Marguerite claimed that Nicole took with her nearly all of the household servants, including a maidservant whom Jean had specifically instructed never to leave Marguerites side, thus leaving Marguerite virtually alone.. 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.. It is one thing to slander, another to accuse. The last judicial duel in France hinged on whether a woman could be believed. Matt Damon as Jean de Carrouges IV in The Last Duel. The synopsis of the film lays out the basis for what would be the final (official) duel in French history, but as with most 'based on a true story' stories, there are always gaps between reality and fiction. This happened, she said, in the morning hours at the modest chteau of her widowed mother-in-law, Nicole de Carrouges, on a remote Normandy estate known as Capomesnil, about twelve miles southwest of Lisieux. That was at the root of everything. The film is told in three chapters, from the perspectives of Carrouges (Damon), Le Gris (Adam Driver) and Marguerite (Jodie Comer). As Jager explains, With a motive, revenge against the knight, and a means, the seduction of his wife, all [Le Gris] needed now was an opportunity.. And one includes the ladys penitential retreat to a convent, while the other omits this finale. I gave her a friend, who ultimately betrays her. The movie ends with Marguerite playing with her son, seemingly at peace with her life. For me, why would a woman speak out and say this when her life was at risk? the actress says. In his alibi, Le Gris himself cited the narrow window of time available for his alleged visit, strictly during daylight hours. Pierre favours de Carrouges' friend Le Gris, and the friendship between the men begins to deteriorate. That was really sad. 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. Saturday October 16 2021, 12.01am BST, The Times R idley Scott's spectacular new film begins with a Norman noblewoman, Marguerite de Carrouges, being robed in black, fettered to a scaffold in. 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. ), the duel began as a joust on horseback, with lances. Jean Froissart, writing after the duel, describes Marguerite praying as she watched the fight, adding, I do not know, for I never spoke with her, whether she had not often regretted having gone so far with the matter that she and her husband were in such grave danger., Elemas interpretation of the sources differs from Jagers comparatively colorful recounting. That meant that Holofcener had to create Marguerites world and inner life from scratch. Your Privacy Rights Much as Le Gris is said to have silenced Marguerite with his hood, a legion of clerics, historians, and partisans managed to muffle and stifle her story with vague rumors and inconsistent reports that have shrouded the matter almost to the present day. They took the idea of damnation seriously. On December 29, 1386, before a crowd presided over by French king Charles VI, Carrouges and Le Gris eyed each other warily. After many preliminary ceremonies decreed by tradition (an arms inspection, a series of solemn oaths, the requisite dubbing of Le Gris as a knight to make the combatants equal in rank, etc. I thought I was going to suffocate, and soon I couldnt fight them anymore. She probably had strangle marks. Marguerite remained silent of her ordeal for several days, until her husband's return on the 21 or 22 January. Jean de Carrouges (1330-25 September 1396) was a French knight who was best known for his 1386 duel with Jacques Le Gris (who was accused of raping his wife Marguerite de Carrouges) in the last judicial duel permitted by the Parliament of Paris; he was later slain at the Battle of Nicopolis. 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. What was in the film was the pair's reconciliation, which took place in 1384 in which Le Gris and de Carrouges agreed to put the past behind them, and de Carrouges introduced Le Gris to his wife Marguerite. [4] The case dragged on for some months until ultimately Count Pierre was forced to visit his cousin King Charles VI to officially confirm his ownership of the land and his right to give it to whomever of the followers he chose. Drivers final line, where, as Le Gris, he declares his innocence, is in the historic record. More, On the use and misuse of civility. I think the film makes the right choice [in portraying her story]., Comer agrees. Known as the judgment of God, these ordeals were thought to have a divinely ordained outcome, with the loser proving his guilt by the very act of defeat. Of the judicial duels that actually took place, few ended in death. Welcoming the Official (detail), by Leonid Solomatkin, 1867. In his youth, Jean served in the retinue of . In reality, instead of mourning, the King held a series of banquets and parties that culminated in the duel between Le Gris and de Carrouges. After Marguerites rape, Carrouges petitions the French court to try Le Gris through judicial combat. 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. 