Joan of Arc Relics Fake?

A story about the remains of Joan of Arc being fake continues to circulate on the internet which has always seemed to me superfluous because the historical records are very clear that there were no remains left after she was executed. The Earl of Warwick, who was in charge of Joan while she was in jail and oversaw her execution, ordered that even the few ashes that were left after she was burned be placed in a sack and thrown into the Seine river to make absolutely sure that no “relics” could be claimed later.

And yet, here we are with all these stories saying that Joan’s relics are fake almost six hundred years later. Apparently a bottle containing some charred bones surfaced at a pharmacy in 1867 that was labeled "Remains found under the pyre of Joan of Arc, maiden of Orleans." Despite the historical record that should have alerted everyone in 1867 that these remains had to be fake they were instead preserved as authentic. At least now modern science has finally proven that they are indeed fake and nothing more than the bones of a cat and an Egyptian so that should finally put an end to this story, right. I wonder.

Joan of Arc’s Last Great Victory

"I am not alone! I have fifty thousand of my own company to fight with me!"

In the autumn of 1429, Charles VII seems to have been completely under the influence of his advisors who urged negotiation rather than battle. In light of this policy Joan of Arc was used in only a limited role when it suited the King and his advisors. For whatever reason they decided to send her to the strategically insignificant town of St. Pierre-le-Moutier where Joan once again showed her military brilliance by capturing the town despite having limited troops and supplies with which to overcome a stout defense.

During the battle when it appeared that all was lost and her men were retreating Joan again showed her courage and great leadership in completely turning the course of the battle. Joan’s aide-de-camp(my modern title) Jean d’Aulon describes the scene later at her trial of rehabilitation: “After the Maid and her soldiers had maintained the siege before the city for some time, an assault was ordered and made and all did their duty. But because of the great strength of the place, and also the great resistance made by those within, the French were forced to retreat. At this hour he who speaks, being wounded by an arrow in the heel, as such without crutches I could neither move nor sustain myself, saw that the Maid had remained behind with very few soldiers indeed. Fearing what might follow I mounted a horse, and hastily riding to her I asked her what she was doing there alone and why she had not retreated like the rest of the men. But the Maid, lifting the face guard of her helmet replied: ‘I am not alone! I have fifty thousand of my own company to fight with me and retreat I will not until I have taken this town.’ Whatever she might have said she had not with her more than four of five men, as I know for certain as do several others who were looking on, so I urged her to retreat like the rest. Then she told me to tell the men to bring faggots and brush to make a bridge across the moat which she yelled to the rest in a loud voice.”

Shortly thereafter the moat was filled and the town was taken by assault with little resistance to the amazement of d’Aulon. St. Joan of Arc once again prevailed against impossible odds however this was to be her last great victory. While she continued until her capture to have military successes she never again stormed and captured a city the way she did that day in early November of 1429 at Saint Pierre-le-Moutier.

Joan of Arc at Paris

The statue above of St. Joan of Arc is located at Place des Pyramides in Paris. Unfortunately, Joan herself never entered Paris as the attempt she made to liberate the city on September 8, 1429, failed. This was Joan’s first military defeat however the circumstances that led to the failure at Paris were clearly not her fault. Probably the biggest factor was the delay in launching the assault on Paris after Charles VII was crowned King on July 17, 1429. If Joan and her army had been allowed to immediately march upon Paris after the coronation they most likely would have gained an easy victory as there were only a small number of Burgundian troops guarding the city at that time. Instead of immediately marching to Paris, Charles hesitated and entered into several worthless treaties with Burgundy. The delay allowed the Burdundians the time they needed to strengthen their defenses and obtain re-inforcements from the English. Such delays in military history have usually proven to be extremely costly e.g., Napolean at Waterloo, Germans with Operation Barbarosa, Confederate Army at Gettysburg to name few.

