De Carrouges sued Pierre for the land and lost, which only put him further on the outs with the count. Magazines, The 23 Most Anticipated Movies of Fall 2021, No one really knew the truth of the matter., Or create a free account to access more articles. The mortal combat, set for December 29, promised to be the seasons highlight in the capital, as thousands of Parisians flocked to see it, and the young king and his court took their places in colorful viewing stands set up alongside the field at the monastery of Saint-Martin-des-Champs. Le Coq seems to have had some doubts about his clients truthfulness, while admitting that this was the thorniest of he said, she said cases. Jean and Marguerite de Carrouges rode, accompanied by hordes of cheering fans to Notre Dame de Paris to give thanks for victory. Louvel then added a greeting from Jacques Le Gris, who he said greatly admired her and was eager to speak with her. Her father had sided against the king twice, and though to many she would seem unmarriageable, for de Carrouges who desperately needed land, wealth and an heir she was a good match. We gathered from research that she was really capable and educated, Holofcener says. . So the mistaken-identity theory has in its favor Marguerites relative unfamiliarity with Le Gris physical appearance at the time of the alleged rape in January 1386, over a year after Marguerite had first met and seen Le Gris at Crespins. Is history repeating itself? Carrouges died roughly a decade after the duel, falling in combat against the Ottoman Turks. They were very religious. | 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. While it is obvious now that Marguerites testimony deserved to be listened to, was wrongly downplayed in her own time and was ignored by later historians, for the Enlightenments intellectuals the story of Frances last duel was one of judicial injustice, not injustice towards women. Carrouges III was an influential man in lower Normandy, being a vassal of the Count of Perche and a veteran soldier in his service. Soon after, de Carrouges went on a campaign to Scotland and though it was a military failure, he distinguished himself with his courage. The film adaptation traces the trios relationship from its auspicious beginnings to its bloody end. Behind the Enlightenments exoneration of Le Gris were its arguments against the use of torture in judicial proceedings. Marguerite testified repeatedly under oath that on a certain day in January 1386Thursday the eighteenthshe was attacked by the two men, Le Gris and Louvel. Rape Crisis Scotlands helpline number is 08088 01 03 02. When he leaves he says she should tell no one, especially her husband because he might kill her if he finds out. A Note to our Readers Le Gris attorney, the highly respected Jean Le Coq, kept notes in Latin that still survive, allowing us a glimpse into attorney-client discussions. As she argues, Instead of a duel that was long and drawn out and involved many different weapons and a whole variety of exciting scenarios, it seems to have been a very short affair that shocked the audience., Two likely eyewitnessesthe author of the Chronicle of the Monk of Saint-Denis and Le Coqagree that Le Gris landed the first blow, piercing Carrouges thigh with his sword. Based on the 2004 book of the same name by literary historian Eric Jager, The Last Duel sheds light on the bout between Jacques Le Gris (Adam Driver) and Jean de Carrouges (Matt Damon), which was waged over accusations that Le Gris raped Carrouges wife, Marguerite (Jodie Comer), and resulted in Le Gris demise. At the time, it was believed a woman could not conceive if she didn't enjoy sex, and therefore her pregnancy was counted against her it couldn't be rape if she was pregnant, because she must have enjoyed it. Some wrote, as Jager recounts in Laphams Quarterly, that Jean only won because Le Gris slipped on his opponents blood. Others wrote about a supposed deathbed confession by a felon who, having a last-minute change of heart, admitted that he, not Le Gris, had raped Marguerite. Enraged, Jean rode to Paris and appealed to King Charles VI, challenging Le Gris to a duel, an uncommon way for nobles to settle capital offenses. But we wanted to do it through the lens of this situation. The Last Duel hair: Why the movie made Matt Damon look so awful. A feature film based on The Last Duel is scheduled to be released in 2021. From the mechanics of trial by combat to the prosecution of sexual violence in medieval society, heres what you need to know about the true history behind The Last Duel ahead of the films October 15 debut. As Damon tells the