Theories About Joan of Arc's Ancient Sword.

There are a couple theories as to how Joan D'Arc possessed her ancient sword. Here are a couple of them:

• When Joan was 10, she was rolling in the field after confessing her sins in church. The sword was supposedly sent down from the sky.
• On her way to the Dauphin, she was praying in a church. Somehow, as she was staring at a picture of a female saint, it drove her to look through a barrel of hay by a pew. That was where she found the sword.
• She found it buried by her village church.
• She found it in Dauphin's treasuries.
• Joan found it behind an altar.
• The sword was destroyed but God allegedly "rebuilt" it for Joan by a saint's tomb on her journey to the Dauphin.

Joan D'Arc's Sentence is Carried Out, and She is Burned at the Stake.

In the market-place at Rouen, English soldiers fastened Joan to a stake surrounded by a great pils of twigs. It is told that a soldier handed Joan a wooden cross, and it is also told that Joan had cried out for someone to hold a cross at her eye level, or that she stared at a cross that was mounted on top of a church while she burned. Then a priest, standing near the stake, read to her the prayers for the dying. Then one of the soldiers held a torch to the twigs and they started to catch fire. When the cruel flames burst out around her, Joan's last word to utter was "Jesus."

Joan is Charged of Herecy and is Given a Trial.

After being in prison for awhile, Joan was finally was charged with herecy and was brought to trial. It was said that she was under the influence of Satan. She declared her innocence in desperation to the judges that she had only followed the guidance of God, and that Satan had no control of her soul. Her trial was long because she refused to tell the judges of the church any information that she would only tell her King (Charles). At the end of this long trial, Joan was doomed to be burned at the stake.

Joan of Arc is Captured.

Joan soon took part in an attack upon the army of Burgundy. She ended being taken prisoner by the Duke of Burgundy. Yet, for a large sum of money the Duke delivered her into the hands of the English, who put her in prison.. 

The King's Coronation in Reims.

Joan's fame spread everywhere, and the English as well as the French thought she had more than normal human power. She led the French in several other battles, and again her troops rose to victory. At last the English were driven far to North of France. Then Charles (also known as Dauphin) was urged by Joan to go to Reims with twelve thousand soldiers (to assure a safe journey), was crowned King. Joan holding her white banner, stood by Charles as he was crowned. When the ceremony was finished, she knelt at his feet and told him that God had said her mission was over. She also told Charles to let him go home to her family. Instead of letting her go, Charles urged her to stay a while longer, as France was not entirely united, because of the English. Joan then told him that the voices had told her no more fighting, and that she was afraid, but that she accepted, nontheless.

Joan of Arc Wins Victory Over the English at Orleans.

Joan and her army had amazing success against the English. One after another Joan and her seemingly invincible army took over more and more English forts. When only the strongest fort remained and Joan was leading the attacking force, she received an arrow to the chest and was carried out of battle. Her soldiers began to retreat. Joan demanded her soldiers to wait until she recovered, and she promised that when she had her white banner in her hand again, they will be victorious. In a few minutes she mounted her horse again and started to ride rapidly up to the fort.  All her soldiers followed her lead and began a siege on the English. The very next day the enemy's troops were forced to withdraw from the city and the English siege was at end. The French soldiers were grateful at the victory and called Joan the "Maid of Orleans." 

Joan of Arc Makes Her Way to Orleans.

When Joan left Chinon ahead of her soldiers, she was in her eighteenth year. Mounted on a war-horse and in white armor from head to foot, she rode. In one hand she carried an ancient sword, which has many theories as to which it came from. In her other was an embroidered white banner. The rough soldiers whom traveled with Joan had oaths to carefully guard her. She inspired the whole army with courage and faith as she talked about her visions. When she arrived at Orleans she fearlessly rode around its walls, while the English soldiers looked on in astonishment. 

1429 - Joan of Arc meets King Charles VII, King of France in Chinon

Atlast people stopped trying to discourage Joan and some who were wealthy helped her make the journey to Chinon, to talk to King Charles the Seventh of France. When Joan arrived at Chinon,  King Charles was informed. He then disguised a noble of his and disguised himself as a common noble at the festivities that was being held at the castle. The girl was not fooled. She told the disguised noble kindly that he was not the king. Joan then turned around and picked out the King in the crowd. She talked modestly and calmly as she stated her mission to get the Dauphin crowned and how God had chosen her for this journey.  The king talked the matter over with Joan, and decided she could lead an army of about five thousand men against the English in Orleans. 

Joan of Arc Movies.

