Trial of Joan of Arc
Encyclopedia
The Trial of Joan of Arc, which took place before an English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

-backed church court in Rouen
Rouen
Rouen , in northern France on the River Seine, is the capital of the Haute-Normandie region and the historic capital city of Normandy. Once one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe , it was the seat of the Exchequer of Normandy in the Middle Ages...

, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 in the first half of the year 1431 was, in the minds of many people, one of the most significant and moving trials ever conducted in human history. It culminated in the execution of the person known to history as Joan of Arc
Joan of Arc
Saint Joan of Arc, nicknamed "The Maid of Orléans" , is a national heroine of France and a Roman Catholic saint. A peasant girl born in eastern France who claimed divine guidance, she led the French army to several important victories during the Hundred Years' War, which paved the way for the...

, the young French peasant girl who was the defendant in the case. The trial verdict would later be reversed on appeal by the Inquisitor-General, thereby completely exonerating her. She is now a French national heroine and Saint
Saint
A saint is a holy person. In various religions, saints are people who are believed to have exceptional holiness.In Christian usage, "saint" refers to any believer who is "in Christ", and in whom Christ dwells, whether in heaven or in earth...

 of the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...

.

Background and context

Joan of Arc entered history in spectacular fashion during the spring of 1429. In obedience to what she claimed was the command of God, Joan led the Dauphin's armies in a series of stunning military victories which resulted in reversing the course of the Hundred Years' War
Hundred Years' War
The Hundred Years' War was a series of separate wars waged from 1337 to 1453 by the House of Valois and the House of Plantagenet, also known as the House of Anjou, for the French throne, which had become vacant upon the extinction of the senior Capetian line of French kings...

.

However, a series of military setbacks eventually led to her capture. First, there was a reversal before the gates of Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

 in September of that same year and then, in the Spring of 1430, she fell captive, in a minor action near Compiègne
Compiègne
Compiègne is a city in northern France. It is designated municipally as a commune within the département of Oise.The city is located along the Oise River...

, to the French Burgundian allies of the English.

The French King, Charles VII
Charles VII of France
Charles VII , called the Victorious or the Well-Served , was King of France from 1422 to his death, though he was initially opposed by Henry VI of England, whose Regent, the Duke of Bedford, ruled much of France including the capital, Paris...

, refused to ransom her from the Burgundians who then delivered her to the English in exchange for a large sum of money. In December of that same year, she was transferred to Rouen, the military headquarters and administrative capital in France of King Henry VI of England, and placed on trial for heresy
Heresy
Heresy is a controversial or novel change to a system of beliefs, especially a religion, that conflicts with established dogma. It is distinct from apostasy, which is the formal denunciation of one's religion, principles or cause, and blasphemy, which is irreverence toward religion...

 before a Church court headed by Bishop Pierre Cauchon
Pierre Cauchon
Pierre Cauchon , bishop of Beauvais. A strong partisan of English interests in France during the latter years of the Hundred Years' War, his role in arranging Joan of Arc's downfall led most subsequent observers to condemn his extension of secular politics into an ecclesiastical trial...

.

Documentary record

The life of Joan of Arc is one of the best documented of her era. This is especially remarkable when one considers that she was not an aristocrat, but instead was a very young peasant girl. In one of history's genuine ironies, this fact is due largely to the records kept by the same individuals who attempted to eradicate her name from memory. This refers of course to the trial record kept during her Trial of Condemnation in Rouen in 1431.

During the investigation and trial itself, a trio of notaries headed by chief notary Guillaume Manchon, took notes in French which were then collated each day following the trial session. About four years later, these records were translated into Latin by Manchon and University of Paris
University of Paris
The University of Paris was a university located in Paris, France and one of the earliest to be established in Europe. It was founded in the mid 12th century, and officially recognized as a university probably between 1160 and 1250...

 master Thomas de Courcelles. Five copies were produced, three of which are still in existence.

Jules Quicherat published the first unabridged version of the trial record in the first volume of his 5 volume Proces de condamnation et de rehabilitation de Jeanne d'Arc in Paris in the 1840s. But it was not until 1932 that the first unabridged English translation became available when W.P. Barrett published his Trial of Joan of Arc http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/joanofarc-trial.html in New York.

The 1928 film The Passion of Joan of Arc
The Passion of Joan of Arc
The Passion of Joan of Arc is a silent film produced in France in 1928. It is based on the record of the trial of Joan of Arc. The film was directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer and stars Renée Jeanne Falconetti...

