Joan of Arc, Saint (1412-1431) Hold the cross high so I may see it through the flames! Joan was the youngest of five children of Jacques dArc, a peasant farmer from Domremy. She began to hear voices when she was thirteen that told her she was to serve the Dauphin and save France. Joan was repeatedly rebuffed in her attempts to join the French army until she successfully predicted its defeat at the Battle of Herrings in 1429. Afterwards, a local commander sent her to the Dauphin. When she recognized the disguised Dauphin hiding in a group of courtiers, he sent her to be examined by group of theologians at Poitiers. After three weeks of questioning, they proclaimed that her voices were genuine. The Dauphin then sent her to serve with the Army as it fought to lift the siege of Orleans. There, clad in a suit of armor, she led her men and saved the city by capturing several English forts. Later that year she led the French army to an even more important victory at Troyes. This allowed the Dauphin to be crowned Charles VII at Reims, and Joan stood at his side during the ceremony. She continued to lead the army until she was captured by Burgundians at Compiegne and turned over to the English. Charles made no effort to save her, and in fact, some have suggested that he helped arrange her capture as part of a secret deal with the Burgundians. Joan was tried in a religious court for heresy and witchcraft, and although she defended herself well, she was forced or tricked into denying her voices and promising never again to wear mens clothes. Later, she once more dressed as a man and was declared a heretic. She was burned at the stake in the Rouen marketplace, and her ashes were thrown into the Seine. Twenty-five years later, her case was reopened by Pope Callistus III, and she was found innocent. Joan was canonized by Pope Benedict XV in 1920.
Posted on: Fri, 23 Jan 2015 10:41:20 +0000
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