Alain Blanchard

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Alain Blanchard (born 14th century, executed in Rouen in 1419) was a commander of the crossbowmen of Rouen during the Hundred Years' War.

He was active in the defence of the city during its siege by king Henry V of England. His habit of hanging English captives from the walls of the city incurred the wrath of the English.[citation needed] When the city capitulated on 20 January 1419 Henry demanded that three notable inhabitants be surrendered to be decapitated. One of them was Alain Blanchard.

In literature

As a symbol of resistance to English power in France, Blanchard became a heroic figure in French literature. He is the hero of a

François-Adrien Boïeldieu. He is also presented in two poems by Auguste Thorel de Saint-Martin (1815) and Émile Coquatrix (1847) and of a story by P. Dumesnil
(1849).

Bibliography