotland and though it was a military failure, he distinguished himself with his courage. A Note to our Readers Affleck, Damon, Holofcener, Comer and Jager talked us through what is and isnt accurate in The Last Duel and why the filmmakers made the narrative changes they did. The Last Duel ending explained - how close is it to the true story of Marguerite de Carrouges? Now, the story of the 1386 trial by combat is the subject of a blockbuster film of the same name. With the understanding that your truth may not be somebody elses truth. The forty-page story Le jugement de Dieu begins with throngs of excited, gossiping Parisians arriving at Saint-Martins field to watch the long-awaited duel. Louvel then,. Other accounts provide more technical detail, even suggesting that Le Gris slipped on his opponents blood. That resonates. The story goes that on January 18, 1386, Marguerite's mother-in-law, Dame Nicole de Carrouges, left the family chateau on business with most of the household servants. Mother of Robert De Carrouges. An elaborate example appeared in 1829, just a few years after Du Bois conjecture that the accused squire had been mistaken for a look-alike, in Lhistorial du jongleur, an anonymous collection of medieval tales. Ultimately, Carrouges victory was a result of Le Gris being literally unable to get up. When Marguerite adamantly refused his offer, saying she had no wish for his money, the violence escalated. de Carrouges, whose wife and son died of an unknown illness, eventually marries Marguerite, a wealthy but reputationally damaged young woman. Smithsonian magazine participates in affiliate link advertising programs. A Judicial Duel, byLieven van Lathem, 1464. But not for as long as you need me to. Tossing a sack of coins at the young woman, Le Gris taunted her, claiming that his friends would give him an airtight alibi. We know that the historical Marguerite de Thibouville was the heiress of a venerable noble family of Normandy, was probably young when she became Carrouges' second wife, and was, after the.