On a freezing December day in 1386, at an old priory in Paris that today is a museum of science and technologya temple of human reasonan eager crowd of thousands gathered to watch two knights fight a duel to the death with lance and sword and dagger. 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. Note: The following article contains discussion of rape that some readers may find upsetting. 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. Still, The Last Duel does stick closely to historical fact. She gave birth to a son, Robert, shortly before Le Gris trial by combat. The Last Duel is now available to watch in cinemas. We would have looked like two tin cans. Still, the theory cannot plausibly account for Louvels having named Le Gris while in conversation with Marguerite. If your husband hears of it, he may kill you. According to court documents and testimony, Le Gris accomplice, Adam Louvel (Adam Nagaitis), participated in the rape. P.T. Two separate alibis are harder to disprove than one. ), the duel began as a joust on horseback, with lances. Her story is detailed and persuasive, and she ran such a great risk to speak up at a time when women were supposed to keep silent about such things. Le Gris window arrived on January 18, when Marguerite happened to be left alone with just one maidservant. 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. Upon hearing of the encounter, the outraged Carrouges summoned his circle of courtiers and friends, including his mother and most of Marguerite's family, and a council was convened where Marguerite repeated her account of the rape. By the union of Marguerite . We gathered from research that she was really capable and educated, Holofcener says. The films shifting viewpoints underscore the thorny nature of truth in Marguerites case, which divided observers both at the time and in the centuries since. Meilan Solly When the lady learned this and realized that the error was her fault, she retreated to a convent after her husbands death, vowing perpetual chastity.. It was a patriarchal and deeply misogynist [time]. Meanwhile, Le Gris continued to rise in Pierre's esteem. Of course, Jean de Carrouges was destined for the life of warfare - this was the common fate for many nobles and their sons in medieval France. Advertising Notice News back then traveled, archival research has shown, at the rate of an average days journey by horseback: about thirty miles per day. I gave her a friend, who ultimately betrays her. In January 1386 while Jean de Carrouges was away traveling, Marguerite claimed she . No one really knew the truth of the matter. Marguerite tells her story, and she knows that she needs to be extremely consistent, despite this absolutely horrific trauma that shes just gone through, says Skoda. They pinned me down and stuffed a capucium [a hood] over my mouth to silence me. 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. If you've been affected by the issues raised in this story, you can access more information from Rape Crisis England and Wales, who work towards the elimination of all forms of sexual violence and sexual misconduct, on their website or by calling the National Rape Crisis Helpline on 0808 802 9999. Shes going to face some kind of penalty. Instead of being executed, however, most women on the losing side of rape cases endured custodial or financial [punishment], which in medieval terms is kind of the end of everything anyway, according to Skoda. In 1380 Carrouges married Marguerite de Thibouville (Jodie Comer), daughter of the controversial known traitor Robert de Thibouville who had sided against multiple French Kings in. But the overwhelming likelihood is that she was telling the truth. (Rapists sometimes escaped punishment by marrying their victims.) Far from echoing these Enlightenment-era assessments of Marguerites misguided intentions, the film adaptation of The Last Duel presents the noblewoman as its protagonist, the truth teller [whose account is] so much more resonant, strong and evident than her male counterparts, as Affleck tells GMA News. This tangled and still-controversial case leaves many tantalizing questions, not least of all why Jacques Le Gris did it, if indeed he did. 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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. (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. The films version of the brutal fight is a more cinematic variation on what Jager reconstructed in his book, but its reasonably close to what may have transpired. 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.. 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. Over the next several months, famous lawyers were hired, witnesses were summoned, and testimony was gathered. The Last Duel starts on the day of the duel, but before it shares the results of Jean de Carrouges and Jacques Le Gris' fight, the movie shares the three perspectives at the center of why the . 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. Readers in the US are encouraged to contactRAINN, or the National Sexual Assault Hotline on 800-656-4673. 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.. Eventually, you have the two men on the ground, fighting with hand weapons rather than lances.. Le 29 dcembre 1 386 se droula un duel d'honneur entre deux seigneurs normands", "Who is Marguerite de Carrouges? It is incumbent on us to be good people, to overcome that and to see more broadly and with empathy, Affleck says. 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. 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). Marguerite de Carrouges accused Le Gris of rape in 1386. That resonates. "Do you swear on your life that what you say is true?". In the six centuries after the quarrel ended, however, the moral that was to be derived from it changed considerably. De Carrouges sued Pierre for the land and lost, which only put him further on the outs with the count. 