Joan of Arc

Summary

The painting of her on the battlefield with only one breast covered and holding a flag is probably one of the most famous paintings from European history. Many people have heard of Joan of Arc, but only few know what she did or how her life was.

Joan of Arc (French: Jeanne d' Arc) is a French heroine who was venerated as a saint for her role in the Lancastrian part of the Hundred Years' War. She was born in Domrémy, in the Vosges area of northeast France, to Jacques d' Arc and Isabelle Romée, a peasant family. Joan said she saw visions of the archangel Michael, Saint Margaret, and Saint Catherine of Alexandria telling her to support Charles VII and free France from English supremacy late in the Hundred Years' War. Joan was sent out as part of a relief army to the siege of Orléans by the as-yet-unanointed King Charles VII. After the siege was raised only 9 days later, she rose to fame.

She ended up being a sign of the Catholic League in the 16th century, and Napoleon Bonaparte called her a nationwide sign of France in 1803.

In 1909, she was beatified, and in 1920, she was canonized. One of France's 9 secondary tutelary saint is Joan of Arc.

Since her death, Joan of Arc has stayed a popular character in literature, painting, sculpture, and other cultural works, with many popular authors, playwrights, filmmakers, artists, and composers creating and continuing to produce cultural representations of her.