As for Joan, she did everything she could to achieve victory at Paris despite the long odds created by the inexcusable actions of her King. She personally led the assault and kept her troops fighting hard all day in an effort to overcome the walls of the city. Just after sunset Joan was wounded in the thigh by a bolt from a crossbow. Lying wounded she urged her troops and commanders to continue the assault but they carried her to the rear against her wishes and the assault died out. Joan wanted to renew the assault the next day but orders from Charles VII arrived that no further attempt should be made to take Paris and the army was withdrawn several days later. Joan once stated on the march to the coronation at Reims that she “feared only treachery.” It was ultimately treachery and not the enemy that defeated Joan at Paris.

"By my staff, the place would have been taken."

Joan of Arc's Crowning Achievement

“Huzzah after huzzah swept the army from van to rear; and as for Joan, there where she sat her horse gazing, clothed all in white armor, dreamy, beautiful, and in her face a deep, deep joy, a joy not of earth, oh, she was not flesh, she was spirit! Her sublime mission was closing – closing in flawless triumph.”

On July 17, 1429, Joan of Arc achieved what was her greatest accomplishment in liberating France when Charles VII was crowned King of France. Many people, including historians, have a hard time understanding the strategic brilliance of Joan in focusing upon getting Charles VII crowned in the traditional way so that the people of France would view him as their legitimate King. Joan understood that to achieve ultimate victory over England it was necessary to unite France behind one King. Unfortunately for Joan the crowning of Charles VII also marked the pinnacle of her career. But she had changed the course of history and ultimately the man she conducted to throne of France would lead France to complete victory over the English.

Joan of Arc Quote

Joan-of-Arc
Anyone that knows me or has spent much time at MaidOfHeaven.com understands how much I revere the actual words that St. Joan of Arc spoke while she was alive. There is something almost magical about some of her quotes and I love to re-read them from time to time to feel closer to her. Unfortunately, not everyone respects St. Joan as I do as many of her famous quotes have been distorted and used improperly. One distorted quote that I see quite frequently on the internet is: "I am not afraid ... I was born to do this." The actual words that Joan spoke from which this quote was derived were: “I do not fear the soldiers, for my road is made open to me; and if the soldiers come, I have God, my Lord, who will know how to clear the route that leads to messire the Dauphin. It was for this that I was born!"

The big problem I have with the new version is the removal of what to Joan would have been the most important part: God. Saint Joan of Arc knew exactly what the source of her strength was and she always gave credit to God for everything that she accomplished in her life. I therefore think the proper derivation of Joan’s words in this instance would be:

"I am not afraid because God is with me. I was born for this!"

My new version is much truer to Joan’s original words and one that I hope will eventually supplant the false version as more people learn the truth about who St. Joan of Arc really was.

Vive la Jehanne!

Joan of Arc Cultural Depictions

A new page titled Joan of Arc Cultural Depictions has been added at MaidOfHeaven.com. This page lists all of the most famous artistic creations that have been created to honor and represent St. Joan of Arc. The list contains entries in Literature, Theater, Paintings, Sculpture and Film. It is really amazing to see all the great artists that have attempted capture St. Joan and the wonderful art they have produced over the years. I know I enjoy browsing through them so I am sure this will become a very popular page that should help everyone better learn about St. Joan.

You can visit Joan of Arc Cultural Depictions at http://www.maidofheaven.com/joanofarc_cultural_depictions.asp

Anniversary of Joan of Arc's Capture Today

The anniversary of Joan’s capture on May 23, 1430, is not one I really like to remember but I thought I would use it this year as an opportunity to clear up a big misconception that exists about her capture. It seems that most movies and even many books blame her capture upon the closing of the gates of the city of Compiègne however it was actually the raising of the drawbridge over the river Oise that caused Joan to be cut off from Compiègne and safety. As Joan herself later testified at her trial: “And the river lay between Compiègne and the place where I was taken. And there was only between the place where I was taken and Compiègne just the river, the boulevard, and the moat of the said boulevard.”

There are some good pictures of Compiègne and the river Oise and drawings of where Joan was captured online at: http://www.stjoan-center.com/Album/part52.html