Royal Grace, Royal Punishment: Ceremonial Entries and the Pardoning of Criminals in France, c. 1440–1560

Abstract

This chapter examines the process by which criminals were pardoned during a ceremonial entry, and seeks to understand what this tells us about both the nature of royal justice and the interaction between the French crown and its municipal elites during this period. There were close links between punishment and mercy, and royal entries often followed the exact same processional route as that used for executions and punishments. Significant developments were made in the provision of royal mercy between the mid-fifteenth and mid-sixteenth centuries. The ability of royal women to issue pardons was not seen as an intrinsic right of their royal status. Rather, it was seen as an extension of their husband or father's position as king, from whom they derived their authority. During the second half of the fifteenth century the right to pardon at entries was increasingly understood to be a right pertaining to the king alone. Keywords: ceremonial entries; criminals; French crown; pardons; royal justice; royal punishment; royal women