New York Times, this segment is kind of an original screenplay because that world of women had to be almost invented and imagined out of whole cloth., The gripping true story of the duel to end all duels in medieval France as a resolute knight defends his wifes honor against the man she accuses of a heinous crime. Learn how and when to remove this template message, The Last Duel: A True Story of Trial by Combat in Medieval France, "L'affaire Marguerite de Carrouges, un procs qui a agit toute la France", "Un jour, une histoire. However, Voltaire only acknowledged Marguerite insofar as he claimed all these fights were fought for women. Neither DArgis nor Voltaire mentioned Marguerite by name. Since Le Gris had briefly served as a church cleric in his youth, he could choose whether he wanted a state trial or church hearing. The Last Duel Ending Explained - Screen Rant I thought I was going to suffocate, and soon I couldnt fight them anymore. Despite the ladys many oaths, and those of the squire, he confided to his journal, No one really knew the truth of the matter.. Le Gris, a large and powerful man with a reputation as a womanizer, is too self-centered to acknowledge the unwanted nature of his advances and too self-assured to believe that, once the deed is done, Marguerite will follow through on her threat of seeking justice. Photo Credit: MePrDB / MovieStillsDB. Ben Affleck co-wrote the script with Damon and Nicole Holofcener and appears as a feudal lord and compatriot of both leading men. And the lords of France delighted to see it, for they had come to watch the two men fight. Besides the resolution to a deadlocked legal case, the duel also provided eagerly anticipated blood sport for the nobility. Or did he trip? The penalty for bearing false witness is that you are to be burned alive, an official tells Marguerite in the movies trailer. When de Carrouges returns home he demands sex, but Marguerite refuses and tells him about the rape, fuelling de Carrouges' anger against his friend. According to Jager, the court may have feared taking sides and arousing even more controversy, deciding instead to grant the knights request, authorize a duel and leave the whole perplexing matter in the hands of God., Five contemporary or near-contemporary chronicles offer accounts of what happened when Le Gris and Carrouges met on December 29, 1386. And two suspects are harder to convict than one, unless they can be turned against each other. If Carrouges had lost, she wouldve suffered her own consequences according to Jager, this wouldve meant being burned alive at the stake. Marguerite replied that she had no wish to speak with Le Gris, and that Louvel should stop his overtures at once. Soon after, de Carrouges went on a campaign to Scotland and though it was a military failure, he distinguished himself with his courage. But that was from research as well. According to court documents and testimony, Le Gris accomplice, Adam Louvel (Adam Nagaitis), participated in the rape. By the union of Marguerite and Carrouges, de Thibouville hoped to restore his family's status[1] while Carrouges was hoping for an heir from the young Marguerite, whom contemporaries described as "young, noble, wealthy, and also very beautiful". 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. Scott rightly ends The Last Duel on a triumphant note. Do you swear on your life that what you say is true? This question, posed to Marguerite de Carrouges (Jodie Comer), encapsulates the true history behind The Last Duel, director Ridley Scotts new film opening in theaters Oct. 15. The article offers a garbled, error-strewn version where, in 1385, Le Gris was accused of attacking the lady by night, with his face masked, as she awaited her husbands return from the Holy Land. If there are reasons for believing in the possibility of Le Gris innocence, the doubtful story of a belated confession by another man certainly is not and never has been one of them. And thats ultimately why this version of the movie is more interesting to us than a movie where you prove Well, based on the evidence, he did it, and either youre a monstrous villain or youre wrongfully accused., Matt Damon as Sir Jean de Carrouges in 20th Century Studios The Last Duel., Matt Damon as Jean de Carrouges and Jodie Comer as Marguerite de Carrouges in The Last Duel., Adam Driver as Jacques Le Gris in The Last Duel., Adam Driver, left, as Jacques Le Gris, and Matt Damon, as Jean de Carrouges, face off in The Last Duel., Jodie Comer as Marguerite de Carrouges in The Last Duel., Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Halloween kills at the box office with a new horror record, as Last Duel gets slayed, Review: Ridley Scotts epic The Last Duel rebukes the patriarchy in every era, Looking for fun this Cinco de Mayo weekend? The trial by combat would decide whether she had told the truthand thus whether she would live or die. More, The interrogation of Nikolay Bukharin.More. The origins of The Last Duel begin in January 1368, when Marguerite de Carrouges claimed she was raped by Jacques Le Gris, a squire. Things come to a head when de Carrouges goes to Paris and his mother in law takes most of (if not all) the servants from the house with her, leaving Marguerite alone. 