Many have heard of Joan of Arc. The Maid of Orleans, the winner of the British, burned by the church at the stake for intercourse with the devil and canonized by her … For almost 600 years, the mystery of her origin and ascent to the European military-political Olympus has caused fierce controversy, and official science bypasses facts that she cannot explain in condition.
Despite the abundance of historical documents (and these are chronicles, testimonies of contemporaries, protocols of trials), the biography of Joan of Arc, who is rightfully considered the national heroine of France, contains so many blank spots and inconsistencies that the controversy surrounding her personality does not subside to this day. At the same time, the role of the Maid of Orleans in the history of Europe is truly outstanding. "What is the secret?" - you ask.
Let's start with the fact that even the year of her birth is unknown exactly. 1412 is considered generally accepted, but 1408-1409 are also called … In 1428, in the court of Rouen, she defended her right to refuse marriage, which her father insisted on. But if she was born in 1412, then by that time she was only 16 years old, and as a minor no one would listen to her. In 1429 in Chinon, she said that she was "three times seven years old", which means that she was born in 1408, and at the trial in 1431 she claimed that she was only 19 years old. And that's not all.
Coming
Let us briefly recall the situation in France before its appearance.
The war between France and England, later called the Hundred Years, had been going on for over 90 years. It began in 1337 with the claims of the English king Edward III to the French throne. The military confrontation went on with varying success until civil strife stopped in England and King Henry V began a decisive invasion of the mainland. On October 25, 1415, the French troops were defeated at the battle of Agincourt. But even inside France, a catastrophic situation developed: the country was formally ruled by the insane king Charles VI, and his illness progressed. The king's wife, Isabella of Bavaria, took power into her own hands. She did not really strive to preserve the independence of the state. Her unloved son, Dauphin Karl, the rightful heir to the throne, miraculously managed to escape to the south of the country. And in 1420, with the participation of Isabella of Bavaria, an agreement was signed between England and France, according to which he was deprived of the right to the crown. After the death of Charles VI, Henry V of England was to become the King of France, followed by his son. But in August 1422, Henry V died suddenly, and a month and a half later the French monarch Charles VI also died. The formal ruler of both states was declared a nine-month-old baby, the son of Henry V. The English duke of Bedford became the regent under him. All this put a bold cross on the independence of France. To completely subjugate her, the British had to take Orleans. And they came to its walls in 1428. The city defended itself desperately, but the outcome of the siege seemed a foregone conclusion …After the death of Charles VI, Henry V of England was to become the King of France, followed by his son. But in August 1422, Henry V died suddenly, and a month and a half later the French monarch Charles VI also died. The formal ruler of both states was declared a nine-month-old baby, the son of Henry V. The English duke of Bedford became the regent under him. All this put a bold cross on the independence of France. To completely subjugate her, the British had to take Orleans. And they came to its walls in 1428. The city defended itself desperately, but the outcome of the siege seemed a foregone conclusion …After the death of Charles VI, Henry V of England was to become the King of France, followed by his son. But in August 1422, Henry V died suddenly, and a month and a half later the French monarch Charles VI also died. The formal ruler of both states was declared a nine-month-old baby, the son of Henry V. The English duke of Bedford became the regent under him. All this put a bold cross on the independence of France. To completely subjugate her, the British had to take Orleans. And they came to its walls in 1428. The city defended itself desperately, but the outcome of the siege seemed a foregone conclusion …All this put a bold cross on the independence of France. To completely subjugate her, the British had to take Orleans. And they came to its walls in 1428. The city defended itself desperately, but the outcome of the siege seemed a foregone conclusion …All this put a bold cross on the independence of France. To completely subjugate her, the British had to take Orleans. And they came to its walls in 1428. The city defended itself desperately, but the outcome of the siege seemed a foregone conclusion …
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Jeanne, who are you?