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. Smithsonian magazine participates in affiliate link advertising programs. Marguerites fate is unknown, though later historians convinced of the falsity of her claims suggested she retired to a convent out of shame. The Last Duel True Story: Marguerite de Carrouges' Accusation Jean de Carrouges' wife was a controversial figure as the daughter of Robert de Thibouville, a Norman lord who had notably sided against multiple French kings in territorial disputes. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. Instead, Elema explains, authorities overseeing trials typically imposed a settlement after the fighters had exchanged a few blows. Scott rightly ends The Last Duel on a triumphant note. And if the Parlement of Paris could not establish even the basic facts, theres little chance of our discovering hidden motives all of these centuries later. When her husband, Sir Jean de Carrouges, heard of the crime, he . Much like Jagers book, the film doesnt offer a sympathetic portrayal of either of its leading men. Warning, The Last Duel spoilers follow. The J. PaulGettyMuseum, Los Angeles. I do not know, he adds in a poignant aside, 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 dangerand then finally there was nothing for it but to await the outcome.. The final chapter of the film, told from Marguerites perspective, refers to itself as the truth. But while that section of the story by necessity contains the most dramatization, Jager says he does support the filmmakers conclusion. 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 her court testimony is reduced to nothing more than her husbands scriptas Famiglietti calls itfor destroying his hated rival. 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. Apart from the dubious, sketchy, and inconsistent reports in the two chronicles, no external evidence for this hazy legend has ever been offered in support of the oft-told tale of a last-minute confession by the true culprit. You are risking my life, so you can fight your enemy and save your pride. And yet there can only be one truth. When Jean came back from Paris, he decided to take revenge on Jacques. So there was just no doubt for me that this woman was telling the truth. de Carrouges, whose wife and son died of an unknown illness, eventually marries Marguerite, a wealthy but reputationally damaged young woman. 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. That July, at the old royal palace on the le de la Cit, the knight formally challenged the squire, throwing down the gauntlet, as witnessed by the young Charles VI, many other royals, and the magistrates of the Parlement of Paris, the nations highest court. Wife of Sir Jean De Carrouges IV, Chevalier d'Honneur. One of the chroniclers talks about an opening joust, but I had to elaborate a little bit on how a joust like that would unfold with lances broken. Carrouges views himself as a chivalrous knight defending his wifes honor, while Le Gris casts himself as the Lancelot to Marguerites Guinevere, rescuing her from an unhappy marriage. Fatality. After the sexual assault, Le Gris told Marguerite, Lady, if you tell anyone what has happened here, you will be dishonored. Marguerite de Carrouges, descended from an old and wealthy Norman family, had claimed that in January of that year she had been attacked and raped at her mother-in-laws chteau by a squire (the rank below knighthood) named Jacques Le Gris, aided by one of his closest companions, one Adam Louvel. Even the characters haircuts which have been the butt of some online jokes match up with what we know about the period, according to Jager. The last judicial duel in France hinged on whether a woman could be believed. While this should have added weight to Marguerite's claim, it did not. She was the only daughter of Jeanne de Bois Hroult and the highly controversial Robert de Thibouville, a Norman lord who had twice sided against the French king in territorial conflicts. He had a witness. Other accounts provide more technical detail, even suggesting that Le Gris slipped on his opponents blood. They took the idea of damnation seriously. 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. DIGITAL SPY, PART OF THE HEARST UK ENTERTAINMENT NETWORK. 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. On December 29, 1386, before a crowd presided over by French king Charles VI, Carrouges and Le Gris eyed each other warily. When Marguerite adamantly refused his offer, saying she had no wish for his money, the violence escalated. For Affleck and Damon, The Last Duel was an opportunity to not only depict a compelling historical event but to reflect on how traces of that system of patriarchy linger today. Which we talked about, but it just became so absurd., Affleck adds, It hinged on the weight on the armor and the fact that once you fell, you couldnt get up and you were like a trapped lobster. In Le Coqs words, his client attacked his adversary very cruelly and did it on foot, although he would have had the advantage if he had done it on horseback. By drawing blood, writes Elema for the Historical European Martial Arts and Sports Community, Le Gris prevented the king from halting the duel, as once the scales had tipped in one fighters favor, no one could stop the fight without the appearance of partiality.. In accord with ancient tradition, she would be burned alive as a false accuser. A century and more after the philosophes had popularized the theory, it solidified as hard fact in authoritative encyclopedias. Marguerites story must have seemed at least plausible to the magistrates who ordered the