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.. At this point Le Gris himself suddenly entered the chteaus hall (aulam, probably referring to the main chamber or great hall where guests were typically received). At the bottom of the social ladder were warriors, priests and laborers, who had limited rights and political influence. Marguerite de Carrouges (ne de Thibouville; 1362, Chteau de Fontaine-la-Soret (Eure) - c. 1419) was a French. The Last Duel Summary and Study Guide | SuperSummary Early life. Note: The following article contains discussion of rape that some readers may find upsetting. The Last Duel (Spoilers for Duel Outcome) To say that this event was a spectacle would be selling it short. They took the idea of damnation seriously. By taking away the witness and some challenging details, like Le Gris stuffing his hat into Marguerites mouth, the filmmakers were able to more fully explore the notion that Le Gris believed his actions were just. The movie presents two versions of the rape in Le Gris' version her protests have an edge of teasing to them, and hark back to a previous scene in which he chased a woman around the table before having consensual sex (sort of, given the power dynamic at play and the complete lack of agency women have in their world). Medieval law treated rape as a horrific crime on par with other capital offenses. . Le Gris was the counts favorite and his administrative right hand. From an absolute philosophical point of view, nobody but Jacques Le Gris and Marguerite and those who were in the room know the truth, Jager says. Centuries later the story of the innocent Le Gris falsely accused and forced to defend himself in a barbaric and unjust trial by combat was further popularized by Enlightenment thinkers. Marguerite, who had accused Le Gris of raping her, watched from the sidelines; clad entirely in black, she was keenly aware that her husbands defeat would be viewed as proof of perjury, vindicating her attacker and ensuring her execution by burning at the stake for the crime of bearing false witness. Unable to rise due to the weight of his body armor, Le Gris resisted Carrouges calls to confess, declaring, In the name of God, and on the peril and damnation of my soul, I am innocent of the crime. Enraged, Carrouges delivered the death blow, perhaps by stabbing Le Gris exposed neck or thighs. 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. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our, Digital Meanwhile, Le Gris continued to rise in Pierre's esteem. Advertising Notice She claimed that one of her husband's former friends, Jacques le Gris, raped her when her husband was away. According to . Sir Jacques le Gris (lit. His work has appeared or is forthcoming in Smithsonian, Los Angeles Review of Books and Comment. According to Enlightenment scholar and University of Florida assistant professor of history Anton Matytsin, the Enlightenment sought the end to judicial torture, the abolition of the death penalty, and the institution of proportional and humane punishments that would deter people from committing crimes this is the main context in which they would have seen a duel: a barbaric way to settle a legal matter. Cesare Beccaria, a leading Enlightenment thinker, outlined how judicial torture primarily benefitted not those who were innocent and had nothing to confess but those whose physical constitutions would allow them to withstand pain., The Enlightenments celebration of Marguerite de Carrouges accused rapist challenges our notions of how history develops. And even if the assailant, as Pintoin claims, had actually (and contra the actual testimony) made his visit late in the day, its wholly unlikely that Marguerite, who must have been very familiar with her husbands complaints against the squire, would have offered a meal and overnight lodging to her husbands rival (or to a man she mistook for the same), especially during her husbands absence. Also, after the sudden deaths of his wife and only son and