The Remarkable True Story of Joan of Arc
By: Grant Piper
Tags: France, History, People, Military, War

The Remarkable True Story of Joan of Arc

Joan of Arc depicted in a 15th-century illustration (Public domain)

There are some stories in history so fantastical that they have been relegated to the status of myth. The events of these stories seem so unlikely, so outlandish, and so perfect that the mind automatically writes them off as tales. Yet, some of these stories are true. Some of this history requires no embellishment to be legendary.

The story of Joan of Arc is one such example.

Many people have heard the name, some may know what she did in her short time on Earth but many still do not know the full story of one of the most fabled figures from history.

A prophetic birth

Joan of Arc was born on an uncertain day in the year 1412 in northeastern France. Her family was peasantry and she was likely born in a mountain village located in the Vosges range. At the time of her birth, there were numerous well-known prophecies circulating throughout the French countryside that spoke of a maiden who would rise out of Lorraine and save the kingdom.

These prophecies were eerie in their eventual accuracy regarding the woman who would eventually bring about the end of the Hundred Years’ War and establish the new French king. The prophecy read:

“She would be dressed in armor, carrying a sword and riding a white stallion.”

Later, during one of her trials, Joan was asked:

“Was it not said that France would be ruined through a woman and afterwards restored by a virgin?”

This line is referring to Isabella of France who kicked off the Hundred Years’ War by claiming the French throne for her son. This act plunged the continent into a devastating phase of war which put the French on their heels. From Isabella’s destruction, Joan of Arc was born under prophecy, to be the maiden who would eventually save the kingdom.

And she did.

Visions of greatness

A 19th-century painting of Joan of Arc being visited by angels (Public domain)

In the year 1425CE, Joan claimed to have received visions from God. At the time, she was a 13-year-old peasant girl living in the countryside of northeast France. By all accounts, up to this point, she had led a completely unremarkable life.

That changed when she fell to the ground and was visited by numerous figures who spoke to her. She claimed later in her life that Saint Catherine, Saint Michael, and Saint Margaret all visited her when she was tending to her father’s garden.

These religious figures allegedly gave her a directive to drive the English from France and see that the dauphin (the French heir) was crowned the true king of France at the historical site at Reims.

The problem was, at the time of her visions, Reims was securely under English control and was deep inside enemy territory. God had not given her an easy task.

It is possible that Joan knew of the prophecies that spoke of a young maid from Lorraine who would rise to save the kingdom. Other modern experts have speculated that she could have suffered from some sort of psychosis, but there is no consensus on the matter.

Whatever the cause, true visions or not, it drove Joan to take action which would change the course of history.

Rise to prominence

Joan had her visions in 1425CE but she did not begin her mission until 1428CE. The circumstances surrounding her delay and the exact moment she decided to set out from her homestead are not clear. What is known is that Joan appeared at a local garrison office in 1428CE.

Joan of Arc appears alone and asks the captain of the guard, Robert de Baudricourt, to take her to the dauphin. Naturally, her request was laughed off and she was told to go home. However, Joan was confident that she had been given a direct order from God to proceed with her mission and was not to be dissuaded.

Joan supposedly used an ancient art to convince the captain to heed her request: public shaming.

The Ancient History Encyclopedia describes the event writing:

“Joan shamed him by addressing him loudly in public in a harangue on his lack of faith and refusal to believe God had sent her to liberate France.”

The tactic worked and she was escorted to Chinon where the dauphin was residing.

The dauphin of France, Charles VII, welcomed Joan and reportedly tested her in order to appraise the truth of her divine claims. Some stories have it that Charles VII disguised himself as a courtier and Joan saw through the deception immediately. One story says the Holy Spirit descended upon her and revealed her to be the subject of the prophecy regarding the Maiden of Lorraine. Other more mundane accounts claim simply say that Charles VII tested the vigor of her faith to ensure that she was not a heretic, English spy, or sorceress.

Whatever the case, Charles VII found Joan of Arc to be authentic and despite being a simple peasant girl with no military experience she was given a set of armor and sent to the front.

Siege of Orleans

The siege of Orleans (Gallica Digital Library)

Joan arrived at Orleans at dusk on April 29th, 1429 to much fanfare. The soldiers had been notified of her coming and were prepared to welcome her with open arms. After the tests of faith given by Charles VII, Joan had been given the royal blessing. The average French soldiers and commoners had now firmly attributed the old prophecies to Joan and a new religious fervor was sweeping through the country.