, hailed as a cinematic masterpiece, was based on the trial record.

In Prison

The procedures of an Inquisitorial trial called for a preliminary inquest into the life of the accused. This investigation consisted of the collection of any evidence about the character of the subject, including witness testimony. This could then be followed by an interrogation of the suspect, in which he or she was compelled to provide testimony which could then be used against them in a subsequent trial.

Preliminary inquiry

With the words "Here begin the proceedings in matter of faith against a dead woman, Jeanne, commonly known as the Maid", the trial records announce the start, on January 9, 1431, of the judicial inquiry into the case of Joan of Arc (Jeanne d'Arc as her name appears at the head of said records).

The first order of business was a preliminary inquiry into Joan's character and habits. An examination as to Joan's virginity was conducted some time prior to January 13, overseen by the Duchess of Bedford (the wife of John, Duke of Bedford, and regent in France of the boy-king Henry VI of England
Henry VI of England
Henry VI was King of England from 1422 to 1461 and again from 1470 to 1471, and disputed King of France from 1422 to 1453. Until 1437, his realm was governed by regents. Contemporaneous accounts described him as peaceful and pious, not suited for the violent dynastic civil wars, known as the Wars...

). At the same time, representatives of Pierre Cauchon
Pierre Cauchon
Pierre Cauchon , bishop of Beauvais. A strong partisan of English interests in France during the latter years of the Hundred Years' War, his role in arranging Joan of Arc's downfall led most subsequent observers to condemn his extension of secular politics into an ecclesiastical trial...

, the Bishop of Beauvais and the man who would preside over the Trial, were sent to Domremy
Domrémy-la-Pucelle
Domrémy-la-Pucelle is a commune in the Vosges department in Lorraine in northeastern France.The village, originally named Domrémy, is the birthplace of Joan of Arc. It has since been renamed Domrémy-la-Pucelle after Joan's nickname, la Pucelle d'Orléans .-Geography:Domrémy is positioned along the...

 and vicinity to inquire further into Joan's life, her habits, and virtue, with several witnesses being interviewed.

The result of these inquiries was that nothing could be found against Joan to support any charges against her. Clerical notary Nicolas Bailly, commissioned to collect testimony against Joan of Arc, could find no adverse evidence.

Interrogation

In a letter of February 20, 1431, to the assessors and others summoning them to appear the morning of the following day for the first public interrogation session of Jeanne, Pierre Cauchon
Pierre Cauchon
Pierre Cauchon , bishop of Beauvais. A strong partisan of English interests in France during the latter years of the Hundred Years' War, his role in arranging Joan of Arc's downfall led most subsequent observers to condemn his extension of secular politics into an ecclesiastical trial...

, Bishop of Beauvais, cited the grant of territory within the city of Rouen by the chapter of the cathedral of Rouen for the purpose of conducting the proces against Jeanne. Without such a grant, he would have been unable to conduct the hearings as he was not in his native diocese. He also affirmed that Jeanne was "vehemently suspected of heresy" and that "rumors of her acts and sayings wounding our faith had notoriously spread". This was the basis for the diffamatio, a necessary ingredient in the bringing of charges against a suspect. He also alluded to the expected absence of the Vice-Inquisitor for Rouen, Jean Le Maistre, whose presence was required by canon law in order to validate the proceedings. On all three points, the Rehabilitation Trial
Rehabilitation trial of Joan of Arc
The Rehabilitation trial of Joan of Arc , held in 1455-56, refers to the hearings conducted by a Papal Commission appointed by Pope Calixtus III for the purpose of examining the circumstances surrounding, and conduct of, the 1431 Trial of Joan of Arc at which she was condemned as a heretic and...

 would declare the proceedings to be at fault and would reverse the verdict.

In response to the summons of Bishop Cauchon, priest and usher Jean Massieu, on this same date, reported that Joan had agreed to appear, but that she requested that ecclesiastics of the French side be summoned equal in number to those of the English party, and that she be allowed to hear mass. In response, promoter Jean d'Estivet forbade Joan to attend the divine offices, citing "especially the impropriety of the garments to which she clung" according to the Trial transcript (Barrett translation).

First session: Wednesday, February 21, 1431

After being brought before the court, the proceedings were explained to Joan and an exhortation was delivered to her by Bishop Cauchon, following which she was required to take an oath concerning her testimony.
Question: Do you swear to speak the truth in answer to such questions as are put to you?