heir, Carrouges marries again to a younger woman, the heiress Marguerite de Thibouville. Le Gris window arrived on January 18, when Marguerite happened to be left alone with just one maidservant. A Judicial Duel, byLieven van Lathem, 1464. That testimony takes up nearly a thousand words of Latin in the Parlements official summary of the case, preserved today at the Archives Nationales, on the Right Bank, in the Marais, a short walk from the old priory where the battle unfolded on that cold winter day. (At this point, the two men were in their late 50s, which places Damon at close to the right age for his role but Driver a good generation off the mark. If Carrouges lost, then Marguerite would be burnt at the stake for perjury. So in his deluded sense of pride, Le Gris could believe it was consensual. [4], Marguerite de Carrouges accused Jacques Le Gris of rape,[5][6] leading to one of the last judicial duels permitted by the French king and the Parliament of Paris (the actual last duel occurred in 1547[7] opposing Guy Chabot de Jarnac against Franois de Vivonne). Your Privacy Rights Despite how much Marguerite de Carrouges tale resonates today, we must keep in mind L.P. Hartleys words: the past is a foreign country; they do things differently there.. Carrouges married her in hopes of an heir and attempted to use his newfound claim to his father-in-law's property to win back a piece of land from his rival . Or did Carrouges according to one account grab him by the helmet and throw him down? Long hair in women, between the time when Paul wrote and the time of The Last Duel, was a critical marker of difference. This is when she is surprised by Adam Louvel (Adam Nagaitis) who asks her to open the door so he can wait, and when she does he reveals that Le Gris is also there to proclaim his love for Marguerite. In the end the city expelled the contagion, and the body politic was cleansed. Tate/Art Resource. Matt Damon as Jean de Carrouges and Jodie Comer as Marguerite de Carrouges in "The Last Duel." . Co-writers Nicole Holofcener, Ben Affleck, and Matt Damon had their work cut out for them trying to fill the gaps. Jacques le Gris - Wikipedia Medieval trial by combat: the real history behind The Last Duel How Palm Springs ran out Black and Latino families to build a fantasy for rich, white people, Concertgoer lets out a loud full body orgasm while L.A. Phil plays Tchaikovskys 5th, 17 SoCal hiking trails that are blooming with wildflowers (but probably not for long! I want justice! While the film might appear to be Hollywood fiction, it is actually based on accounts of what happened following a heinous assault on Carrouges' wife. Magazines, Digital Even a small mistake, such as misstating the day the attack happened, could result in the case being thrown out and the victim being punished for perjury. Marguerite's husband, Sir Jean de Carrouges, a reputedly jealous and violent manwhose once close friendship with Le Gris had soured in recent years amid court rivalry and a protracted dispute over landwas traveling at the time of the alleged crime. Image via 20th Century Studios. Carrouges, without whom his wife could not even bring a case, resolutely rode off to Paris to appeal for justice to the king. Jager chronicled how the former friends relationship devolvedand the woman and rape allegation at the center of the conflictin the 2004 nonfiction book The Last Duel. She continued shouting for help, she says, until silenced by Le Gris hood. The greatest departure from Jagers book comes during the rape itself. The Reprimand, by Jean-Georges Vibert, 1874. Her husband is abusive what would be the consequences of this? Jean and Marguerite de Carrouges can continue to be a family. And thats one of the things we didnt focus as much on: They truly believed God would make happen whatever was the fair thing to happen, so it would be Gods will. Now, the story of the 1386 trial by combat is the subject of a blockbuster film of the same name. According to Pintoin, Marguerite and her assailant dined together before the attack, and it was while showing him to his room for the night that he assaulted her. By now the case had become a cause clbre. Duels of honor, as well as judicial duels authorized by other governing bodies, continued to take place centuries after Carrouges triumph. Jean de Carrouges and the last French duel Really embracing the kind of freedom that gave her. Much like Jagers book, the film doesnt offer a sympathetic portrayal of either of its leading men. What does she have to gain from that? The third and final section, written by Holofcener, is told from Marguerites point of