After watching both movies on Joan of Arc, I noticed lots of things. Based on what I learned at school and what I researched, the first Joan of Arc movie I watched- The Messenger, was pretty inaccurate. From what I learned, the Dauphin was supposed to be a young man. In the movie he was much older. Also I don't believe that she actually started losing her mind when she was captured and being questioned. Then I watched the Joan of Arc movie with Leelee Sobieski. This movie was made before The Messenger, so I figured that this movie would be less accurate. I was wrong. I found that this particular Joan of Arc movie moved through each event that happened to Joan more thoroughly. As for the character Joan herself, I noticed something about this as well. In The Messenger, Joan seemed to already have weaponry skills in her first battle, even though before that scene, she clearly stated that she did not know how to fight. In the other movie, she did not fight at all, she did raise her sword, but she never used it to actually slay anyone. Also in that movie the King of France seemed to have been tricked into having Joan captured, and he soon felt sorrow after hearing about her trial. In The Messenger, it seemed that the King wanted to have Joan captured by the English. My opinion for future projects on Joan of Arc is to watch the  Joan of Arc movie with Leelee Sobieski as Joan.

The Childhood Of Joan of Arc

Joan lived from 1412-1431, in the long wars between the French and English. Joan was born in  Domremy . Her father had told her of the sad condition France was in, how the country was in the possession of England, and how the French king did not dare to be crowned. And so the thought came to be ever in her mind, "How I pity my country!" She brooded over the matter so much that she began to have visions of angels and heard strange voices, which said to her, "Joan, you can deliver the land from the English. go to the relief of King Charles." At last these strange visions and voices made the young girl believe that she had a mission from God, and she determined to try to save France. When she told her father and mother of her purpose, they tried to persuade her that the visions of angels and the voices telling her of the divine mission were but dreams. The village priest, her young companions, even the governor of the town, all tried to stop her, but it was in vain. 

Timeline of Joan of Arc

In Joan's life, there were quite a lot of events. Here is a timeline of the important events that changed her life.

1412: Joan was born and baptized in Domremy.
1425: Joan began hearing voices. She believed that these were the voices of the angels sent by God.
1428: After she cut her hair to look like a boy, she was prompted by the voices, to travel to Vaucouleurs to ask the Dauphin if she can join his forces to help save France from the  English and the Burgundians, who are trying to take over. Unfortunately he rejected her.
1429: Joan returns to Dauphin and pleads to him, to let her fight. This time he accepts.
Febuary 13th, 1429: Joan then leaves Vaucoulers dressed in men's clothes and heads to Chinon. Once there, she asked to help France fight the English and the Burgundians. Her interrogation was ordered by Churchmen for the next three weeks.
April, 1429: Dauphin honors Joan command of a small force.
April 27th, 1429: Joan and her troops headed out from Blois to help the French army at the Seige of Orleans.
April 29th, 1429: Joan and her troops reached Orleans, where they were told to wait for reinforcements.
May 4th, 1429: After winnig the seige in Orleans, Joan was suddenly inspired, and decided to lead attacks on the English army.
May 7th, 1429: During the raging battle, Joan is wounded by an arrow to the chest. Nontheless, she still leads the battle onward. Her troops are shocked by her bravery and fight harder.
May 9th, 1429: Joan and her troops come out of the battle victoriously and head back to Dauphin to tell him to head immediately to Reims for the coronation ceremony, where he will be crowned the King of France. Joan was overjoyed to have won the rightful kingdom back for the king.
June 18th, 1429: Soon there was the battle of Patay.
July 16th, 1429: Dauphin's army finaly reach Reims.
July 17th, 1429: Dauphin is crowned King of France.
August 14th, 1429: French and English forces were starting to fight each other at Senlis.
August 28th, 1429: Burgundy and France decided to sign a four month truce.
September 8th, 1429: The assault on Paris began.
December, 1429: Joan, her parents, and brothers were raised to nobility status.
May 14th, 1430: Joan reaches Compiegne. Where she is to fight another invasion. The voices Joan hears warn her that she will get captured in this battle, she ignores them and goes on to fight. The voices were right, Joan was soon thrown off her horse and was captured by her enemy. 
May 25th, 1430: Paris soon learned of Joan's capture.
January 3rd, 1431: Joan is transferred to Bishop Pierre Cauchon's control for her interrogation.
January 13th, 1431: Joan's trial begins.
May 24th, 1431: Upon the reading of her sentence, Joan gets frightened and signs a last-minute abjuration.
May 29th, 1431: After signing her abjuration, Joan is transferred from ecclesiastic to secular authority.
May 30th, 1431: Joan is burned at the stake, known now as a martyr. 
1450: Charles VII orders an investigation of Joan's trial.
May 16th, 1920: Pope Benedict XV makes Joan of Arc a saint.