Maurice Druon's Les Rois maudits (The Accursed Kings) sequence of historical novels has been adapted twice as miniseries for French television.[1] [2] Dubbed "the French I, Claudius",[1] [3] the 1972 TV adaptation of Les Rois maudits was broadcast by the ORTF from 21 December 1972 to 24 January 1973 and has been called "hugely successful".[4] A joint French-Italian adaptation was broadcast on France 2 from 7 November to 28 November 2005.[5] [6]
| Role | 1972 Adaptation | 2005 Adaptation | Character description | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Robert of Artois | Jean Piat[7] | Philippe Torreton[8] | Lord of Conches and Count of Beaumont-le-Roger | |
| Mahaut of Artois | Hélène Duc[9] | Jeanne Moreau | Robert's aunt, and mother to Jeanne and Blanche | |
| Philip the Fair | Georges Marchal | Tchéky Karyo | King of France | |
| Louis, King of Navarre | Guillaume Depardieu | Philip's eldest son | ||
| Marguerite, Queen of Navarre | Hélène Fillières | Louis' wife | ||
| Philippe, Count of Poitiers | Josep Maria Flotats | Éric Ruf | Philip's second son | |
| Jeanne, Countess of Poitiers | Catherine Rich[10] [11] | Julie Depardieu | Philippe's wife and Blanche's sister | |
| Charles, Count of La Marche | Gilles Béhat | Louis and Philippe's younger brother | ||
| Blanche of Burgundy | Anne Malraux | Charles' wife and Jeanne's sister | ||
| Isabella, Queen of England | Julie Gayet | Philip's daughter, called the "She-Wolf of France" | ||
| Charles, Count of Valois | Jacques Spiesser | Philip's younger brother | ||
| Pierre Thorieton | Equerry to Philippe, Count of Poitiers, and lover of Blanche | |||
| Silvio Otteanu | Equerry to Charles, Count of Valois, and lover of Marguerite | |||
| Guillaume de Nogaret | Jacques Goasguen | Philip's prime councillor and keeper of the seal | ||
| Enguerrand de Marigny | André Falcon | Jean-Claude Drouot | Philip's coadjutor | |
| Hugues de Bouville | André Luguet | Jean-Claude Brialy | Philip's chamberlain | |
| Marguerite de Bouville | Bouville's wife | |||
| Jacques de Molay | Xavier Depraz | Gérard Depardieu | Grand Master of the Knights Templar | |
| Geoffroy de Charney | Ovidiu Ghinita | Templar Preceptor of Normandy | ||
| Régis Outin | Alin Otteanu | Templar Preceptor of Aquitaine | ||
| Spinello Tolomei | Louis Seigner | Luca Barbareschi | Siennese Lombard banker | |
| Guccio Baglioni | Giuseppe Solieri | Tolomei's nephew | ||
| Lormet | Georges Staquet | Julien Lucas | Robert of Artois' aide-de-camp | |
| Eliabel Cressay | Janine Crispin | Hélène Vincent | Widow of the Squire of Cressay | |
| Pierre Cressay | Patrick Préjean | Julien Tortora | Her son | |
| Jean Cressay | Jérôme Huguet | Her son | ||
| Ana Caterina Morariu | Her daughter | |||
| Portefruit | Philippe Uchan | Provost of Cressay | ||
| Everard | Jean-Pierre Jorris | Patrick Bouchitey | Knight of the Order of Templars | |
| Jean de Marigny | René Roussel | Michel Hermon | Archbishop of Sens and younger brother of Enguerrand de Marigny | |
| Béatrice d'Hirson | Catherine Rouvel | Jeanne Balibar | First lady-in-waiting to the Countess Mahaut | |
| Alain de Pareilles | Pierre Gallon | Edouard Nikitine | Captain of the King's Archers | |
| Robert Bersumée | Dan Badarau | Captain of the fortress Château Gaillard | ||
| Edward II of England | Michel Beaune | Christopher Buchholz | King of England and Isabella's husband | |
| Clémence of Hungary | Serena Autieri | Louis' second wife | ||
| Marie of Hungary | Denise Grey | Line Renaud | Clemence's grandmother | |
| Jeanne, Countess of Beaumont | Robert of Artois' wife | |||
| Eudeline | Claudine Raffali | Servant with whom Louis has an affair and a daughter | ||
| Philip of Valois | Benoît Brione | Malik Zidi | Son of Charles, Count of Valois | |
