Martin Guerre Case Study

The High Court of Toulouse on the date of September 12, 1560, held a case regarding Martin Guerre, his wife Bertrande de Rols, and the imposter claiming to be Martin Guerre with his real identity portraying to Arnault du Tilh  . Recorded by Jean de Coras, the counselor and recorder of the trial in the High Court of Toulouse, the case records stored until 1572 when, with royal permissions, it was released and printed to the public. Since the original document is in 16th century French, it has been translated by both Jeannette K. Ringold and Janet Lewis into Modern-day English. The source is a documental account of the trial between the prescribed peoples on the identity of the false Martin Guerre, truly to be Arnault du Tilh, written and recorded by the counselor of the trial, Jean de Coras. At first, this document was not allowed to be viewed by the public until 1572 when it was printed  . 

The court records were transcribed to be used if needed for the current trial or any future trial contenting a similar premise. We don’t truly know just from this source alone on its use case by taking in many different usages of this type of source leads up to the direction in which this source was likely used before it was published. As such for this source when the Judge of Rieux, who presided over the first trial, sentenced du Tilh, he within his right appealed to the higher court of Toulouse where this source originates. 

The source starts by describing from the high court’s perspective of Jean de Coras the court case from the County of Rieux, in which the wife of the real Martin Guerre explains to the court the reason why she has brought her “husband” to court. Describing that over the last 3 years of them being together after he returned from an almost 8-year hiatus due to a disagreement with some theft of wheat. She came to realize that her supposed husband that had returned was in truth an imposter who fooled her and a good majority of the family as well. Over the course of these three years, children were sired by the false Martin. Giving way to de Rols asking for a lengthy sentence asking for in short, “double penance against the said du Tilh: atonement by asking forgiveness of God, of the King, and of de Rols: ...”  . She goes on to proclaim other forms of punishment she demands of the court for repentance. After a rather complicated case between both sides, including over “one hundred and fifty witnesses heard”  , the Judge of Rieux declared du Tilh guilty of said crimes and was sentenced to be executed  . 

He quickly appeals the case to the High Court of Toulouse, as said, and the Judges of the High Court looked over the court documents from the original case from Rieux. Throughout the entire court trail, until the real Martin Guerre would appear “as if by miracle”  .  This entire trial shows the basics of how the Judges and the court system worked back in the time of 16th century France, or at minimal in the province of Toulouse.