Jean de Joinville

Jean de Joinville (1224-1319) was one of the great chroniclers of medieval France. He served King Louis IX of France, whom he followed on crusade in 1248, abandoning his family. Any enthusiasm he felt for the mission was soon knocked out of him, and he felt no inclination to join future crusades. However, he did act as a witness to those responsible for the canonisation of the late king, in 1282. At the request of Jeanne of Navarre, the queen, he began work on the Histoire de Saint Louis, which he completed in 1309.

References

The Memoirs of the Lord of Joinville, translated by Ethel Wood