1431 : Joan of Arc martyred
At Rouen in English-controlled Normandy, Joan of Arc, the peasant girl
who became the savior of France, is burned at the stake for heresy.
Joan was born in 1412, the daughter of a tenant farmer at Domremy, on
the borders of the duchies of Bar and Lorraine. In 1415, the Hundred
Years War between England and France entered a crucial phase when the
young King Henry V of England invaded France and won a series of
decisive victories against the forces of King Charles VI. By the time
of Henry's death in August 1422, the English and their
French-Burgundian allies controlled Aquitaine and most of northern
France, including Paris. Charles VI, long incapacitated, died one
month later, and his son, Charles, regent from 1418, prepared to take
the throne. However, Reims, the traditional city of French coronation,
was held by the Anglo-Burgundians, and the Dauphin (heir apparent to
the French throne) remained uncrowned. Meanwhile, King Henry VI of
England, the infant son of Henry V and Catherine of Valois, the
daughter of Charles VI, was proclaimed king of France by the English.
Joan's village of Domremy lay on the frontier between the France of
the Dauphin and that of the Anglo-Burgundians. In the midst of this
unstable environment, Joan began hearing "voices" of three Christian
saints--St. Michael, St. Catherine, and St. Margaret. When she was
about 16, these voices exhorted her to aid the Dauphin in capturing
Reims and therefore the French throne. In May 1428, she traveled to
Vaucouleurs, a stronghold of the Dauphin, and told the captain of the
garrison of her visions. Disbelieving the young peasant girl, he sent
her home. In January 1429, she returned, and the captain, impressed by
her piety and determination, agreed to allow her passage to the
Dauphin at Chinon.
Dressed in men's clothes and accompanied by six soldiers, she reached
the Dauphin's castle at Chinon in February 1429 and was granted an
audience. Charles hid himself among his courtiers, but Joan
immediately picked him out and informed him of her divine mission. For
several weeks, Charles had Joan questioned by theologians at Poitiers,
who concluded that, given his desperate straits, the Dauphin would be
well-advised to make use of this strange and charismatic girl.
Charles furnished her with a small army, and on April 27, 1429, she
set out for Orleans, besieged by the English since October 1428. On
April 29, as a French sortie distracted the English troops on the west
side of OrlÝans, Joan entered unopposed by its eastern gate. She
brought greatly needed supplies and reinforcements and inspired the
French to a passionate resistance. She personally led the charge in
several battles and on May 7 was struck by an arrow. After quickly
dressing her wound, she returned to the fight, and the French won the
day. On May 8, the English retreated from OrlÝans.
During the next five weeks, Joan and the French commanders led the
French into a string of stunning victories over the English. On July
16, the royal army reached Reims, which opened its gates to Joan and
the Dauphin. The next day, Charles VII was crowned king of France,
with Joan standing nearby holding up her standard: an image of Christ
in judgment. After the ceremony, she knelt before Charles, joyously
calling him king for the first time.
On September 8, the king and Joan attacked Paris. During the battle,
Joan carried her standard up to the earthworks and called on the
Parisians to surrender the city to the king of France. She was wounded
but continued to rally the king's troops until Charles ordered an end
to the unsuccessful siege. That year, she led several more small
campaigns, capturing the town of Saint-Pierre-le-Moitier. In December,
Charles ennobled Joan, her parents, and her brothers.
In May 1430, the Burgundians laid siege to Compiegne, and Joan stole
into the town under the cover of darkness to aid in its defense. On
May 23, while leading a sortie against the Burgundians, she was
captured. The Burgundians sold her to the English, and in March 1431
she went on trial before ecclesiastical authorities in Rouen on
charges of heresy. Her most serious crime, according to the tribunal,
was her rejection of church authority in favor of direct inspiration
from God. After refusing to submit to the church, her sentence was
read on May 24: She was to be turned over to secular authorities and
executed. Reacting with horror to the pronouncement, Joan agreed to
recant and was condemned instead to perpetual imprisonment.
Ordered to put on women's clothes, she obeyed, but a few days later
the judges went to her cell and found her dressed again in male
attire. Questioned, she told them that St. Catherine and St. Margaret
had reproached her for giving in to the church against their will. She
was found to be a relapsed heretic and on May 29 ordered handed over
to secular officials. On May 30, Joan, 19 years old, was burned at the
stake at the Place du Vieux-Marche in Rouen. Before the pyre was lit,
she instructed a priest to hold high a crucifix for her to see and to
shout out prayers loud enough to be heard above the roar of the
flames.
As a source of military inspiration, Joan of Arc helped turn the
Hundred Years War firmly in France's favor. By 1453, Charles VII had
reconquered all of France except for Calais, which the English
relinquished in 1558. In 1920, Joan of Arc, one of the great heroes of
French history, was recognized as a Christian saint by the Roman
Catholic Church. Her feast day is May 30.
history.com/tdih.do
1806 : Andrew Jackson wins duel
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5047
1868 : Civil War dead honored on Decoration Day
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5048
1967 : Republic of Biafra proclaimed
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5049
1971 : Mariner 9 departs for Mars
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5050
###########################################
At Rouen in English-controlled Normandy, Joan of Arc, the peasant girl
who became the savior of France, is burned at the stake for heresy.
