An Introduction to Joan of Arc

Joan of Arc. She has been called many things, including schizophrenic, visionary, saint, and sinner. She has become a French national heroine, and has caught the imagination of many people. Movies have been made about her. For example, The Messenger, based on her life, was directed by Luc Besson and starred Milla Jovovich and Dustin Hoffman. So who was she really?

Joan, known as Joan of Arc, was born in Domremy in Champagne in 1412. Her father, Jacques d'arc, was a poor farmer, and Joan was one of five children. As a child in a peasant farming family, she was illiterate, and instead learned practical skills, such as sewing. She was described as being a particularly religious child, although-notably for the period-she was against the Catholic church.

When she was thirteen, Joan claimed that she began hearing voices. She described them as messages from heaven, and claimed that she talked to God and to saints. The most common voices that she heard were St. Michael (leader of the armies of heaven), St. Catherine, and St. Margaret (both Catherine and Margaret were early Christian martyrs). The voices, she explained, told her that it was her duty to drive the English out of France, and to ensure that Charles VII be crowned in Reims as the French king.

In May of 1428 (she was sixteen), Joan obeyed her 'visions' and went to join the army in Vancoulers. She explained her God-given mission (to liberate France from the English) to Commander Robert Badricourt. Badricourt rejected her, but Joan continued to hear voices. In January, 1429, she again approached Badricourt. This time he accepted her. It is unknown whether or not he believed in her visions, but the military was in a difficult situation, and at the time it was not unusual for women to fight along with the men. A few months later, in March 1429, Joan visited the king in Chinon. She told him that she was God's messenger sent to return his kingdom to him. He seemed to have believed her, as after the visit she was given her own troops and the rank of captain.