{"product_id":"the-last-duel-a-true-story-of-crime-scandal-and-trial-by-combat-paperback","title":"The Last Duel: A True Story of Crime, Scandal, and Trial by Combat - Paperback","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eEric Jager\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eNEW YORK TIMES \u003c\/i\u003eBESTSELLER - NOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE - \"A taut page-turner with all the hallmarks of a good historical thriller.\"--\u003ci\u003eOrlando Sentinel\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe gripping true story of the duel to end all duels in medieval France as a resolute knight defends his wife's honor against the man she accuses of a heinous crime\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIn 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 will also leave Marguerite's fate in the balance. For if her husband loses the duel, she will be put to death as a false accuser. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWhile 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 the final duel ever authorized by the Parlement of Paris, a fierce fight with lance, sword, and dagger before a massive crowd that includes the teenage King Charles VI, during which both combatants are wounded--but only one fatally. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eBased on extensive research in Normandy and Paris, \u003ci\u003eThe Last Duel\u003c\/i\u003e brings to life a colorful, turbulent age and three unforgettable characters caught in a fatal triangle of crime, scandal, and revenge. \u003ci\u003eThe Last Duel\u003c\/i\u003e 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.\u003ch3\u003eFront Jacket\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eAs the huge crowd seethed with pent-up excitement, the two deadly enemies studied each other intently, their breath hot behind their visors. Each sought the other's death as fire and water seek each other's annihilation. The walled field, at first a prison, now became a crucible where one man would be destroyed and the other purged in the name of justice. They would fight not only without quarter, but also without rules. And a horrible fate awaited the lady if her husband should lose . . . \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe gripping, atmospheric true story of the duel to end all duels\" in medieval France: a trial by combat pitting a knight against a squire accused of violating the knight's beautiful young wife \u003cbr\u003eIn 1386, a few days after Christmas, a huge crowd gathers at a Paris monastery to watch the two men fight a duel to the death meant to \"prove\" which man's cause is right in God's sight. The dramatic true story of the knight, the squire, and the lady unfolds during the devastating Hundred Years War between France and England, as enemy troops pillage the land, madness haunts the French court, the Great Schism splits the Church, Muslim armies threaten Christendom, and rebellion, treachery, and plague turn the lives of all into toys of Fortune.\u003cbr\u003eAt the heart of the tale is Jean de Carrouges, a Norman knight who returns from combat in Scotland to find his wife, Marguerite, accusing Jacques LeGris, her husband's old friend and fellow courtier, of brutally raping her. The knight takes his cause before the teenage King Charles VI, the highest judge in France. Amid LeGris's vociferous claims of innocence and doubts about the now pregnant Marguerite's charges (and about the paternity of her child), thedeadlocked court decrees a \"trial by combat\" that leaves her fate, too, in the balance. For if her husband and champion loses the duel, she will be put to death as a false accuser. \u003cbr\u003eCarrouges and LeGris, in full armor, eventually meet on a walled field in Paris before a massive crowd that includes the king and many nobles of the realm. A fierce fight on horseback and then on foot ensues during which both combatants suffer wounds--but only one fatal. The violent and tragic episode was notorious in its own time because of the nature of the alleged crime, the legal impasse it provoked, and the resulting trial by combat, an ancient but increasingly suspect institution that was thereafter abolished. \u003cbr\u003eBased 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. It is at once a moving human drama, a captivating detective story, and an engrossing work of historical intrigue.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eEric Jager\u003c\/b\u003e holds a Ph.D. from the University of Michigan and has also taught at Columbia University. An award-winning professor of English at UCLA, he is the author of two previous books, including \u003ci\u003eThe Book of the Heart\u003c\/i\u003e (a study of heart imagery in medieval literature) and numerous articles for acclaimed academic journals. He lives in Los Angeles.\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 256\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.7 x 7.8 x 5.2 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e September 13, 2005\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51978569875757,"sku":"9780767914178","price":19.39,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0938\/3185\/6429\/files\/bkwvdE5sbEJjeEtGV3VrMStzbSswdz09.webp?v=1775805878","url":"https:\/\/ishookbooks.com\/products\/the-last-duel-a-true-story-of-crime-scandal-and-trial-by-combat-paperback","provider":"iShook Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}