War And Joan's Voices example essay topic

445 words
Jeanne d'Arc was born in Dom remy, France on January 6, 1412. During this time there was a war between the Armagnacs (the party of Charles VII, King of France) and the Burgundians who were in alliance with the English. She was the youngest of a family of five. Her father, Jacques d'Arc was a small peasant farmer. They were poor, but not needy. Joan never learned to read or write, but she was skilled in sewing and spinning.

She was a religious child, who often knelt in church, absorbed in prayer, and loved the poor tenderly. When she was 13 years old, Joan first became aware of voices in her head. The voices started telling her that she was to help the future king to be crowned at Reims. But at the time, Reims was held by the English who had their own hopes of crowning Henry VI.

As she got older, they became visions and she was able to see saints such as St. Michael, St. Margaret, St. Catherine and many others. She never told anyone of these visions or voices. She did not say anything about them to her confessor, or at her trial. At her trial, she would never describe what they looked like, or what they had said to her. By May 1428, she discovered that her visions were a message from God to help the King of France, Charles VII, with the war that was still happening. She went to the neighboring town of Vaucouleurs, where the commander of Charles VII's army was situated.

When she told him that she was on a mission for God he said to her cousin that had come with her, "Take her home to her father and give her a good whipping". The Armagnacs were losing the war, and Joan's voices were becoming more urgent, sometimes threatening. So, in January 1429 Joan went back to Voucouleurs. The commander was still doubtful, but gradually accepted her. She was supplied with an army to raise the siege of Orleans, which was the first step in order to reach Reims.

The siege was lifted with full credit going to Joan. From there it seemed that Joan could do no wrong until she reached Reims and the King was coronat ed. After this, Joan was captured at Comp i " eine, when the drawbridge was raised too swiftly and Joan was left outside. She was tried by an English inquisition court, found to be heretical, and was burned at the stake. web web.