view. [2][3], Shortly after his marriage, Carrouges revealed another motive for the union. Barred from bringing a case against Le Gris herself, Marguerite had to rely entirely on her husband to mount legal action. That resonates. Though Scotts film and its source text afford the fight the weighty title of the last duel, Le Gris trial by combat was far from the last duel to ever take place. If Carrouges lost, then Marguerite would be burnt at the stake for perjury. If your husband hears of it, he may kill you. Cookie Policy Carrouges was born in the late 1330s in the village of Saint-Marguerite-de-Carrouges as the eldest son of knight and minor noble Sir Jean de Carrouges III and his wife Nicole de Buchard. de Carrouges knows that even the King is biased against him, and decides to ask for a trial by duel, in which God decides the outcome by letting the liar die. The movie ends with Marguerite playing with her son, seemingly at peace with her life. The Real History Behind Ridley Scott's 'The Last Duel' | History Le Gris and Jean had once been close friends, but their relationship turned to rivalry over a dispute regarding land Marguerites family owned. How accurate is the account of the events leading up to and - Reddit She has to relive it over and over againand she gets it right.. The True Story Behind The Last Duel and History's Attempt to Erase It They pinned me down and stuffed a capucium [a hood] over my mouth to silence me. People tend to think of the Middle Ages being less sophisticated than they actually are, but theres this this huge, fascinating legal tradition thats the origin of pretty much all of Western legal tradition, Elema says. The pair enjoyed a close friendship that soured when the count showered lavish gifts of land and money on Le Gris, fomenting Carrouges jealousy. It was a patriarchal and deeply misogynist [time]. It is incumbent on us to be good people, to overcome that and to see more broadly and with empathy, Affleck says. There is a brief coda that reveals Marguerite outlived her husband and never remarried. At the time of the attack, Jean de Carrouges was away on a trip to Paris from which he would return a few days later. Insight and analysis from renowned writers and thinkers. The valuable estate of Aunou-le-Faucon, given to his rival Jacques Le Gris two years earlier, had been formerly owned by Carrouges' father-in-law, Robert de Thibouville, and had been bought by Count Pierre II of Alenon for 8,000 French livres in 1377. How power in America has turned the rule of law into a mere myth. Le 29 dcembre 1 386 se droula un duel d'honneur entre deux seigneurs normands", "Who is Marguerite de Carrouges? A similar report with a significant difference of detail appears in Jean Juvnal des Ursins Histoire de Charles VI, written no earlier than the 1420s and perhaps closer to 1430. In 1384, Carrouges and Margueriteencountered Le Gris at a mutual friends party. [10]" Oh, and The characters we'll be discussing are Jean de Carrouges (Matt Damon), Marguerite de Carrouges (Jodie Comer), and Jacques Le Gris (Adam Driver). The film is based on the true story of the last legally permitted duel (hence the title) fought in France. Marguerite de Carrouges Marguerite, who married Carrouges in 1381, was the only daughter of Robert de Thibouville, who had once committed an act of high treason. 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. But that doesnt mean that women were silenced. Despite the threat of public humiliation and potentially deadly outcome of disclosing ones rape, women like Marguerite spoke out, perhaps as a way of working through their trauma or simply refusing to passively accept [what had] happened to them, says Skoda. Say nothing, and I will keep quiet, too. In response, Marguerite said, I will keep quiet. The moral was plain: Le Gris rose in the world and then suddenly fell, he dominated but finally was vanquished, he committed a crime in secret and was publicly exposed. So there was just no doubt for me that this woman was telling the truth. She has nothing to gain. She was formerly known by her maiden name as Marguerite de Thibouville. In real life, there was another complicating factor de Carrouges bought land and was forced to turn it over to Pierre, blaming Le Gris for it. Read more: 15 Unsung Moments From American History That Historians Say You Should Know About. But the doubts greeting Marguerites scandalous story, the initial rejection of her claims in court, and the shadow cast over her reputation by the later chronicle accounts are not so different from the skepticism and prejudice faced by more recent victims of sexual assault.
