Joan of Arc and the Siege of Orleans

Between 1428 and 1429 during the Hundred Years’ War between France and England, the city of Orleans was besieged by English forces. The 5000 English soldiers lead by Thomas de Montecute, attacked for months. Around this time, Joan of Arc Appeared in at the court of Charles, and lifted the siege in 1429. This was the major turning point for the French in the war.
The events leading up to the Siege of Orleans were mainly victories for the English. The French were attacking land which King Edward III, the king of England, owned in France. “He declares himself King of France, arguing that he can legally claim the French throne through the line of descent via his mother, Isabella of France.” (Kip Wheeler) . King Edward of England was not accepted to be king of France. He sailed his ship into the waterway between France and England and rams his ship into French ships in an attempt to gain control of the waterway. He sank a few ships, including his own, but did not gain control of the waterway. A few years later, Edward landed in Normandy with about ten thousand men. The French pursued Edward, and set up camp nearby to prepare for battle. The French vanguard, however decided to lead the attack force without a plan. The French forces were easily defeated because of the English longbowmen. This was the first major battle leading up to the Siege of Orleans. The next major battle occurred after ten years of war at Poitiers. Edward invaded France in 1356. Both the French forces and English Forces clash outside of Poitiers, and France almost succeeds, but Edward broke their front lines, and was able to capture the king of France and two thousand French soldiers. The ransom was nearly one third of France’s GNP (Gross National Product) to get ...

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...battle marked the end of the fighting in Northern France. After being pushed out of northern France, Henry VI sent an army to Bordeaux in an attempt to gain at least some territory in France. The French responded by besieging the town of Castillon. In an attempt to lift the siege, the English attack the French force besieging the town. The English are defeated once more and are driven out of both Castillon and Bordeaux. The only remaining English territory in France was the coast of Calais, which remained in English control until the mid 1500s.
The lift of the Siege of Orleans really gave the French the morale they needed, with the help of Joan of Arc. After France gained a foothold at the heavily fortified position at Orleans, the English stood barely any match against France, which is why this great battle marks the turning point for the Hundred Year’s War.