Biography of Gilles de Rais 1404 - 1440

Gilles de Rais was a French noblemen and noted soldier of the fourteenth century who was tried and executed for the murder and torture of numerous children. He is now remembered chiefly as a historical serial killer, but may have been innocent. Gilles de Rais as Noble and Commander Gilles de Laval, Lord of Rais (thus known as Gilles de (of) Rais), was born in 1404 at Champtocà © castle, Anjou, France. His parents were heirs to wealthy land holdings: the lordship of Rais and part of the Laval family possessions on his father’s side and lands belonging to a branch of the Craon family through his mother’s side. He also married into a wealthy line in 1420, uniting with Catherine de Thouars. Consequently Gilles was once of the richest men in the whole of Europe by his teens. He has been described as keeping a more lavish court than even the French king, and he was a great patron of the arts. By 1420 Gilles was fighting in the wars over the succession rights to the Duchy of Brittany, before being involved in the Hundred Years War, fighting against the English in 1427. Having proved himself an able, if brutal and low level, commander, Gilles found himself alongside Joan of Arc, taking part in several battles with her, including the famed rescue of Orlà ©ans in 1429. Thanks to his success, and the crucial influence of Gilles’ cousin, Georges de Ka Trà ©moille, Gilles became a favorite of King Charles VII, who appointed Gilles Marshall of France in 1429; Gilles was only 24 years old. He spent more time with Jeanne’s forces until her capture. The scene was set for Gilles to go on and have a major career, after all, the French were beginning their victory in the Hundred Years War. Gilles de Rais as Serial Killer By 1432 Gilles de Rais had largely retreated to his estates, and we dont really know why. At some stage his interests turned to alchemy and the occult, perhaps after an order, sought by his family in 1435, barred him from selling or mortgaging anymore of his lands and he needed money to continue his lifestyle. He also, possibly, began the kidnap, torture, rape and murder of children, with the number of victims ranging from 30 to upwards of 150 given by different commentators. Some accounts claim this ended up costing GIlles more money as he invested in occult practices which didnt work but cost regardless. We have avoided giving too much detail on Gilles crimes here, but if youre interested a search on the web will bring up the accounts. With one eye on these infractions, and possibly another on seizing Gilles’ land and possessions, the Duke of Brittany and the Bishop of Nantes moved to arrest and prosecute him. He was seized in September 1440 and tried by both ecclesiastical and civil courts. At first he claimed to be not guilty, but â€Å"confessed† under threat of torture, which is no confession at all; the ecclesiastical court found him guilty of heresy, the civil court guilty of murder. He was sentenced to death and hanged on October 26th 1440, being held up as a model of penitence for recanting and apparently accepting his fate. There is an alternative school of thought, one which argues that Gilles de Rais was set-up by the authorities, who had an interest in taking what remained of his wealth, and was actually innocent. The fact his confession was extracted through threat of torture is cited as evidence of severe doubt. Gilles wouldnt be the first European who was set up so people could take wealth, and remove power, by jealous rivals, and the Knights Templar are a very famous example, while Countess Bathory is in much the same position as Gilles, only in her case it looks very likely she was set up instead of just possible. Bluebeard The character of Bluebeard, recorded in a seventeenth century collection of fairy tales called Contes de ma mà ¨re l’oye (Tales of Mother Goose), is believed to be partly based on Breton folk tales which are, in turn, partly based on Gilles de Rais, although the murders have become of wives rather than children.

European Competition Law And Policy - 1335 Words

This essay will analyse European competition law and policy to ascertain the values and characteristics that serve as its foundation. First, this essay will give a brief outline of competition and the significance of competition law and policy. Subsequently, this essay will give an explanation of the values behind European competition law and policy, which are consumer welfare, economic efficiency and economic freedom. The values will incorporate Articles 101 and 102 TFEU along with reference to the Chicago school of competition analysis and ordoliberalism. Competition occurs in a free market economy where firms will endeavour to achieve business objectives which adapt according to interactions with consumers. These objectives are profits, sales or market share. Competition is essential for a properly functioning market as firms will be placed under competitive pressure to provide consumers with a comprehensive choice of goods and services at the most favourable prices. In a free market economy, government regulations or restrictions are not applied in this economic system. Instead, it is determined by supply and demand which directs the production of goods and services. The premise of a free market is competition between firms to enable increased consumer welfare while promoting innovation and efficiency as there will be lower prices and products of better quality. For competition to be effective in a free market economy, it must be protected by competition law andShow MoreRelatedThe Application Of The Eu Competition Law1220 Words    |  5 PagesThesis on Competition Law according to the Community ACQUIS at UNIVERSITY OF EUROPEAN STUDIES IN MOLDOVA, FACULTY OF LAW. Chapter III. The application of the EU Competition Law in the Republic of Moldova. 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Macbeth Themes Essay Example For Students