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). While it adheres closely to Jagers book, with the script using actual lines and passages from his writing, the filmmakers did make some alterations in order to better shine a light on the concepts of consent and perspective. The event marked the first meeting between Carrouges wifedescribed by a contemporary chronicler as beautiful, good, sensible and modestand Le Gris. The two men seized her by the arms and legs, she testified, and dragged her up a nearby stairway, while she struggled and shouted for help. While this had no material bearing on the plot, it's an interesting detail given that in the film the queen was often panned to as the sole person to sympathise, however quietly, with Marguerite. Instead, Elema explains, authorities overseeing trials typically imposed a settlement after the fighters had exchanged a few blows. Directed by Ridley Scott, the movie stars Matt Damon as Carrouges, Adam Driver as Le Gris and Jodie Comer as Carrouges second wife, Marguerite. Ben Affleck co-wrote the script with Damon and Nicole Holofcener and appears as a feudal lord and compatriot of both leading men. Even in Le Gris' version, though, Marguerite's attempts to get away seem less flirtatious and more earnest. In the film, it is revealed mid-trial that if de Carrouges loses at the hand of Le Gris, Marguerite will also be killed by being stripped naked, put in an iron collar and set on fire. 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. Marguerite was born as Marguerite De Thibouville in Normandy in the year 1362. Given the absence of any witnesses in her own favor, Marguerites accusations against Louvel were a gratuitous and risky addition to her testimony if her story of the attack and rape was indeed a deliberate lie. Legal historian Ariella Elema, whose PhD research centered on trial by combat in France and England, says judicial duels were most common in cases where the evidence was really unclear and it was difficult to solve the [matter] by any other means. Such clashes had become increasingly rare by the late 14th century, with lawyers largely using the prospect of duels to incentivize individuals to settle cases out of court. The movie does follow the true story rather closely, and with a runtime of two and a half hours, we'd hope so. The entire royal court was gossiping about the rape, the trial, and the likelihood of a duel. I will not be silent, she responds, teary-eyed but defiant. Marguerites fate is unknown, though later historians convinced of the falsity of her claims suggested she retired to a convent out of shame. She was born to nobleman Robert De Thibouville, who was notorious for siding AGAINST France in territorial. Nearly everyone believed then and believes now that Marguerite was raped. The theory of mistaken identity ultimately derives from two sources that began circulating more than a decade after the duel. 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.. Sir Jean de Carrouges : I am risking my life for you! Theres a certain arrogance rooted in that assumption. 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. Dust off your 14th-century French history books, folks. According to court documents and testimony, Le Gris accomplice, Adam Louvel (Adam Nagaitis), participated in the rape. The majority of medieval rape victims lacked the means to seek justice. 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. 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. In accord with ancient tradition, she would be burned alive as a false accuser. If youd rather experience the film first, please save this to read after watching. According to testimony later provided by Carrouges and Marguerite, she heard a knock on the door and opened it to find Louvel. Really embracing the kind of freedom that gave her. 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. Initially, Carrouges brought Marguerites case to Count Pierre. Though the film portrays Jacques le Gris as guilty of raping Marguerite de Carrouges, this was never definitively proven and the facts of the case remain a topic of heated debate to this day. Fatality. We knew who this woman was generally by the way she spoke out in the time in which she was living in.. P.T. Louvels naming of Le Gris just prior to the squires own arrival would seem to put Le Gris indisputably thereunless Marguerites story was a deliberate fabrication. When he leaves he says she should tell no one, especially her husband because he might kill her if he finds out. Marguerites father, Robert de Thibouville, had once betrayed the king of France, and some may have wondered whether this traitors daughter was in fact telling the truth. Does he truly believe his innocence at the end? Affleck reflects of Le Gris. A hush fell over the crowd, as they came to the solemn realization that a man had just died before their eyes. I want justice! This question, posed to Marguerite de Carrouges . Scott and the films stunt coordinator used the outline of the actual combat to create something slightly more exciting for the screen. There [wasnt] going to be a settlement without one of them losing their reputation., After hearing both parties testimony, the Parlement of Paris agreed to authorize a duelFrances first trial by combat for a rape case in more than 30 years. HIP/Art Resource, NY. Meanwhile, Le Gris continued to rise in Pierre's esteem. 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. You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times. 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. And for him to have to invoke that at the moment of his death and to protest his innocence [is interesting].