The Maid of Lorraine

St. Joan of Arc was in the news rather recently. Her ring, given to her by her parents, had been in England since her death, and this year, after 600 years, it has been returned to France. This is hugely meaningful, since this martyr was burned at the stake, so we have no first class relics of her. I’ve seen the 1948 movie about St. Joan with Ingrid Bergman a number of times, (and by the way, it’s a very accurate portrayal of her life) but I never fully appreciated quite how incredible this Saint was. She was an illiterate peasant girl, and yet led the armies of France to victory where experienced generals had failed, and finally she was burned as a heretic because she refused to deny what she knew to be true. The facts of her story are fascinating, and we have so much detail from her own lips, recorded in the complete transcripts from her trial. It gives an incredible insight into her as a person, and as a Saint.

First, let’s get situated in history. St. Joan of Arc was born in 1412, during the 100 Year’s War. When she was three years old, the British won their astounding victory at the Battle of Agincourt. (Think Henry V and St. Crispin’s Day.) In addition to fighting the British, France was split in half by a civil war, with those in the south supporting the Dauphin (son of the former king), and those in the north, the Burgundians, allied with the British.

When St. Joan was 13 years old, she began to receive visions and hear voices of St. Michael, St. Catherine of Alexandria, and St. Margaret of Antioch. They told her that God wished for her go to the Dauphin, ask him for an army, drive the English out of France, and have the Dauphin crowned king. It took time for her to summon the courage to act, and then longer still to convince the authorities of the truth of her mission, but finally, when she was 17 years old, she met with the Dauphin, and he sent her with an army to lift the siege of Orleans, which had been in English hands for seven months.

St. Joan dictated a letter to be sent to the King of England. In it, she told him that she was sent by God to drive the English out of France. She warned them to leave Orleans and make peace, or they would most certainly lose to the French army. The English were not about to give in so easily, so the French army attacked. St. Joan rode at the front of her men, wearing her suit of armor, her sword at her side, her white, silken banner in her hand. She encouraged the French troops while ignoring the horrible insults flung at her by the English soldiers. On the fourth day of the battle she was wounded, shot by an arrow between her neck and shoulder, but she miraculously recovered, and returned to the field a few hours later to lead the soldiers to victory.

(St. Therese of Lisieux dressed as St. Joan of Arc)

At this point, no Frenchman could doubt that the Maid was truly sent by God to save France. Shortly after the victory at Orleans, the Dauphin was crowned King Charles VII in Reims Cathedral, attended by St. Joan, with her banner. That part of her mission was now accomplished. The next step was to re-take Paris, the heavily fortified capital of France, which was in English hands. Along the way, St. Joan led her men to victory in all the towns and cities they came to. Once again, she was injured in the fighting, this time being wounded in the leg by a crossbow bolt, but once again she was healed and continued to lead her men, carrying her white banner. During her final attack, she was captured by the Burgundians, taken prisoner, and then sold to the English.

Even as a prisoner, St. Joan did not give up. She was determined to continue her mission, and tried many times to escape and rejoin her army, but never succeeded, and soon she was put on trial for heresy and sorcery. This trial is the best-recorded court proceedings of its time, and it has been preserved until today, so we have St. Joan’s description of her visions in her own words! It also gives us an amazing insight into her character and all of the virtues that make her valiant. In her answers, we can see a brave, indeed, feisty young woman, with an incredible amount of self-assurance, which could only come from the knowledge that she was fulfilling her God-given mission. As she told her judges, her Voices counseled her, saying: “Answer boldly; God will help thee.” And this was certainly the case.

Throughout the trial, St. Joan insisted that her judges kept on topic, refusing to answer questions which did not pertain to the case. For example, she was asked what proof she gave the Dauphin of her mission, but she did not have permission from her Voices to reveal this information, so she bravely told them to go on to the next question. She defended her actions confidently, most notably, the fact of her wearing men’s clothing. She told her judges that, “It pleases God that I wear it,” so she would not exchange it for a woman’s garments, as it was more suitable and necessary for her situation, being constantly among men, and doing the work of a man. Her judges were none too pleased with her stubbornness, and they were astounded by her wisdom, because despite all of their intelligence and cunning, they could not catch this simple, uneducated peasant girl in any kind of trap. They were even unable to intimidate her with threats of torture.

Finally, after days of questioning, St. Joan was accused of heresy and sentenced to death. At last, she was seized with a terrible fear of a the pain she would have to endure, and while the sentence was being read to her, she submitted, recanted and signed a document denying her Voices. She was taken back to her prison cell, her short hair was cut off, and she was given a dress to put on. Now, in penance for her sins, she would spend the rest of her life in prison.

But her moment of weakness passed. Her Voices spoke to her, telling her that it was wrong to deny the truth in order to save her life. She repented, and four days later, when her judges came to her cell, she was once again dressed in her man’s clothing, and her confidence and resolve were stronger than before. She declared that her Voices came from God. She knew she would die for that. But she was resigned to God’s Will, and when she was burned at the stake, her dying words were “Jesus, Jesus!” 25 years after her death, the war was over, and France was united under King Charles VII. St. Joan’s trial was reopened, and she was found to be innocent.

St. Joan of Arc is inspiring for her physical and moral courage, not only on the battlefield, but also in the face of those who doubted her and accused her. She insisted on speaking the truth, even when she knew it meant her death. She was a model of womanly dignity, even on the battlefield, preferring her banner to her sword. Her devotion to her country and her king were exceptional, but her love of God came first. When He asked her to leave her home and family to save her country, she did so bravely, and when He asked her to die for love of Him and to save her soul, she showed her true strength and gave her life for Him.

St. Joan of Arc, pray for us!

Bibliography

Joan of Arc: God’s Warrior, BBC documentary

Catholic.org: St. Joan of Arc.

St. Joan Center- St. Joan of Arc’s Trials, Transcripts.