Joan of Arc

The story of Joan of Arc has proven an inspiration to historians

and artists for centuries. No contemporary portrait of Jeanne d'Arc is known to exist, for instance, and yet there are hundreds

of fanciful posthumous representations of her in stone, in bronze,

in plaster, in stained glass, in fresco, on canvas, and on wood (Sackvill-West 1-2).

Joan appeared at an important juncture in history and played

an essential role. During the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, England and France were at each other's throats in a conflict known as the Hundred Years' War. The immediate cause was a dynastic quarrel over who should rule France (Pernoud 55-56). Edward III had claimed the right to the French crown, and he had thus started the war that would reduce France to a belligerent group of disunited provinces possessing no common language and a king who was little better than a figurehead. After the treaty of Troyes, Henry V became the regent of France, and when he married Catherine of Valois, daughter of Charles VI of France, he was also entitled to succeed to the crown and bring about what Edward III had desired to accomplish in the first Place (Winwar 8-9).

Joan appeared against this background during a period in which there were many religious cults and such developing. This was a period when the end of the world was expected, when there were death cults embodying the pessimism of the age. The English occupied the

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old the Dauphin to make use of this girl. Joan was welcomed by the French commander Dunois at Orleans and another officer named La Hire, but they counseled her to wait for further reinforcements. Joan waited five days, then sprang up as though inspired, armed herself, and hastened to attack the English. The girl forced the French army to continue fighting and outlast the enemy, after which the English finally capitulated. In June 1429, Joan again led the French against the English and achieved a stunning victory, this time at Patay. Her reputation was now at its height, and the French people worshiped her. She came with the Dauphin to the ancient city of Rheims, and in the cathedral there, which was the traditional place for the consecration and coronation of French kings, the Dauphin became King Charles VII in July 1429, with Joan, in magnificent armor, prominent at the ceremony. The Dauphin had been disinherited in favor of the English king by the Treaty of Troyes in 1420, and even his own mother had cast doubts on his legitimacy. This no longer mattered after the coronation at Rheims, and the French people now considered Charles VII their rightful king. Joan's next goal was the capture of Paris, but this would not be accompli
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Charles VII, Joan Arc, Shaw Joan, French English, Edward III, Joan Charles, English Dauphin, Joan Arc--as, Dauphin Chinon, La Hire, joan arc, charles vii, french people, village girl, saint joan, joan arc york, shaw's saint, arc york, joan appeared, schwartz 16-19, burned stake, story joan arc, shaw's saint joan,
Approximate Word count = 1969
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page)

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