Joan of Arc: The Heroine of France

By: Daci Stovall

Introduction

Joan of Arc was a very confident and brave young woman. She loved her country and wanted to fight for her loved ones, Joan of Arc was born in the year 1412 and the place of her birth was in Domremy, France. Her real name is Jeanne d’Arc, but everyone called her Joan. Joan had mystical visions that started at the age of 10 that had shown that God called her to save France. The visions started to become more clear to Joan, and she knew right away and she was determined to renew the French nation no matter the cost it was to her. Her story is very empowering and represents that if you ever put your mind to something, you can do it no matter what.

Joan’s Background

Joan was the daughter of Jacques and Isabelle d’Arc. They were poor tenant farmers and Joan helped them on the farm as much as she could. She never went out far away from home, she took care of the animals and became quite skilled as a seamstress. Joan adored her mother and she learned devotion and domestic skills from her beloved mom. During the time of Joan’s birth, France was involved in a long-running war with England, named the Hundred Years’ War. The argument began over who would be the heir to the French throne. When Joan was just a child, at just the age of ten years old, she began to have mystical visions encouraging her to live a religious life. She said her vision included that she felt the voice of God calling out to her and ordered her to renew the French nation. Joan claimed that these visions were as real as seeing another person. She believed and was determined that she could do it. As she began to experience visions after visions, they began to appear more vivid. One vision she encountered left an imprint of importance. She had to reclaim, Charles, the heir to the throne, as the rightful king in France.

Meeting the Dauphin

“Joan was not gentle, her goal was heroic and wanted to save her country and king by fighting with courage and spirit.” (115, Shoyer) In May 1428, Joan’s vision directed her to go to Vaucouleurs and contact the garrison commander of Charles. At first, they refused Joan’s request, but after seeing all the villages’ approval, in 1429 he agreed to let her have a horse and an escort of several soldiers. Just as in the Disney movie, Mulan, Joan cut her hair and dressed in all men’s clothes for her 11-day journey across enemy territory to the site of Charles. Charles was not sure what to make of this poor girl who thought she could save France. Joan won Charles over when she perfectly-identified him when he was incognito, in a crowd of a ton of members,

Battle of Orléans

Finally, it was time for the Battle of Orléans. When Joan was only seventeen years old, Charles granted her with a horse and armor. He also allowed her to join the soldiers for the Battle of Orleans. In a long battle from May 4th to May 7th, 1429, the French troops took the victory over the English fortifications. Joan was injured, but she eventually returned to battle to uplift the troops and finish strong. It had appeared that Charles had finally accepted Joan’s mission, Charles still did not have any trust in her advice and judgment. After the end of Orléans, Joan tried to keep encouraging Charles to hurry up and steadily go to Reims to be crowned king. Joan helped Charles in any way she could. On July 18th, 1429, Charles finally went to Reims and was crowned King Charles VII. Joan was invited to take part in the ceremony and was given a visible seat. (Biography, 2019)

Capture and Trial

In the early spring of 1430, King Charles VII commanded Joan of Arc to travel to Compiègne to confront the assault of the Burgundian. While Joan was fighting in the battle, a soldier came and caught her off guard and pushed her. She was thrown off her horse and was completely left outside the town’s gates. The Burgurdians took Joan captive and held her captive for many months. King Charles VII still did not think Joan was trustworthy, so he distanced himself and did not attempt at all to have her released. The Burgundians started to negotiate with the English who saw Joan as a valuable propaganda prize for them. The Burgundians and the English finally came to an agreement and the Burgundians exchanged Joan for 10k francs. When the English received Joan, they held her captive as a prisoner and gave Joan a trial to confirm that she was a religious heretic. They questioned Joan over the course of many days, trying to dig deep and find something that she could have done to deserve the death penalty. The English could not find anything on Joan except that she had dressed as a man, heresy, witchcraft and she was charged with 70 counts, The English said that was just enough to serve death and the judge announced Joan guilty.

The trial was public for a while, but after Joan bettered her accusers, the trial continued privately. Between February 21st and March 24th in 1431, Joan remained humiliated but kept her sense of innocence. Instead of them leaving Joan in prison with the nuns as guards, the English held her in the military prison. It is said that Joan was steadily threatened with torture and rape, though there is no proven record of this occurring. Joan was a very smart woman and she protected herself by tying the soldiers’ clothes with chords tightly together. The English were frustrated with Joan, to say the least.

Death

The day had finally come. On May 29, 1431, the court announced Joan as guilty with heresy. On May 30th, Joan was taken to the marketplace in the city of Rouen, France and was burned at the stake in front of an estimate of 10,000 people. Joan was only nineteen years old at this time. She asked for a cross and one of the English soldiers gave her a small, English cross. Witnesses say that Joan asked her accusers to pray for her before she died. It is said to be, that Joan’s heart survived the fire completely unaffected. Although this may appear to be impossible but it isn't a rarity. They proceeded to gather Joan’s ashes and scattered the ashes all across the Seine river in France. (Biography, 2019)

Conclusion

In Conclusion, Joan definitely left a life-long legacy for many, many people in this world. After Joan’s death, the Hundred Years’ War continued for at least another 22 years. King Charles VII remained under the throne as King, and he commanded an investigation that in the year 1456 declared Joan of Arc to be officially cleared of all charges. She was innocent and was designated a martyr. On May 16, 1920, Joan was canonized as a saint and is the patron saint of France. Joan of Arc was nicknamed, “The Maid of Orléans”, and is officially the national heroine of France. Joan was a martyr, saint, and military leader and under divine authority, she led the French army to victory over the English during the Hundred Years’ War. So, I think every woman she be somewhat inspired by Joans bravery and selflessness. She was a strong woman and I think everyone should have a good heart and strong mind to go through life.

Sources:

Book:

Beyond the Myth: The Story of Joan of Arc

By: Polly Schoyer Brooks

Websites:

Unknown. “Biography.” Ducksters Educational Site, 2019, www.ducksters.com/biography/women_leaders/joan_of_arc.php.

Unknown. “Joan of Arc.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 18 Apr. 2019, www.biography.com/military-figure/joan-of-arc.

Vale, Malcolm G.A., and Yvonne Lanhers. “St. Joan of Arc.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 28 Aug. 2019, www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Joan-of-Arc.

Pictures:

Editors, Histrory.com. “Joan of Arc Is Burned at the Stake for Heresy.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 24 Nov. 2009, https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/joan-of-arc-martyred.

Cohen, Jennie. “7 Surprising Facts About Joan of Arc.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 28 Jan. 2013, https://www.history.com/news/7-surprising-facts-about-joan-of-arc.