It was at this time that a girl appeared in the thick of events, turning the situation upside down and later named the Maid of Orleans. I must say that her whole life was accompanied by a mystery. Officially, her parents are considered to be either the impoverished nobles, or the wealthy peasants Jacques and Isabella d'Arc from Domrémie. At the age of 13, Jeanne for the first time, according to her assurances, heard the voices of the Archangel Michael, Saint Catherine of Alexandria and Margaret of Antioch, who allegedly appeared to her in visible form. They said that it was Jeanne who was destined to lift the siege from Orleans, expel the British and elevate the Dauphin Charles to the throne. Encouraged by these signs, the girl went to Vaucouleurs in January 1429. The commandant of the city Robert de Baudricourt, after hearing the story of the "voices", the special mission and the intention to meet with the Dauphin Karl, laughed in her face,but then for some reason he abruptly changed his attitude. He gave the girl guides and horses, and also provided the Duke of Lorraine with a security certificate. After 11 days, she safely reached Chinon, where she was received by the Dauphin. Karl talked to her for a long time about something. We will never know the details, but the prince looked, in the words of an eyewitness, "a happy man."
Jeanne asked Charles to give her an army to liberate Orleans, but he hesitated. He sent her to Poitiers, where a special commission, after several weeks of interrogation, concluded that the girl was indeed God's chosen one. After that, Charles appointed Joan the commander-in-chief of the troops and appointed the leading military leaders of France under her command. Surprisingly, all these famous generals had to obey some girl without question! In medieval society with its strict hierarchy, this was simply unthinkable. But then how can this be explained?
Conspiracy of two queens
Let's try to shed light on this mystery. For this, let's go back 20 years.
Attacks of madness in Charles VI became more and more frequent, and his wife Isabella had a lover - the king's brother, Duke Louis of Orleans. In 1407, the queen had a daughter, and few doubted that her father was not the king at all. Isabella feared that, upon learning of the adultery, the crowned spouse would take cruel revenge, which, in fact, happened - soon the duke fell from the hands of an assassin. To save the child, the girl was declared dead and secretly transported to Lorraine - the possession of Yolanda of Anjou, who enjoyed the special confidence of the queen. There she was assigned to the d'Arc family. There is a mention of the fact that a certain honored veteran taught the girl's ability to wield weapons and horse riding from childhood.
There is reason to believe that Yolanda of Anzhuyskaya stood behind the girl all the years. As a member of the royal council, she has exerted tremendous influence over the domestic and foreign policy of the country over the years.
For the "special mission" Jeanne began to prepare, most likely after the conclusion of a treaty with England, according to which France lost its independence, and Charles was deprived of the rights to the French throne.
With the help of rumors, the necessary moods in society were formed. Even the legend of the prophecy of Merlin, the court magician of King Arthur, according to which France will be destroyed by a vicious woman (Yolanda), and an innocent maiden from Lorraine (Jeanne), will be saved. And the girl lived up to expectations: for a start, in Chinon, she showed good knowledge not only of geography, but also of customs at court. And in January 1429, at the castle of Nancy, she took part in a knightly tournament and impressed everyone not only with her ability to wield weapons, but also with the skills of a magnificent horsewoman. The Duke of Lorraine was so impressed that he presented her with a war horse - a luxurious gift for those times. These skills were very useful to her in battles with the British, when she in knightly armor climbed the assault ladder to the walls of castles and fortresses.
Warrior
The news that the army was led by the messenger of God caused an extraordinary morale among the troops. On April 28, 1429, an army led by Joan of Arc moved to the aid of the besieged Orleans. The next day, a small detachment under her control made its way into the city, and on the night of May 7-8, thanks to the concerted actions of the French, the British were forced to lift the siege. In a few days, Jeanne did what the best generals of France had not been able to do for many months! The people kissed the footprints of her horse's horseshoes, and the military leaders called: "Your Grace." Then the troops of Joan of Arc captured the enemy's fortifications on the banks of the Loire, and on June 18 she utterly defeated the British at the Battle of Path, after which England could not recover until the very end of the war. The winner came to Charles and urged him to go to Reims - the traditional place of the coronation of French kings. On June 29, a "bloodless campaign" towards Reims began. The cities opened their gates to the royal army, and on July 17, in the presence of Joan of Arc, Charles was solemnly anointed at Reims Cathedral. This caused an extraordinary surge of national spirit in the country.
