The last duel : a true story of crime, scandal, and trial by combat
Edition
Crown trade paperback edition.
Publication Information
New York : Crown, 2021.
Physical Description
242 pages : illustrations, maps ; 21 cm.
Summary
"The gripping true story of the 'duel to end all duels' in medieval France as a resolute knight defends his wife's honor against the squire she accuses of a heinous crime. In the midst of the devastating Hundred Years' War between France and England, Jean de Carrouges, a Norman knight fresh from combat in Scotland, returns home to yet another deadly threat. His wife, Marguerite, has accused squire Jacques Le Gris of rape. A deadlocked court decrees a 'trial by combat' between the two men that also leaves Marguerite's fate in the balance. For if her husband loses the duel, she will be put to death as a false accuser. While enemy troops pillage the land, and rebellion and plague threaten the lives of all, Carrouges and Le Gris meet in full armor on a walled field in Paris. What follows is a fierce duel, the final one sanctioned by governing powers, before a massive crowd that includes the teenage King Charles VI, during which both combatants are wounded--but only one fatally. Based on extensive research in Normandy and Paris, THE LAST DUEL brings to life a colorful, turbulent age and three unforgettable characters caught in a fatal triangle of crime, scandal, and revenge. THE LAST DUEL is at once a moving human drama, a captivating true crime story, and an engrossing work of historical intrigue with themes that echo powerfully centuries later."--Provided by publisher.
Notes
"Now a major motion picture"--Cover.
Contents
- Carrouges
- The feud
- Battle and siege
- The crime of crimes
- The challenge
- The inquiry
- The judgment of god
- Oaths and las words
- Mortal combat
- Convent and crusade.