Our critical biography focuses on Joan of Arc, also nicknamed as “The Maid of Orleans”. She was born in 1412 in Domremy, Bar, France. A France heroine and brave national, Joan of Arc is famously known for the way she led the French army to victory over the British at Orleans, at a young age of 18 years old. Her lifestyle was more of that of a male personality. Considering she was a teenager then, she greatly achieved the unexpected. She was later captured after one year and was burned by the English together with her French collaborators as a heretic. Later after her name was cleared by the courts she was eventually canonized as a Roman Catholic saint half a millennium later, on May 16, 1920.
Joan of Arc lived in a time when youth and female were greatly diminished and nobody as young as her dared to venture into leadership roles. Joan of Arc was born into the French peasant class to parents who were very religious which clearly dictated her early childhood. Christian this time could get involved in war and battles for their country since they believed that God chose them to protect their country. During the second phase of the Hundred Years’ war, there had been a protracted scramble between the English and the French factions on who was to control the French crown. Joan had strongly held the Valois petitioner to the throne by Charles the VII.
Joan tremendous achievement in the battle fields despite her humble background made modern historical writers question whether she was an illegitimately born royal. This may because most leaders in her time came from a royal background or royal bloodline. At around the age of 12, Joan was said to hear voices: those of Saint Michael, Saint Catherine and Saint Margaret. This made people, especially the religious leader, to view her as a witch. But as history would prove it, Joan of Arc possessed remarkable personalities of physical and mental courage for a female (Tilleczek, 2011, Chap.7 & 8).
The crown of France in the time of Joan aspiration to lead the French was in dispute between the dauphin, Charles (also known as Charles VII), and the English King, Henry VI. Henry’s soldiers were encroaching in the parts of the French kingdom with the Burgundians (also called the allies of the English since they were loyal to Duke of Burgundy). The dauphin’s state was more unstable, this is because even after five years of the Kings death, the heir to throne of France had not yet been crowned. Joan’s town was on the frontline between the two parties, and the villagers had already had to leave their homes to go and fight for France (Tilleczek, 2011, pg.2- 42).
Led by the voices of the Saints, 1428 May at the age of sixteen years, Joan travelled to Vaucouleurs, where she asked for go ahead to join the dauphin and his goals. She had also escaped early planned marriage. She and her visions were abruptly brought to a halt, and the 16-year old Joan went home sad but still determined and undeterred to achieve and see her vision succeed. She returned in April the following year and dauphin provided her with several army men, and she was united in her fight by her brother Jean and Pierre. The banner that she carried into the battle fields bore the name of Jesus and her standard was painted in with a view of Christ in judgment.
One can see that one of Joan of Arc major traits was that she truly believed in her religious background and saw Jesus as the only divine protector in the battle fields. When Joan was asked about her sword she would say that the sword divine stature can be discovered in Church of Sainte-Catherine-de-Fierbois. Funny enough, five centuries later one similar sword was found there. At her age of seventeen, her strategy and methods were underpinned with disregarding the guarded, less aggressive strategy that was inherent in the French leadership style during the war, all this before her arrival. The evident cautious approach by the French were clearly not proving to be efficient and Joan sought to change the methods of handling enemies and also to change the tide of war according to her vision given by the saints (Schissel, 2006, pg.45 - 88).
Come May fourth, Joan being the lead soldier, the French attacked and acquired the fortress of Saint Loup, and on the following day she led another attack to capture the fortress called Saint Jean le Blanc. Her visions from the saints were finally coming to fruition. Joan was very brave as a lion would be. Soon after in front of the war council, Joan charged for another attacking, but she was reproached, and the city gates were quickly locked to prevent her from launching an offence.
However, Joan and a group of her colleague soldiers and townsmen successfully cracked and unbolted the gate, and she bravely led an attack against the major English stronghold of Les Tourelles on May 7. At the time of the siege, Joan was shot close to the neck with an arrow, but she quickly improvised from the slight injury and returned to the fight. Her unstoppable spirit encouraged her fellow soldiers until they overcame the English. The subsequent defeat at Orleans made the French army reassess and clasp more aggressive strategies, while Joan urged Charles to move fast to Reims in order to be crowned as King (Schissel, 2006, pg.68 & 117).