Trial
On May 24, 1430, the Maid of Orleans was taken prisoner by the Burgundians as a result of betrayal. King Charles VII, who owed her everything, did nothing to save her, and Jeanne was sold to the British for 10,000 gold livres. At the end of 1430, she was transported to Rouen, where a trial was held over her, accused of heresy and intercourse with the devil. The girl behaved with tremendous courage and confidently denied all accusations. But in prison, she was stripped of her dress, throwing a man's suit instead. She had to wear it, which allowed the court to recognize her guilt of heresy and contempt for the church. The voices that Jeanne heard were deemed to come from the devil. The heroine was burned at the stake on May 30, 1431.
Second Life
In 1436, a woman appeared in Lorraine who called herself Joan of Arc.
The first person she turned to was Ser Nicolas Louv. He recognized her as the real Joan, whom he had known from her coronation in Reims. Then her brothers, Jean and Pierre, also verified that this was their sister. Soon, Count Robert de Armoise proposed to her. He also saw Jeanne 11 years ago at the wedding of his cousin, Robert de Baudricourt. The coats of arms of the spouses, as expected, were combined, and the newly made countess had the coat of arms that was given by the king in 1429 to the real maiden of Orleans. Forgery was impossible, since the marriage required presenting original documents.
On July 24, 1439, Jeanne arrived in Orleans. The townspeople well remembered their savior and presented her with 210 livres. For reference: then for 2 livres a year it was possible to rent an entire floor of a house in a big city! In addition to this, food, a laundress and a place for a horse in the stable were also provided. Then in Poitou, Jeanne met with a military comrade-in-arms, Marshal Gilles de Rais, who offered her command of the troops. Alas, no other information confirming the authenticity of the "resurrected" Virgin of Orleans has survived. She died in 1446.
Blood princess
When, in June 1429, the king granted the maiden of Orleans a coat of arms and a title equal to that of the count for exploits, the letter confirming this did not mention the assignment of a noble rank to her. So she already had it? But the certificate of elevation to the nobility of her parents is dated only December 1429! Even more confusion in this matter is brought about by information that her father, Jacques d'Arc, already had his coat of arms before. The girl's participation in knightly tournaments in January 1429, that is, six months before she was awarded the title, adds mystery, because in those days only persons of noble origin could participate in them.
Who was burned?
The commandant of Vaucouleur, Robert de Baudricourt, helping the girl to get to Chinon, most likely, acted on the orders of Yolanda of Anjou - it was she who first met the future legend of France. The girl was immediately examined: according to the religious views of that time, the voices coming from God could only be heard by a virgin. Subsequently, the wife of the Duke of Anjou provided her with all kinds of assistance: for example, the maintenance of both Joan of Arc herself and her army was carried out mainly with her money. You involuntarily ask yourself a question: why did the royalty suddenly show such patronage to a commoner? In addition, a sword, crown and golden lilies were depicted on the coat of arms, given to Jeanne by Charles VII in honor of her merits. The same lilies on a white background were also on its standard - in French heraldry, they were a symbol of princes and princesses of the blood. But if she really was the daughter of Queen Isabella, then, accordingly, she was half-sister to the King of France, Queen of England and aunt to King Henry VI of England. Could such a person then be burned at the stake? It is noteworthy that during the execution in Rouen, the public was pushed far away from the fire, surrounded by a dense ring of soldiers. The face of the convict was hidden by a cap, and no one could say with certainty that it was Jeanne who was burned. Moreover, the documents of the Inquisition Court lack the death sentence and the official act certifying its execution. But in the archives of Rouen there are reports for the years 1430-1432 about the execution of five sorceresses,but her name is not among them … 25 years later she was posthumously rehabilitated and recognized as a national heroine. The Catholic Church also recognized the merits of the great Frenchwoman in saving her homeland. In 1920, she was canonized, officially canonized.
Magazine: All the riddles of the world №10. Author: Alexander Frolov