From this we see that Jean de Montreuil was a man of action, but we know him also as a man of letters. He wrote De Gestis et factis memorabilibus Francorum, dedicated to Gerson, certain works in refutation of the claims of Edward III. to the French throne (circ. 1400), and a large number of letters. His latinity was above the average of his time, but he tried to treat Latin like a living language, i.e., as a means of expression for all his ideas.
He was charged with paganism because he inscribed the ten laws of Lycurgus on the portico of his house, and confessed that he preferred them to evangelical principles. This is in the spirit of the real Renaissance, divided between faith and reason. This dilemma, whatever may be said, separates the Middle Ages from the Renaissance, since each age gives a different answer to the question. Jean de Montreuil is already abandoning the ideas of the Middle Ages and recommending those of the Renaissance. Therefore in his way he is an innovator and a precursor of the new time. His attitude in this matter is inseparably connected with the quarrel concerning the Roman de la Rose which, while it is a most ancient literary quarrel, is really moral and religious in nature. (Cf. Lavisse, Histoire de France, 1908, t. IV. (A. Coville), and A. Thomas, op. cit.)
[19] Cf. [document XI].
[20] Cf. A. Thomas, op. cit., p. 41-2.
[21] Ibid., p. 38.
[22] v. [Appendix].
[23] For a brief sketch of the life of Gontier Col, cf. M. Roy, Oeuvres poétiques de Christine de Pisan, t. II., pp. V-VI.
[24] Cf. M. Méon, Roman de la Rose, t. III., p. 331 sqq.
[25] Cf. also Bib. nat. fr. 1563, fol. 180 a. sqq.
[26] The policy of the duc d’Orléans was opposed to that of the duc de Bourgogne not only in France, but also with regard to the empire as a whole. He took the side of Wenceslas, rival for the crown of the empire of Robert of Bavaria. He used this position to repair his losses in Italy by acquiring possessions and position elsewhere, and succeeded so well that he was able in 1402 to occupy part of Luxembourg. The danger of this new power became so great that in December 1402, the diet of Spires discussed means of minimizing it. (Cf. Lavisse, Histoire de France, t. IV., p. 327-8).