Joan so had taken a non female role; her physical nature was that of a man and she had changed her hair to be like that of a man too. Her personality was more of a bravely hearted soldier, and her appeal was totally non sexual to the male counterparts. With Joan being the head of several detachments of troops at the tender age of 18, and travelling alongside dauphin, the French took over several English cities before arriving in Reims. Reims is where Charles was finally crowned King on July 17. Joan of Arc was at the Kings coronation, and after this ceremony, she knelt before King Charles and called him as her King for the first time. Joan had succeeded again in seeing the French revolution achieve its goals.
All her miraculous victories in the battle fields started raising heads, and Joan’s personality and reputation spread among the French growing army forces from other towns. At this time Joan had urged King Charles to add more of the French force in order to press their advantageous position with a zealous attempt to retake Paris. But King Charles hesitated as advice from Georges de La Tremoille worried him that Joan was becoming too powerful at a very young age. The delay and hesitation provided ample time for the Burgundians (English allies) ample time to fortify and be proactive in case of any impending attack.
Joan and other French force went through with the attack; she got injured in battle, in an attempt to take over Paris in September 8. She was later given royal order to withdraw the following day considering that they were being overpowered by the Anglo-Burgundians forces. She recovered and in the spring of 1430, King Charles again ordered Joan to confront a Burgundian physical attack on Compiegne. In her brave attempt to defend the small French town and its inhabitants, she was displaced from her horse and was left outside the towns’ gates as it was closed. The Burgundians took her confined her and brought her to the castle of Bouvreuil, inhabited by the English commander at Rouen. They had finally enslaved the great French soldier, Joan of Arc (Tilleczek, 2011, pg.11-158).
Joan was now the subject of a major court trial. Joan was ordered to answer to around seventy charges against her, including heresy, witchcraft and also dressing and making her hair in order to look like a man. Burgundians aim was to get rid of the young leader and also to ensure they discredit King Charles, who owed his coronation to her. Obviously he was advised to distance himself from the accused witch and heretic. So the French totally made no attempt to negotiate for the release of Joan.
Joan proved to be clever and stood for herself during the obviously orchestrated trial. The principal clergy member was Pierre Cauchon who was an avid enthusiast of the British, and detested Joan’s miraculous revival of the French national pride. He also felt obligated to save Joan since she thought she was possessed by wrong spirits rather than saints as she said back in the days. This trial proved to be a test of time, since it was held in public, but Joan’s responses on the trial were much smarter and wittier than her prosecutors expected. She bravely held her own and made some strong rebuts, which extended her public sympathy (Tilleczek, 2011, pg. 50-68).
This eventually led to her trial being held behind closed doors. As predicted, Joan was declared guilty and sentenced to death by burning at the stake. She said her last confession and on that day ten thousand people came to view her fate sealed by burning at the stake. Though, twenty six years later, the English under a new commander and court rulers declared that Joan was innocent, and she was legitimately labeled to be a martyr. This was after King Charles pushed for a new trial. Five centuries later she was a canonized saint (by Pope Benedict XV in 1920).
Joan of Arc, a young female leader, had made remarkable accomplishments in her short life of 19 years. She particularly was a symbol of religious commitment and devotion. Joan showed immense bravery and humility in her short lived service to her nation. Not only did he shape the course of French history as a teenager but she also displayed without a doubt the possibility of young women getting involved in leadership roles and outperforming the opposite sex. Despite her mythical saint visions, her triumphs have inspired numerous works of literature and art over the centuries. She took a high risk in history, and she is now a patron saint of France.
References
Schissel, B. (2006). Still blaming children: Youth conduct and the politics of child hating (Pg. 1- 167). Halifax, Canada: Fernwood Publishing
Tilleczek, K. (2011). Approaching Youth Studies: Being, Becoming, and Belonging (pg.2-168). Toronto: Oxford University Press, Incorporated.