Joan: I do not know what you wish to examine me on. Perhaps you might ask such things that I would not tell.

Question: Will you swear to speak the truth upon those things which are asked you concerning the faith, which you know?

Joan: Concerning my father and my mother, and what I have done since I took the road to France, I will gladly swear to tell the truth. But concerning my revelations from God, these I have never told or revealed to anyone, save only to Charles, my King. And I will not reveal them to save my head.


The court would return to the matter of the oath in subsequent sessions.

She was then asked concerning matters such as her name, her birth, her parents and godparents, her baptism, and her religious upbringing. When she reported that her mother had taught her the Pater Noster
Pater Noster
Pater Noster is probably the best-known prayer in Christianity.Pater Noster or Paternoster may also refer to:* Paternoster, a passenger elevator which consists of a chain of open compartments that move slowly in a loop up and down inside a building* Paternoster, Western Cape, South Africa* Pierres...

, Ave Maria
Hail Mary
The Angelic Salutation, Hail Mary, or Ave Maria is a traditional biblical Catholic prayer asking for the intercession of the Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus. The Hail Mary is used within the Catholic Church, and it forms the basis of the Rosary...

, and Credo
Credo
A credo |Latin]] for "I Believe") is a statement of belief, commonly used for religious belief, such as the Apostles' Creed. The term especially refers to the use of the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed in the Mass, either as text, Gregorian chant, or other musical settings of the...

, Cauchon asked her to repeat her Pater Noster. She replied that she would do so only if she were allowed to be heard in confession.

Finally, reminding her of her previous escape attempts, Joan was admonished against escaping, being told that if she were to do so, she would automatically be convicted of heresy. She rejected this, saying that she had given no oath regarding this matter to anyone and adding, "It is true that I wished and still wish to escape, as is lawful for any captive or prisoner".

Second session: Thursday, February 22, 1431

At this session Jean Le Maistre, the Vice-Inquisitor, was present, having been absent the previous day when he argued that he was appointed to the city and diocese of Rouen whereas the trial was being held in ceded territory in which he had no jurisdiction. He would not be present at any of the following sessions until March 13.

After some further sparring over the oath, Joan was questioned about her youth and activities in Domremy
Domrémy-la-Pucelle
Domrémy-la-Pucelle is a commune in the Vosges department in Lorraine in northeastern France.The village, originally named Domrémy, is the birthplace of Joan of Arc. It has since been renamed Domrémy-la-Pucelle after Joan's nickname, la Pucelle d'Orléans .-Geography:Domrémy is positioned along the...

. She replied that she learned to "spin and to sew", that she "confessed her sins once a year", sometimes more often, and "received the sacrament of the Eucharist
Eucharist
The Eucharist , also called Holy Communion, the Sacrament of the Altar, the Blessed Sacrament, the Lord's Supper, and other names, is a Christian sacrament or ordinance...

 at Easter". Then the questioning took a more serious turn as the issue of her voices was taken up.

She stated that at the age of thirteen, she "had a voice from God to help and guide me", but that at first she "was much afraid". She added that the voice was "seldom heard without a light" and that she "often heard the voice" when she came to France. She then related details of her journey from Domrémy, to Chinon, first applying to Robert de Baudricourt in Vaucouleurs
Vaucouleurs
Vaucouleurs is a commune in the Meuse department.Joan of Arc stayed in Vaucouleurs for several months during 1428 and 1429 while she sought permission to visit the royal court of Charles VII of France.* Distance from Paris: -External links:* *...

 for an escort and leaving that city wearing male attire and equipped with a sword supplied by Sir Robert.

Third session: Saturday, February 24, 1431

Again the session began with skirmishing over the oath, after which Jean Beaupere began with extensive questioning concerning Joan's voices. She was asked, inter alia, what she was doing when the voice came to her, where the voice was, if there was any tactile interaction, what it said, etc. Joan reported that she asked the voice for counsel regarding the questioning and was told to "answer boldly and God would comfort [her]". She further stated that she "never found [the voice] to utter two contrary opinions" and she affirmed her belief that "this voice comes from God, and by His command".

Several questions of a theological nature followed, including this one:
Question: Do you know whether or not you are in God's grace?

Joan: If I am not, may God put me there; and if I am, may God so keep me. I should be the saddest creature in the world if I knew I were not in His grace." She added, if she were in a state of sin, she did not think that the voice would come to her; and she wished everyone could hear the voice as well as she did. She thought she was about thirteen when the voice came to her for the first time.


