The Beadle Maniacs

Human history is full of stories of very interesting individuals who lived their lives in ways that made a big impact not only on the people who surrounded but to the rest of the world. The name of a woman does not come out so often in history especially since in the past, men were always the only ones who were treated as leaders and the females were more concerned with maternal and domestic duties. However, the name Joan of Arc resounded in France.

Joan of Arc was born sometime in 1412 to farmers residing in Domremy, France. In her native land, she is known as Jeanne d’Arc. Aside from working in the farm, Joan of Arc’s father was also employed as a village official. Joan’s life became started to become controversial at a very young age. When she was 12 years old, she claimed that she had a vision of three saints namely St. Catherine, St. Margaret, and St. Michael. These three holy people instructed her to make the English troops leave France thereby making it possible for Charles the Seventh to be crowned as the French king.

As Joan reached 16 years of age, she asked Count Robert de Baudricourt if she can go to the royal court to speak with the king. However, she was mocked and was not allowed the chance to go to the royal French court. A year after her first visit, she again saw the count this time bringing along with her two influential men to vouch for her. During this time, she informed the count that she foresaw a military reversal happening close to Orleans. This prediction was proven to be true and the Count Baudricourt finally allowed Joan to see the royal French court.

During the time of the Hundred Years War, women taking part in the military affairs of the state were unheard of. So Joan was sent by Count Baudricort under the disguise of being a man. She was able to speak with Charles VII and after having a background check done on Joan, she was made a part of the French military. For Charles VII, this was a timely thing to do since the French troops were demoralized during that time and Joan, with her religious inclinations, can help boost their morale. And this was what Joan actually did and she was able to lead the French troops into a number of victories including the capture of Les Tourelles which is known to be one of the English’ stronger territories. There were other victories that occurred under Joan of Arc’s leadership. Her visions played a huge role in these victories and so did her charisma. She was also able to forewarn Duke Alencon of Jargeau of a forthcoming attack on his territory.

Probably one of Joan of Arc’s most successful endeavours is the battle of Patay where she fought against the English military troops under the leadership of Sir John Fastolf. Joan and the members of the French army were able to catch the English troops unguarded and were able to attack even before the enemies can put up their defenses.

Joan of Arc was a true woman of strength and wit. In fact, she almost single-handedly led the French troops into a lot of victories. However, Joan of Arc’s downfall was almost as fast as her rise to being considered as a French heroine.

On May 23, 1430, Joan of Arc was captured. This was primarily due to her attempt to forcibly attack Margny. This offensive act was unsuccessful and she eventually retraced her steps to a place called Compeigne. Joan decided to do this only after thousands of the Burgundians in Margny launched an offensive against her and her troops. Despite this, Joan of Arc showed her strength and dignity by being the last person to run off from the battlefield. She was eventually persuaded to stand down when she was thrown off her horse by an archer from the opposing troops.

During the time of Joan’s capture, it was the custom to offer a ransom as an exchange for a war prisoner. Despite Joan’s dedication to King Charles VII, he was unable to help in her predicament. Joan tried her very best to escape on several occasions but to no avail. Finally, the English government paid the ransom for Joan from her captors. This was negotiated by Bishop Pierre Cauchon of Beauvais. This man was also the one responsible for the trial of Joan of Arc.

Joan of Arc was tried for the crime of heresy but this was not without political motivations behind it. This was because Joan was a threat to the Duke of Bedford’s ascent to French throne. There were quite a good number of irregularities and illegitimacies in the trial of the French heroine, Joan of Arc. One of the problems with the trial was that it did not have any substantial basis under the ecclesiastical law. In fact, the main person who was responsible for Joan’s trial, Bishop Pierre Cauchon, did not have enough authority to oversee or to file the case. In addition, there was a significant lack of implicating evidence against Joan of Arc. The supposed pieces of evidence were not even substantial enough to start the trial in the first place. Despite this, the trial was begun and Joan was not even allowed the right to have someone to represent her.

Joan did not fall down without a fight. She was able to voice out her side to the English partisans very intellectually. There were some testimonies that said that thecourt transcripts were modified in order to place Joan on a bad light. Those who were part of her trial and even the inquisitor himself were threatened and coerced by the English government to convict Joan of something that she was innocent about.

Since heresy was a crime that was punishable by death during the time of Joan of Arc’s trial, she was finally sentenced to die on May 30, 1431 in front of a lot of people. She was burned on a stake. The English even went as far as burning her body twice to prove to the people that she was really dead and was unable to escape.

The Joan Of Arc story is a popular module in many school curriculums. Indeed, it is not only the history of Joan of Arc which is taught but also the moral lessons we can learn from her story as well as her leadership qualities and her steadfast belief in herself springing from her faith and self-confidence. However, recently there has been some debate over whether this story is not suitable for younger students. Last year it was reported that the Hooked On Phonics program allegedly was considering introducing a Joan of Arc Module into this child education program. You can read more about this story in these hooked on phonics reviews but it is safe to say that they didn’t go through with the proposal. I personally think Joan’s story should be heard by everyone but I guess that’s just me. Either way, most people agree that Joan was an inspirational figure who we should all look up to and admire.

There are truly a lot of influential people in history. They are individuals who were able to impress upon their generation that a single person can make a huge difference not only in one’s locality but also for the rest of the country and for the world. Most individuals are used to seeing men dominate most important events in history. However, in the history of France, a female’s name resounds. She was Joan of Arc, an ordinary woman who ultimately became a symbol of French heroism.

Joan or Jeanne d’Arc was born to a simple middle class family. Her father was named Jacques d’Arc and her mother was named Isabelle Romee. Joan lived in the duchy of Bar in a village called Domremy. This place was surrounded by Burgundian territory but those who inhabit Joan’s village were under France’s her family owned a medium sized piece of land where her father did a bit of farming. At the same time, Jacques d’Arc also worked as a village official and was mainly in charge of tax collection and the village watch.

There seems to be some doubts regarding the real year of Joan of Arc’s birth. If historians base it on Joan’s statement that she was 19 years of age when she was tried for heresy. This means that she was born sometime in 1412. Joan was able to experience her first vision when she was about 12 years of age. This was sometime in the year 1424. In her vision, she was able to see three saints namely Saint Catherine and Saint Margaret as well as Saint Michael. They instructed her to do her part in making the English leave France. She was also tasked to make the assumption of the French throne by the Dauphin possible.

Joan was not able to take immediate action for her visions. She had to wait until she was 16 when she was finally able to enlist the help of a kinsman so she can go to Vaucouleurs. There she met with the Count Robert de Baundricourt to ask his permission for Joan to go to Chinon and meet with the French court. Unfortunately, Baudricourt was unimpressed by Joan’s vision and did not grant her the permission she needed. But Joan of Arc cannot be swayed and so she returned a few months after this time bringing with men of higher stature. She was finally granted the permission to go the royal French court.

Once Joan of Arc was in Chinon, she was able to secure a private meeting with Charles VII who was very amazed with what Joan had to say. Joan was then allowed to take a trip with an army and because women in the army were unheard of, she had to be under the guise of a man. Joan of Arc possessed a natural charisma that was able to inspire the French troops. She came at the right time when the morale of the French military was in the dumps. Also, she had a style of leadership that was pretty unusual for the French Army that time.