Joan was born in 1412, the daughter of a tenant farmer at Domremy, on
the borders of the duchies of Bar and Lorraine. In 1415, the Hundred
Years War between England and France entered a crucial phase when the
young King Henry V of England invaded France and won a series of
decisive victories against the forces of King Charles VI. By the time
of Henry's death in August 1422, the English and their
French-Burgundian allies controlled Aquitaine and most of northern
France, including Paris. Charles VI, long incapacitated, died one
month later, and his son, Charles, regent from 1418, prepared to take
the throne. However, Reims, the traditional city of French coronation,
was held by the Anglo-Burgundians, and the Dauphin (heir apparent to
the French throne) remained uncrowned. Meanwhile, King Henry VI of
England, the infant son of Henry V and Catherine of Valois, the
daughter of Charles VI, was proclaimed king of France by the English.
Joan's village of Domremy lay on the frontier between the France of
the Dauphin and that of the Anglo-Burgundians. In the midst of this
unstable environment, Joan began hearing "voices" of three Christian
saints--St. Michael, St. Catherine, and St. Margaret. When she was
about 16, these voices exhorted her to aid the Dauphin in capturing
Reims and therefore the French throne. In May 1428, she traveled to
Vaucouleurs, a stronghold of the Dauphin, and told the captain of the
garrison of her visions. Disbelieving the young peasant girl, he sent
her home. In January 1429, she returned, and the captain, impressed by
her piety and determination, agreed to allow her passage to the
Dauphin at Chinon.
Dressed in men's clothes and accompanied by six soldiers, she reached
the Dauphin's castle at Chinon in February 1429 and was granted an
audience. Charles hid himself among his courtiers, but Joan
immediately picked him out and informed him of her divine mission. For
several weeks, Charles had Joan questioned by theologians at Poitiers,
who concluded that, given his desperate straits, the Dauphin would be
well-advised to make use of this strange and charismatic girl.
Charles furnished her with a small army, and on April 27, 1429, she
set out for Orleans, besieged by the English since October 1428. On
April 29, as a French sortie distracted the English troops on the west
side of OrlÝans, Joan entered unopposed by its eastern gate. She
brought greatly needed supplies and reinforcements and inspired the
French to a passionate resistance. She personally led the charge in
several battles and on May 7 was struck by an arrow. After quickly
dressing her wound, she returned to the fight, and the French won the
day. On May 8, the English retreated from OrlÝans.
During the next five weeks, Joan and the French commanders led the
French into a string of stunning victories over the English. On July
16, the royal army reached Reims, which opened its gates to Joan and
the Dauphin. The next day, Charles VII was crowned king of France,
with Joan standing nearby holding up her standard: an image of Christ
in judgment. After the ceremony, she knelt before Charles, joyously
calling him king for the first time.
On September 8, the king and Joan attacked Paris. During the battle,
Joan carried her standard up to the earthworks and called on the
Parisians to surrender the city to the king of France. She was wounded
but continued to rally the king's troops until Charles ordered an end
to the unsuccessful siege. That year, she led several more small
campaigns, capturing the town of Saint-Pierre-le-Moitier. In December,
Charles ennobled Joan, her parents, and her brothers.
In May 1430, the Burgundians laid siege to Compiegne, and Joan stole
into the town under the cover of darkness to aid in its defense. On
May 23, while leading a sortie against the Burgundians, she was
captured. The Burgundians sold her to the English, and in March 1431
she went on trial before ecclesiastical authorities in Rouen on
charges of heresy. Her most serious crime, according to the tribunal,
was her rejection of church authority in favor of direct inspiration
from God. After refusing to submit to the church, her sentence was
read on May 24: She was to be turned over to secular authorities and
executed. Reacting with horror to the pronouncement, Joan agreed to
recant and was condemned instead to perpetual imprisonment.
Ordered to put on women's clothes, she obeyed, but a few days later
the judges went to her cell and found her dressed again in male
attire. Questioned, she told them that St. Catherine and St. Margaret
had reproached her for giving in to the church against their will. She
was found to be a relapsed heretic and on May 29 ordered handed over
to secular officials. On May 30, Joan, 19 years old, was burned at the
stake at the Place du Vieux-Marche in Rouen. Before the pyre was lit,
she instructed a priest to hold high a crucifix for her to see and to
shout out prayers loud enough to be heard above the roar of the
flames.
As a source of military inspiration, Joan of Arc helped turn the
Hundred Years War firmly in France's favor. By 1453, Charles VII had
reconquered all of France except for Calais, which the English
relinquished in 1558. In 1920, Joan of Arc, one of the great heroes of
French history, was recognized as a Christian saint by the Roman
Catholic Church. Her feast day is May 30.
history.com/tdih.do
1806 : Andrew Jackson wins duel
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5047
1868 : Civil War dead honored on Decoration Day
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5048
1967 : Republic of Biafra proclaimed
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5049
1971 : Mariner 9 departs for Mars
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5050
###########################################
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