Eric Jager 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 The Book of the Heart (a study of heart imagery in medieval literature) and numerous articles for acclaimed academic journals. He lives in Los Angeles.
“Succeeds brilliantly in combining page-turning intensity with
eye-opening insights into the bizarre ritual of judicial combat in
the Middle Ages.”—The Times (London)
“This high-suspense, sanguinary tale ensnares readers. . . . The
tension is nearly unendurable. . . . Sex, savagery, and high-level
political maneuvers energize a splendid piece of popular
history.” —Kirkus Reviews
“An enthralling story that reads like fiction but is based on
reliable sources. A world of passion, cruelty, and mismanaged law.”
—Norman Cantor, author of Inventing the Middle Ages and In the Wake
of the Plague
“If you read only one book about the Middle Ages, Eric Jager’s
thriller is the one to read.” —Steven Ozment, author of A Mighty
Fortress and The Burgermeister’s Daughter
“Eric Jager uses the historical record to marvelous effect when
recounting the riveting story of two men locked in mortal combat. .
. . Two worlds duel in this fascinating portrait of an end of an
age-the feudal aristocracy and the chivalric court—and who we deem
the true victor is brilliantly left open to interpretation in
Jager’s engrossing tale.” —Margaret F. Rosenthal, author of The
Honest Courtesan
“A spectacular panorama of the late Middle Ages. . . a historical
thriller that leaves us with the impression of having known and
lived in another world. It combines the vivid erudition of Barbara
Tuchman’s Distant Mirror with the suspense and drama of Umberto
Eco’s Name of the Rose. Eric Jager has invented a genre that
reminds us that human nature has not changed very much over the
ages and that sometimes reality is bigger than life and more
riveting than fiction.” —R. Howard Bloch, Augustus R. Street
Professor of French, Yale University
In 1386, Jean de Carrouges accused his former friend, Jacques LeGris, of raping his wife, and the young king of France allowed their dispute to be resolved in what was to be the last legally ordered judicial combat in Paris. Jager deftly blends this story with the background necessary to understand it: the ideas behind trial by combat, the realities of 14th-century marriage, the complexity of the regional and central powers in France, and the personal rivalries at court. Jager describes a harsh and violent era, when public executions were a form of entertainment and both commoners and elites eagerly anticipated the increasingly rare duel to the death. But it was also a time of lawyers, chroniclers and ceremony. Jager doesn't condescend to the people of medieval France but explains the complicated logic by which they could believe that a duel would prove guilt or innocence, pregnancy could be considered proof that sex had been consensual, and a lady could be convicted and executed as a false accuser if her champion lost. A brief history of the duel demonstrates its origins in age-old military tradition rather than divine providence. Jager acknowledges where the definitive facts of his story are unknown while presenting a riveting account that will satisfy general readers and historians alike. Agent, Glen Hartley for Writers Representatives. (Sept.) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.
"Succeeds brilliantly in combining page-turning intensity with
eye-opening insights into the bizarre ritual of judicial combat in
the Middle Ages."-The Times (London)
"This high-suspense, sanguinary tale ensnares readers. . . . The
tension is nearly unendurable. . . . Sex, savagery, and high-level
political maneuvers energize a splendid piece of popular history."
-Kirkus Reviews
"An enthralling story that reads like fiction but is based on
reliable sources. A world of passion, cruelty, and mismanaged law."
-Norman Cantor, author of Inventing the Middle Ages and
In the Wake of the Plague
"If you read only one book about the Middle Ages, Eric Jager's
thriller is the one to read." -Steven Ozment, author of A
Mighty Fortress and The Burgermeister's Daughter
"Eric Jager uses the historical record to marvelous effect when
recounting the riveting story of two men locked in mortal combat. .
. . Two worlds duel in this fascinating portrait of an end of an
age-the feudal aristocracy and the chivalric court-and who we deem
the true victor is brilliantly left open to interpretation in
Jager's engrossing tale." -Margaret F. Rosenthal, author of The
Honest Courtesan
"A spectacular panorama of the late Middle Ages. . . a historical
thriller that leaves us with the impression of having known and
lived in another world. It combines the vivid erudition of Barbara
Tuchman's Distant Mirror with the suspense and drama of
Umberto Eco's Name of the Rose. Eric Jager has invented a
genre that reminds us that human nature has not changed very much
over the ages and that sometimes reality is bigger than life and
more riveting than fiction." -R. Howard Bloch, Augustus R.
Street Professor of French, Yale University
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