Macbeth Themes Essay William Shakespeare, in his tragic play Macbeth, written in 1606, dramatizes theunrelenting power of deception, insanity, and greed which ultimately results inthe demise of Macbeth. Macbeth allowed his desire to become king overrule hisjudgement which consummately terminated his existence. The play is full ofpestilence and set in Scotland during the eleventh century. In Macbeth,sleeplessness is an important motif that permeates the dramatic structure. Shakespeare uses this fatigue to substantiate the guilt of Macbeth, to representsubconscious insanity, and to show a foreshadowing of bad things to come. Themotif serves to dramatize the true overview of how the characters are handlingthe various tragedies that occur. Initially, the motif of sleeplessness is usedas a model of foreshadowing. For example, in Act II, scene i, Banquo finds ithard to sleep the night Macbeth is supposed to kill King Duncan. This isevidence that evil things will occur throughout the play. Furthermore, in ActII, scene ii, while Macbeth was killing Duncan, Malcolm and Donalbain arose intheir sleep. One laughed and the other cried murder. This is theirsleeplessness foreshadowing because Duncan was dead, even though the brothersdid not know it yet. Shakespeares use of the sleeplessness motif asforeshadowing allows the reader to get a concept of what evil will come in thefuture. Not only does Shakespeare use sleeplessness for foreshadowing he alsouses it as a mo de of guilt. For example, in Act II, scene ii, Macbeth thinks hehears a voice say, Sleep no more! Macbeth does murder sleep! This isMacbeth imagining voices, telling him not to sleep because he is feeling immoraland liable for Duncans murder. Next, Macbeth is afraid to sleep peacefullybecause he knows that Duncan is in restless ecstasy(Act III, scene ii). Apparently, Macbeth is aware of his wrongdoing and feels culpable that he isking and alive, but only at the sacrifice of Duncan. By using guilt to showsleeplessness, Shakespeare shows that a corrupt crime can only leave the mindunsure and unable to rest. The most significant aspect of this motif, however,is how it is used to demonstrate the insanity of Macbeth and his wife. Forinstance, in Act II, scene iv, Macbeth is at dinner with Lennox, Ross, and otherlords. He sees ghosts and is apparently insane. This proves that all the sleepin the world could never clear Macbeth of his crime, he is already destroyed. Inaddition, Lady Macbeth sleep walks and hallucinates a spot of blood on her handsin Act V, scene i. This proves that she has gone crazy as well. She cannot sleepbecause she is trying to remove the spot, which represents guilt. The strong useof insanity as a moving force in the play causes the reader to understand thatMacbeth and Lady Macbeth cannot rid themselves of their evil d eeds. The playdemonstrates that the subconscious can allow evil things to occur. Thesleeplessness motif is significant because it shows how the characters in theplay deal with their stresses. The eerie use of sleeplessness added to the guiltof the characters, the foreshadowing of evil supplied a dark sensation, and theirony of insanity showed that the characters souls could not handle thecalamitous situations. Macbeth could not sleep because he was too guilt-ridden,which eventually drove him to the breaking point. Macbeths fate, foretold bythe witches, finally caught up to him and after his frighteningly sleeplessnights, he was now engrossed by the eternal sleep called death.

The Sword In The Stone Kay Gets What He Deserves Essays

The Sword In The Stone: Kay Gets What He Deserves At the end of The Sword in the Stone, it is true that Kay does receive the `rough end' of the deal because he, being the son of a noble and a knight, and the Wart, comparatively nothing but a squire to Kay became the King of England when Kay thought himself more qualified and better for the postition. However, throughout the Boy's childhood, Kay maintained the dominant position in their relationship. I think that it is only fair that in the end, justice is served and theWart gets to rule over Kay. When the boys were young, Kay maintained a dominant position over the Wart, constantly reminding and humiliating him by saying that he "was not a proper son" and "Kay seemed to regard this as making him inferior in some way". Because Kay constantly reminded the Wart that he "was not a proper son" and said that he was inferior, upsetting the Wart, he learned to simply give in to Kay and always let him get his own way. After this constant torment and opportunities only available to Kay, I think that it is only deserving that, in the end, the Wart becomes more powerful and important than Kay, Sir Ector and the other people who had always `ruled' him. I think that the Wart was a better person to Kay and although he may not have been superior to Kay, he certainly had a better personality and was kinder than Kay. With Merlyn's `education', the Wart learned not only how to lead well, but also to be a better person, and Merlyn taught him much about how to treat other people with respect and to relate better with them. When the Wart meets Robin Wood and Maid Marion, he learns through Marion that women are no different to men and should be treated equally. He is also taught the pointlessness of violence when he requests a joust between Sir Grummore and King Pellinore. Before the joust, Wart thinks that it is noble and brave to fight, but after seeing the Grummore-Pellinore joust, he thinks differently about it. He sees that there is nothing noble or brave about fighting to the death with a friend or fellow knight. Although Kay did get the `rough end' of the deal in the end, I think that he deserved it, after all the things he did to the Wart during their childhood. He held the dominant position for half of the boys' lives, and now the Wart holds the same position (in their relationship) for the later parts of their lives.