At the time of her arrival, Orleans had been under siege for six months. Thousands had died on both sides and many feared that the siege would continue to drag out for a much greater period of time.

Orleans was an important stronghold on the frontier between English controlled France and the French heartland. If Orleans could be cracked, the way would be open for further advances by the English towards Chinon, where Charles VII resided, and eventually the rest of the French heartlands.

The besieged French forces had been on the ropes since a crushing military defeat in 1415CE. A loss at Orleans would have been a decisive, if not final, blow to the French army and morale.

A depiction of the situation at Orleans. (Milo Thatch / CC BY-SA 4.0)

Joan’s arrival in the city immediately lifted the spirits of everyone and plans were redrawn to attempt to break out of the siege. Even though the situation had been gridlocked for months, the French were now prepared to give the siege one final push.

And it worked.

A mere nine days after Joan had arrived on the scene, the French broke out of the city and retook the English controlled fortifications along the banks of the river.

The English were forced to retreat and Orleans was once again in the hands of the French. The victory was seen as nothing short of miraculous as Joan’s appearance on the scene turned the tide of battle seemingly overnight.

Afterward, she was paraded through the city where she spoke her message about retaking the historic city of Reims from the English.

The siege of Orleans was lifted on May 8, 1429. The march to Reims began on June 29, less than two months after their victory.

The French had bought into Joan’s mission and vision and were prepared to launch a military campaign at her behest.

Otherworldly success

Coronation of Charles VII at Reims (Gallica Digital Library)

After the victory at Orleans, French success against the English would reach new heights. Despite being bogged down for nearly two decades with little to show for it, the French were about the cleave their way through the northern part of the country.

The new campaign started on June 29, 1429, and proceeded with remarkable speed. Galvanized by the presence of Joan of Arc, the French forces swelled with new volunteers and soldiers. With a speed and ferocity that could only be attributed to divine right, the French marched from Orleans and won battle after battle.

Troyes capitulated. Then Paris followed suit. Soon, the army was marching on Reims itself with very few losses. At the behest of the dauphin and the archbishop of Reims, the city gates were thrown open without a fight and the king entered the city with Joan of Arc.

On July 17, 1429, Charles VII was crowned as the king of France in Reims fulfilling Joan’s vision, a feat which was seen as unthinkable at the beginning of the year.

A mere three months after the lifting of the siege at Orleans, the king was crowned and reigning from Reims and the English were on the run for the first time in decades. None of this would have been possible without the influence and mystique of Joan of Arc, who rode with the army throughout this campaign.

The end of Joan

Joan burned at the stake. (Herman Stilke / Public domain)

With her mission concluded Joan continued to fight with the French as they skirmished with England and her allies in the countryside surrounding Reims. Unfortunately, in 1430 C.E., she was captured in an ambush and given over to the English at Rouen.

It was a stunning victory for the English. With France’s muse in their possession, the English devised a plan to end Joan’s mission and her religious influence on the war effort.

In a bid to discredit her movement, which had been giving France so much success, English priests branded her a heretic and put her on trial for crimes against God and the church.

The trial was long and vigorous. Joan was questioned repeatedly by religious scholars, church officials, and philosophers who did their utmost to discredit her and catch her in blasphemy or heresy. Despite her defending herself quite well for many weeks, she was eventually found guilty and was ordered to be executed.

The trial was well documented and presents a fascinating account of Joan’s life, her mission, and her motivations. The entirety of the surviving records can be read here.

On May 30, 1431, Joan was burned at the stake in Rouen. In order to ensure that she was well and truly dead it was said that her corpse was burned twice more and reduced completely to ash which was then thrown into the river in order to prevent her body from becoming a shrine.

At the time of her death, Joan was merely 19 years old. Her spirited vision and legendary status would propel the French to ultimate victory in the Hundred Years’ War which would finally conclude in 1453CE.

She changed the tide of the war with her appearance on the scene and has been remembered ever since.

A peasant girl who claimed to have seen visions of greatness from God arose to prominence out of nowhere, was given an audience with the ruler of France, and then was embedded in an army which, from that point, seemed as though it could not lose. Then captured by her enemies, Joan proclaims the truth of her divine mission and refuses to recant before being burned at the stake for her success.

It sounds like something out of legend or of fantasy writing but it is history.

Though she was only alive for 19 short years and was only active for a brief chaotic period of 1429 C.E., her legacy is truly massive. The effect on history by the actions of one young lady is astounding.

She was later canonized by the Catholic church and is now considered a saint and patron of France.

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