@jointhecovn joan of arc core #joanofarc #joanofarcdeath #stjoanofarc ♬ original sound - Covn | Days Til Halloween 🎃
Joan of Arch or Jeanne d’Arch was a French heroine. She was a peasant, a daughter of a farmer. At the age of 13 she claimed she had direct communication with the saints and was touched by god’s presence. During this time France was 75 years into the hundred year war with England and the battle was taking place at the doorstep of Joan’s village, Domrémy.
By 1428, England controlled much of France, and the French king no longer ruled. At 16 Joan persuaded a local government leader to escort her through English-held territory to meet with and convince King Charles VII to let her lead his armies and help him regain the throne. At first she was sent away, but Joan was resilient and came back. On the second trip, in January 1429, the Duke of Lorraine agreed to listen to her story. Her story had spread and people were open to a visionary who could give hope of a way out of their current English rule. Town inhabitants chipped in and provided a horse, riding clothes, and an escort to allow Joan to undertake the perilous 270-mile journey through English Territory. She went to the royal court in Chinon to meet Charles the 7th, the only surviving heir to the throne dauphin.
Legend has it that Joan knew details about the King that no one else did, and he came to believe her claim that God had chosen her to lead.
The King ordered the army to take back the city of Orléans, accompanied by a now 17-year-old Joan. She cropped her hair short like a man’s, donned a suit of white armor, and successfully helped French troops to victory in March 1429, even after being shot in her neck by an arrow. Charles 7th then took back his crown a few months later. At the ceremony, Joan was at his side.
Joan of Arc claimed her mission was complete, although she continued to fight and inspire French forces. Her later campaign saw mixed results, and she was eventually captured by and sold to the English, and put on trial. She stood accused of heresy and wearing men’s clothes.
She was accused of witchcraft and the crime of dressing as a man. The trial of Joan of Arc was one of the most well documented trials in history and lasted over a year. The three major issues in questioning were her alleged visions, her refusal to obey the Church, and her practice of wearing male clothing.
Not wanting to threaten his newly returned crown, the King didn’t come to Joan’s aid, and in 1431, when she was just 19, she was burned at the stake. This meant that Joan, who was a devout follower of the Catholic Church, met her end by the same hands. In her final moments she was crying out to the saints and Jesus. Because she dressed in men’s clothing, the executioners raked away her clothes as she burned in order to prove to the crowd she was a woman. After she was burnt she was thrown into the Seine.
But beloved by France, she was officially cleared of her crimes 20 years later and became a Catholic saint in 1920. Today Joan of Arc remains the patron saint of France and a symbol of national pride. During the Second World War, the Nazis melted down a great number of France's statues; however, the statues of Joan of Arc were spared.
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