duel, something the Parlement had not done for over thirty years in a rape case. That was really sad. By unequivocally believing Marguerite, the screenwriters offer that same sense of empathy to all women who follow her. I would call that historically accurate, even though we dont have direct testimony that Marguerite did this or that at the time.. She probably had strangle marks. And for him to have to invoke that at the moment of his death and to protest his innocence [is interesting]. Digital image courtesy of theGettys Open Content Program. The earlier of the two is the Saint-Denis Chronicle, an official royal history by the monk Michel Pintoin probably written around 1400. It is one thing to slander, another to accuse. Scott and the films stunt coordinator used the outline of the actual combat to create something slightly more exciting for the screen. Marguerites claim that Louvel mentioned Le Gris by name is especially telling, for it is hard to fit this detail into a plausible scenario in which she is genuinely mistaken, as many have claimed she was, about the identity of her assailants, particularly Le Gris. The squire then threw her onto a bed but could not hold her down without help from Louvel, who rushed back into the room on Le Gris orders to help his friend subdue and finally rape Marguerite. 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. But a public accusation of rape, at the time a capital offense and often a cause for scandalous rumors endangering the honor of those involved, could have grave consequences for both accuser and accused, especially among the nobility. Nearly everyone believed then and believes now that Marguerite was raped. But then, just moments after Carrouges has killed Le Gris on the battlefield, a dusty courier rides up with the astounding news that another man has confessed to the crimenews that is now too late to save the innocent Le Gris. Her father had sided against the king twice, and. Of course, the movie is about much more than just the duel, as is the true story so here's what went down. In an entry on duels, the Grand dictionnaire universel (186677), overseen by respected editor Pierre Larousse, describes the 1386 affair as one of the most remarkable in history, claiming that the wide belief in its injustice helped to bring the custom of trial by combat to a speedy end. In court, he also claimed to have seen Marguerite only twice in his entire life: during the Parlements official inquiry, and also not less than two years earlier at a social gathering at the home of a mutual friend, Jean Crespin, where Carrouges and Le Gris apparently put aside their recent quarrels and Carrouges ordered his wife to kiss Le Gris as a sign of renewed friendship. Le Gris said nothing. Jager counts the film as at least 75 percent historically accurate, maybe more, noting that while evidence may not exist for specific moments, there is a general record that supports the re-creation. 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.. I will not be silent, she responds, teary-eyed but defiant. 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. Froissart portrays Marguerite, who had recently given birth to a son, praying to the Virgin as she anxiously awaits her fate. The Last Duel stars Jodie Comer, Matt Damon and Adam Driver as three people who changed the course of French history. The lawsuit reflected very poorly on Carrouges at the court in Argentan and resulted in his further estrangement from Count Pierre's circle. The film adaptation traces the trios relationship from its auspicious beginnings to its bloody end. In his own defense, Le Gris claimed that Nicole had found nothing amiss upon her return and didnt believe her daughter-in-laws later allegations. Yet the case does reveal the way in which scandal, as a cousin to the word slander (both derive from the Old French escandle), ultimately resides in the spoken or written word, whether in the gossip of neighbors or the hearsay of the chronicler. 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. 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. For me, why would a woman speak out and say this when her life was at risk? the actress says. Skoda and Elema argue that Marguerites case exemplifies the complexity of medieval society, which is often painted in broad, reductive strokes. Cases had to meet four requirements, including exhausting all other legal remedies and confirming that the crime had actually occurred. I will have justice!. Damon and Affleck took the dialogue directly from Jagers book. Le Gris raped me., Le Gris countered with a detailed alibi for not just the day in question but the entire week, calling numerous witnesses to establish his whereabouts in or near another town some twenty-five miles away. Cookie Settings, The Last Duel: A True Story of Crime, Scandal, and Trial by Combat, Historical European Martial Arts and Sports Community. In the end the city expelled the contagion, and the body politic was cleansed. And clearly it wasnt.. But that doesnt mean that women were silenced. [2][3], Shortly after his marriage, Carrouges revealed another motive for the union. It was really trying to understand those types of dynamics and her place within the home and in society.. But if Marguerites husband and champion lost, thus proving her accusation to be false, she too would be put to death. The majority of medieval rape victims lacked the means to seek justice. Marguerite de Carrouges : No. The contest between Carrouges and Le Gris would turn out to be the last judicial duel sanctioned by the Parlement of Paris. 