Joan Of Arc Research Paper

\Joan’s rescue of Orléans sparked hope for the citizens of Orléans. The ruler, the Duke Charles of Orléans had been captured prisoner in England since the battle of Agincourt in 1415. His half-brother, John the Bastard of Orléans, was commanding in his absence, yet the city was slipping through his fingers. England was seizing control of Orléans, as it was a valuable city to France; Orléans was the bridge from the north and south France and helped with communication and keeping the country in line. No one trusted John the bastard. Almost all entrances and exits to the city have been closed off by the English, food was at a shortage and was sent in on horseback from neighboring cities to the only entrance at the east end of the city. This siege

strategy was used in the past by the English. The inhabitants’ hope in John the Bastard was diminishing and the fate of Orléans was coming to an agreement by the Duke of Burgundy and Bedford which had differing views on how to acquire Orléans; Bedford said that “I would be might angry to cut down the bushes so that someone else could get the little birds from the branches” (Duke of Bedford), yet the Duke of Burgundy wanted to acquire Orléans without striking a blow. They ended up making an agreement and the fate of Orléans would be settled in days, even hours, and an attack could happen at any moment. Out of nowhere an unexpected rescue “sent from heaven” that was conveyed to be an unknown girl that called herself Jeanne la Pucelle, or “Joan the Maid”. The Journal of the Siege of Orléans states that “It was said...That she had been sent by God to raise the siege of the city. The inhabitants found themselves so hard-pressed by necessity due to the enemies who besieged them that they did not know whom to bed for remedy, if not God Himself”. This was the first time Joan of Arc had entered history.
Jeanne la Pucelle, Joan the Maid, Jeanne d’Arc, and/or Joan of Arc was always a devoted Christian and influenced the people of her hometown.

She was born to Jacques of Arc and Isabelle Romee in the small peasant town of Domremy in 1412; she had three brothers, Jacquemin, Pierre, and Jean, and one sister named Catherine who died young, around 1428. Joan was always known as an extremely pious girl. Joan inherited her religious devotion from her mother. Her religious devotion marked her as somewhat strange as she was speculated to sometimes confuse more than once a day even though she lived a mostly sinful lifestyle. The town accepted her even though she was devoted to almost an extremity; priests in the town praised her and her childhood friends and the rest of the town looked up to her, even if they found it a bit strange. Joan's family, and most of Domremy, supported the Dauphin, who Joan would later be part of his army, yet Domremy was near a pro-English area, so the conflict between the two regions would often erupt in violence, and Joan witnessed this throughout her childhood. In the summer of 1425, the English burned down Joan’s hometown Domrey and drove all of the cattle away; this traumatizing event shook the whole town. Around this time, the Joan of Arc started hearing the infamous voices in her head. Joan claims it to be of an angel or a saint sent from heaven bearing messages straight from God; she was thirteen at the time of the first hearing. Joan

didn't tell anyone about the voices, not her friends, not her parents, and not even the priests. These voices stuck with her through the rest of her life, commanding her to do certain things for the name of God.
Certain people thought of Joan as a saint or holy person who inspired people through her supposed holiness. While Joan was staying in Vaucouleurs the second time, a messenger of Duke Charles II one day presented himself to Joan with a safe conduct. Duke Charles II had heard rumors about Joan and wished to see her. Charles II grew old and sick and thought that maybe an encounter with a “holy” person would heal him. When she was brought before him:
“He questioned me about the recovery of his health, and I said that I knew nothing about that. I said very little to the duke about my mission but did say nonetheless that he should give me his son and some men-at-arms for France and that I would pray to god for the restoration of his health” (Joan of Arc).

Joan also gave him advice, as he was not a loyal man.

He had abandoned his wife for his mistress and ended up having five bastards with her. Joan nonetheless, told him to leave the mistress and then asked for escorts to Chinon; he gave her the escorts but did not listen to her advice and ended up dying two years later. This puts a haze on how people think of Joan of Arc; making her seem more like a prophet, messenger, and/or saint of God. Her mysterious rescues and somehow always seeming to give the right advice is extremely suspicious. These qualities made her seem as if she was truly sent from God himself in the form of a maiden. As for her expertise, she was one of the major roles in relieving Orléans from the cities siege. There was a feast held in her honor and people thought of her as angelic. The citizens of France all looked up to her as she spread hope by being a holy

figure.