The Last Duel
Encyclopedia
The Last Duel is a book by Eric Jager
. It tells the story of the December 29, 1386 trial by combat
between Norman knight Jean de Carrouges
and the squire Jacques Le Gris
. Carrouges had accused Le Gris of raping his wife Marguerite de Carrouges, nee de Thibouville, that previous January, and had gone to King Charles VI
seeking an appeal to the decision handed down by Count Pierre d'Alençon, whom Carrouges believed favored Le Gris. Whichever combatant still alive at the end of the duel would be declared the winner as a sign of God's will. If Jean de Carrouges lost the duel, Marguerite de Carrouges would be burned at the stake as punishment for her false accusation.
This was the last officially recognized judicial duel fought in France.
Filmmaker Martin Scorsese
has optioned the book as a future motion picture that he will produce and possibly direct. Early casting rumors claim that, even though the two men were in their early fifties at the time of the duel, Matt Damon
(b. 1970) is being considered for the part of Jean de Carrouges
, while Leonardo DiCaprio
(b. 1974) is being considered to play against type as Jacques Le Gris, the alleged rapist. If these rumors turn out to be true, it will be the second time that Matt Damon and Leonardo DiCaprio will be in a movie directed by Martin Scorsese, the first being the Academy Awards
Best Picture winner The Departed
(2006).
The Last Duel, a drama-documentary based on the book and including comments by Jager was broadcast by BBC Four
as part of a medieval-themed season on April 24, 2008. An abridged version of the book was read by Robert Glenister
on BBC Radio 4
as Book of the Week
between Monday 10 and Friday 14 January 2005.
Eric Jager
Eric Jager is an American literary critic and a specialist in medieval literature. He is a professor in the department of English at University of California, Los Angeles, received his B.A. from Calvin College in 1979, and his Ph.D. from the University of Michigan in 1987...
. It tells the story of the December 29, 1386 trial by combat
Trial by combat
Trial by combat was a method of Germanic law to settle accusations in the absence of witnesses or a confession, in which two parties in dispute fought in single combat; the winner of the fight was proclaimed to be right. In essence, it is a judicially sanctioned duel...
between Norman knight Jean de Carrouges
Jean de Carrouges
Sir Jean de Carrouges IV was a fourteenth century French knight who governed estates in Normandy as a vassal of Count Pierre d'Alençon and served under Admiral Jean de Vienne in several campaigns against the English and the forces of the Ottoman Empire...
and the squire Jacques Le Gris
Jacques Le Gris
Sir Jacques Le Gris was a squire and knight in fourteenth century France who gained fame and infamy when he engaged in the last judicial duel permitted by the Parlement of Paris after he was accused of rape by the wife of his neighbour and rival Sir Jean de Carrouges...
. Carrouges had accused Le Gris of raping his wife Marguerite de Carrouges, nee de Thibouville, that previous January, and had gone to King Charles VI
Charles VI of France
Charles VI , called the Beloved and the Mad , was the King of France from 1380 to 1422, as a member of the House of Valois. His bouts with madness, which seem to have begun in 1392, led to quarrels among the French royal family, which were exploited by the neighbouring powers of England and Burgundy...
seeking an appeal to the decision handed down by Count Pierre d'Alençon, whom Carrouges believed favored Le Gris. Whichever combatant still alive at the end of the duel would be declared the winner as a sign of God's will. If Jean de Carrouges lost the duel, Marguerite de Carrouges would be burned at the stake as punishment for her false accusation.
This was the last officially recognized judicial duel fought in France.
Filmmaker Martin Scorsese
Martin Scorsese
Martin Charles Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. In 1990 he founded The Film Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to film preservation, and in 2007 he founded the World Cinema Foundation...
has optioned the book as a future motion picture that he will produce and possibly direct. Early casting rumors claim that, even though the two men were in their early fifties at the time of the duel, Matt Damon
Matt Damon
Matthew Paige "Matt" Damon is an American actor, screenwriter, and philanthropist whose career was launched following the success of the film Good Will Hunting , from a screenplay he co-wrote with friend Ben Affleck...
(b. 1970) is being considered for the part of Jean de Carrouges
Jean de Carrouges
Sir Jean de Carrouges IV was a fourteenth century French knight who governed estates in Normandy as a vassal of Count Pierre d'Alençon and served under Admiral Jean de Vienne in several campaigns against the English and the forces of the Ottoman Empire...
, while Leonardo DiCaprio
Leonardo DiCaprio
Leonardo Wilhelm DiCaprio is an American actor and film producer. He has received many awards, including a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor for his performance in The Aviator , and has been nominated by the Academy Awards, Screen Actors Guild and the British Academy of Film and Television...
(b. 1974) is being considered to play against type as Jacques Le Gris, the alleged rapist. If these rumors turn out to be true, it will be the second time that Matt Damon and Leonardo DiCaprio will be in a movie directed by Martin Scorsese, the first being the Academy Awards
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
Best Picture winner The Departed
The Departed
The Departed is a 2006 American crime thriller film, fashioned as a remake of the 2002 Hong Kong film Infernal Affairs. The film was directed by Martin Scorsese and written by William Monahan...
(2006).
The Last Duel, a drama-documentary based on the book and including comments by Jager was broadcast by BBC Four
BBC Four
BBC Four is a British television network operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation and available to digital television viewers on Freeview, IPTV, satellite and cable....
as part of a medieval-themed season on April 24, 2008. An abridged version of the book was read by Robert Glenister
Robert Glenister
Robert Lewis Glenister is a British actor known for his roles as con man Ash "Three Socks" Morgan in the British TV series Hustle, and Nicholas Blake in the BBC spy drama Spooks.-Career:...
on BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
as Book of the Week
Book of the Week
Book of the Week is a BBC Radio 4 series broadcast daily on week days. Each week the selected book, always a non-fiction work, is read in five episodes; each fifteen-minute episode is broadcast in the morning and repeated overnight . The Act of Worship replaces the morning broadcast on...
between Monday 10 and Friday 14 January 2005.