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.. Does he truly believe his innocence at the end? Affleck reflects of Le Gris. More. Recognizing the courtier, who claimed to have come to ask a favor and warm himself by the fire, she allowed him to enter the house, at which point he turned the conversation to Le Gris, saying, The squire loves you passionately, he will do anything for you, and he greatly desires to speak to you. Alarmed by the sudden shift in tone, Marguerite attempted to rebuke Louvel, only to turn around and see Le Gris, whod snuck in through the unlocked door. There is a brief coda that reveals Marguerite outlived her husband and never remarried. Some have echoed Count Pierres dismissive decree, saying that Marguerite made it all up, perhaps to cover up an affair with another man. 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. Say nothing, and I will keep quiet, too. In response, Marguerite said, I will keep quiet. When Carrouges returned home three or four days after Marguerites rape, he found his wife sad and tearful, always unhappy in expression and demeanor, and not at all her usual self. She waited until the two were alone before revealing what had happened and urging her husband to seek vengeance against Le Gris. Only Le Gris alibi survives in the court records, but if Louvel had separate witnesses who placed him elsewhere at the time of the crime, their testimony would have exonerated Le Gris as well, just as Le Gris alibi would have helped exonerate Louvel. Yet Adam Louvel reportedly confessed to nothing, not even under torture. The Last Duel ending explained - how close is it to the true story of Marguerite de Carrouges? Carrouges died roughly a decade after the duel, falling in combat against the Ottoman Turks. . With the understanding that your truth may not be somebody elses truth. 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. Directed by Ridley Scott, the movie stars Matt Damon as Carrouges, Adam Driver as Le Gris and Jodie Comer as Carrouges second wife, Marguerite. Famiglietti claimed that Carrouges, after learning that Marguerite had been raped, resolved to turn the rape to his advantage and forced his wife to agree to accuse Jacques of having been the man who raped her. In this view, Marguerite accused the wrong man not in honest error but in knowing collusion (or fearful compliance) with her husband. As might be expected, the deadly trial by combat before the huge crowd of spectators unfolds with genuine drama and suspense. He strucks a belly of Le Gris's horse with his axe. Theres a certain arrogance rooted in that assumption. Historical scandals, much like the contemporary ones filling our tabloids, news sites, and now-ubiquitous Facebook feeds, are built on a widely shared sense of certainty about what really happeneda feeling that often belies the elusive truth. Rather, it was the last judicial duel sanctioned by the Parlement of Parisa decision possibly motivated by the decidedly unchivalrous nature of the event. 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. As per the rules of the duel, whoever loses the battle would be proven guilty of his crimes. After dismounting, Carrouges and Le Gris fought on foot with swords, both very valiantly. But Le Gris managed to get within Carrouges defenses and wound him in the thigh. Dust off your 14th-century French history books, folks. The actor continues, Its an anti-chivalry movie in some sense because the great illusion of chivalry is that it was about [protecting] the innocent female. The combat was decreed on December 29, 1386 in Paris. 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. [3] Marguerite de Carrouges (ne de Thibouville; 1362, Chteau de Fontaine-la-Soret (Eure) c. 1419) was a French noblewoman. The Parlement ultimately failed to reach a verdict, and in September it officially ordered a trial by combat, wherein theoryGod would assure a just outcome. 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. When would she choose to speak out in this way? This cruel error moved the Parlement to systematically reject all appeals for the duelThis was the end of judicial combat., A similar story is retailed by the famed eleventh edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica (191011), which likewise gives the erroneous date of 1385 and has the rapist attacking the lady by night, although here in the guise of her husband as she awaits his return from the Crusadesan implausible bed trick recalling the story of Martin Guerre. Later encyclopedia entries echoed this view, seemingly solidifying the question of Le Gris innocence. Like, I couldnt have gotten there. The trial by combat would decide whether she had told the truthand thus whether she would live or die. But when he returned a few days later and heard his wifes story, he angrily brought charges against Le Gris in the court of Count Pierre of Alenon, overlord to both men. Which, to us, was more interesting and, to us, ultimately made it more about an examination of an entire system that was assaulting this woman from the moment she was born.. And in fact it was a code, a manner of behavior that denied womens basic humanity.. (Le Gris and Carrouges both started out as squires and vassals to Count Pierre, but Carrouges was knighted for his military service in 1385.) Even Le Gris believed she was victimized - just not by him. They were very religious. Carrouges, now in control, shouted one word at his enemy: Confess. 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. ( 20 th Century Studios ) At the time, the French were engaged in a bitter conflict with the English. The two combatants sat their horses very prettily, writes Froissart, for both were skilled in arms. Duels of honor, as well as judicial duels authorized by other governing bodies, continued to take place centuries after Carrouges triumph. 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. Speak without regard for the consequences, and it is too late for silence when disaster strikes.