The case for the defence

Born 1404
Executed 1440
Exonerated 1992

It is now widely accepted that the trial of Gilles de Rais was a miscarriage of justice. He was a great war hero on the French side; his judges were pro-English and had an interest in blackening his name and, possibly, by association, that of Jehanne d'Arc. His confession was obtained under threat of torture and also excommunication, which he dreaded. A close examination of the testimony of his associates, in particular that of Poitou and Henriet, reveals that they are almost identical and were clearly extracted by means of torture. Even the statements of outsiders, alleging the disappearance of children, mostly boil down to hearsay; the very few cases where named children have vanished can be traced back to the testimony of just eight witnesses. There was no physical evidence to back up this testimony, not a body or even a fragment of bone. His judges also stood to gain from his death: in fact, Jean V Duke of Brittany, who enabled his prosecution, disposed of his share of the loot before de Rais was even arrested.

In France, the subject of his probable innocence is far more freely discussed than it is in the English-speaking world. In 1992 a Vendéen author named Gilbert Prouteau was hired by the Breton tourist board to write a new biography. Prouteau was not quite the tame biographer that was wanted and his book, Gilles de Rais ou la gueule du loup, argued that Gilles de Rais was not guilty. Moreover, he summoned a special court to re-try the case, which sensationally resulted in an acquittal. As of 1992, Gilles de Rais is an innocent man.

In the mid-1920s he was even put forward for beatification, by persons unknown. He was certainly not the basis for Bluebeard, this is a very old story which appears all over the world in different forms.

Le 3 janvier 1443... le roi de France dénonçait le verdict du tribunal piloté par l'Inquisition.
Charles VII adressait au duc de Bretagne les lettres patentes dénonçant la machination du procès du maréchal: "Indûment condamné", tranche le souverain. Cette démarche a été finalement étouffée par l'Inquisition et les intrigues des grands féodaux. (Gilbert Prouteau)

Two years after the execution the King granted letters of rehabilitation for that 'the said Gilles, unduly and without cause, was condemned and put to death'. (Margaret Murray)



Monday 16 September 2024

Gilda Rice, the Dark Knight of Paris, and other AI Horrors

YouTube has looked favourably on Artificial Intelligence for some years, but it is only quite recently that it has impinged on my little corner of history. Over the past few months a suspicious number of shorts about Gilles de Rais have been appearing. They all have brand new illustrations, although they mostly do not look particularly fifteenth century.. 

The main giveaway is that the integral subtitles, and sometimes even the titles themselves, are laughably misspelt. So we find -
Giold de Rais
Gilda Rice
Jilas Derais
Gillister Rice
Gil Dorae
Giladerese
Gila Deriz
Giel da Reyes
He is routinely called Jill. At one point his surname is rendered as Darius.
Prelati is once memorably rendered as "Pilate". 

Please note, these are not the auto-generated subtitles YouTube provides, which are routinely hilarious. These are part of the videos and cannot be turned off and on. 

So far so funny, but the content is similarly distorted. Bizarrely, Gilles is executed by guillotine in one video. AI really cannot cope with his mode of death, so he may be hanged, burned, hanged and burned (not necessarily in that order), or sentenced to be burned but the sentence commuted to hanging.

One of his alleged crimes is "prostitution", apparently. There is a reference to Brittany, France, which is as wrong as it gets. The title I borrowed for this post is real; there are now people in YouTubeland who think that Gilles (or Gilda) stalked the streets of Paris like a French Jack the Ripper. For the record, Paris was occupied by the Burgundian allies of the English; Jehanne was unable to liberate it and Gilles never set foot inside its walls. 

Certain phrases, mostly connected with satanic rituals and a descent into infamy, are recycled endlessly. AI clearly feeds on clickbait, and when it starts feeding on itself we shall really see some fun. 

And if this is happening to Gilles de Rais, imagine the other disinformation being created out there, and the knuckle-dragging mouth-breathers who will swallow it unquestioningly. 

Now more than ever, just because you read it on the internet does not make it true. Caveat lector.



Gilles de Rais rides a bike in Hartlepool, AI image courtesy of David J Allenby 


 

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