| Edward III of England | Aurélien Wiik | Son of Edward II and Isabella | ||
| Philippa of Hainault | Françoise Burgi | Marie de Villepin | Queen Consort of Edward III, daughter of Guillaume, Count of Hainaut and Holland | |
| Jeanne de Divion | Annie Bertin | Forger in Robert of Artois' employ | ||
| Eudes of Burgundy | C. Florescu | Brother of Marguerite, Queen of Navarre and Jeanne of Burgundy | ||
| Roger Mortimer | Claude Giraud | Bruno Todeschini | English baron and rebel | |
| Hugh Despenser the Younger | Andy Gillet | Favourite of Edward II | ||
| Lady Despenser | Florence Dunoyer | Angèle Humeau | Despenser's wife | |
| Jacques Duèze | Henri Virlogeux | Claude Rich | Cardinal who becomes Pope John XXII | |
| Gaucher de Châtillon | Jean Chevrier | Wadeck Stanczak | Constable of France | |
| Robert, Count of Clermont | Alexandre Rignault | Ioan Siminie | Paternal uncle of Philip the Fair | |
| Louis of Bourbon | Robert Nogaret | M. Radecu | Son of Robert, Count of Clermont | |
| Adam Orleton | Serge Maillat | Bishop of Hereford and ally of Roger Mortimer | ||
| Henry, 3rd Earl of Lancaster | Son of Edmund Crouchback and nephew of Edward I | |||
| John Maltravers | André Mathis | Reus Alexandru | Longtime friend and supporter of Roger Mortimer | |
| Giannino Baglioni (John the Posthumous) | Jean-Gérard Sandoz | Lorans Stoica | Son of Louis X and Clemence, raised in secret by Guccio Baglioni | |
| Souastre | Frédéric Laforet | Rebel baron in Artois | ||
| Ogle | Costica Barbulescu | Barber loyal to Roger Mortimer | ||
| Adam Héron | Michel Clainchy | George Ulmeni | Aide-de-camp of Philippe, Count of Poitiers | |
| Mathieu de Trie | Grégoire Aubuy-Taulère | Louis' chamberlain | ||
| Mircea Stohan | Chancellor of Phillipe V, Charles IV and Philippe VI | |||
| Louis, Count of Évreux | Robert Party | N/A | Philip the Fair's youngest brother | |
| Thierry d'Hirson | N/A | Béatrice d'Hirson's uncle | ||
| Jeanne of Burgundy | Ghislaine Porret | N/A | Sister of Marguerite, Queen of Navarre and Eudes of Burgundy; Philip of Valois' wife | |
| Miles de Noyers | N/A | Nephew of Gaucher V de Châtillon, Marshal of France under Philip the Fair and later advisor to Louis X, Philippe V, Charles IV and Philippe VI | ||
| Roger Mortimer the Elder | Samson Fainsilber | N/A | Mortimer's uncle | |
| Edmund, Earl of Kent | Eric Kruger | N/A | Half-brother to Edward II and cousin to the French royals | |
| Jean of Hainaut | N/A | Brother and general to Guillaume, Count of Hainaut and Holland | ||
| N/A | Chancellor of Charles of Valois | |||
| N/A | Philip's councillor | |||
| N/A | Cardinal | |||
| Napoleone Orsini | Pierre Marteville | N/A | Cardinal | |
| Jean de Forez | N/A | Supporter of Philippe, Count of Poitiers | ||
| Gérard de Alspaye | André Chazel | N/A | Guard at the Tower of London who aids in Mortimer's escape | |
| Jacob van Artevelde | Christian Barbier | N/A | Flemish merchant befriended by Robert of Artois | |
| William Montacute, 1st Earl of Salisbury | N/A | Longtime friend and supporter of Edward III | ||
| Narrator | Jean Desailly | N/A | ||
| Jeanne, Lady Mortimer | N/A | Valérie Lang | Mortimer's wife | |
| Jeanne of Navarre | N/A | Buciu Maria | Louis and Marguerite's daughter (4 years old) | |
| Young Eudeline | N/A | F. Besson | Louis and Eudeline's illegitimate daughter |
| No. | Title | Original Airdate | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Le Roi de fer" | ||
| 2 | "La Reine étranglée" | ||
| 3 | "Les Poisons de la couronne" | ||
| 4 | "La Loi des mâles" | ||
| 5 | "La Louve de France" | ||
| 6 | "Le Lys et le lion" |
| No. | Title | Original Airdate | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Le Roi de fer" | ||
| 2 | "La Reine étranglée" | ||
| 3 | "Les Poisons de la couronne" | ||
| 4 | "La Louve de France" | ||
| 5 | "Le Lys et le lion" |