From there, the questioning turned again to Joan's childhood in Domremy, with questions about the Ladies tree and the customs surrounding it. The session ended with Joan being asked whether she would wear women's clothing if such were supplied her. "Give me [a dress] and I will take it and go; otherwise, I am content with this [referring to her male attire - ed.], since it pleases God that I wear it."

Fourth session: Tuesday, February 27, 1431

Again Joan took a limited form of the oath and again Beaupere took the principal lead in the questioning, first turning to the subject of her voices. Joan stated that she had heard the voices many times since the previous session and that they were St. Catherine and St. Margaret, whose voices had guided her for 7 years, but that the first time she heard voices (when she was about 13), it was that of St. Michael. She refused to answer some of the questions, and referred others to the record of the Poitiers investigation.

There was further questioning about her assumption of male attire to which she responded: "Everything I have done is at God's command". As to her first meeting with Charles VII, she referred the most substantive questions to the records of the Poitiers
Poitiers
Poitiers is a city on the Clain river in west central France. It is a commune and the capital of the Vienne department and of the Poitou-Charentes region. The centre is picturesque and its streets are interesting for predominant remains of historical architecture, especially from the Romanesque...

 investigation but did state that the "King had a sign touching of my mission before he believed in me" and that "the clergy of my party [i.e., the Armagnacs] held that there was nothing but good in my mission".

Questions followed concerning her sword and her standard, which the assessors had her describe in particular detail. The session concluded with questioning about the siege at Orleans and the assault on Jargeau
Jargeau
Jargeau is a commune in the Loiret department in north-central France.It lies about south of Paris.-External links:*...

. Regarding the former, she stated that "she did indeed" know beforehand that she would be wounded, and that she "had told her king so". She was in fact wounded in the neck with a crossbolt as she raised the ladder against the fortress of Les Tourelles.

Fifth session: Thursday, March 1, 1431

Following the usual disagreements over the oath, the session then turned to certain letters exchanged between herself and the Count d'Armagnac concerning which man was the true Pope. Joan stated that she "believed in our Holy Father the Pope at Rome" and that she "had never written nor caused to be written anything concerning the three sovereign Pontiffs".

Other letters which she had written were then brought up. In the course of this exchange, she stated that "before seven years are past the English will lose a greater stake than they did at Orléans
Orléans
-Prehistory and Roman:Cenabum was a Gallic stronghold, one of the principal towns of the Carnutes tribe where the Druids held their annual assembly. It was conquered and destroyed by Julius Caesar in 52 BC, then rebuilt under the Roman Empire...

, for they will lose everything in France" and that she knew this by revelation.

Joan was then asked many detailed questions concerning the saints (called "apparitions" by the questioner, Pierre Cauchon) whom she believed visited her. She was asked whether they were male or female, did they have hair, what language they spoke, etc. Asked whether St. Margaret spoke English, she replied: "Why should she speak English when she is not on the English side?"

She was then asked about her rings and whether she attempted to effect cures thereby ("I never cured anyone with any of my rings"), as well as whether she had a mandrake
Mandragora (demon)
In myth, mandragoras are familiar demons who appear in the figures of little men without beards.Mandragoras are thought to be little dolls or figures given to sorcerers by the Devil for the purpose of being consulted by them in time of need; and it would seem as if this conception had sprung...

 ("I have no mandrake, and never had one.").

And finally she was asked again about the sign which was given to her King whereby he recognized her and her mission and again she refused to answer any questions on this subject, saying "Go and ask him."

Sixth session: Saturday, March 3, 1431

After taking the oath in the same form as before, the questioning turned once again to the appearance of the Saints whom she claimed to see. She stated: "I saw them with my two eyes, and I believe it was they I saw as firmly as I believe in the existence of God" and that God had created them in the form
and fashion that she saw.

Addressing the question of a future escape, she said that her voices "told me that I shall be delivered, but I do not know the day or the hour."

Turning again to the question of her adoption of male attire, she was asked if she had put on male attire "by revelation". She referred to the record of Poitiers, but did add that she had begun wearing men's dress at Vaucouleurs. Many other questions about this matter were put to her which she refused to answer. But it did transpire that, on several occasions, she had been offered women's clothing and asked to put off her male attire but she replied that she "would not put it off without God's leave".

She then described her standard ("white satin, and on some there were fleur-de-lis
Fleur-de-lis
The fleur-de-lis or fleur-de-lys is a stylized lily or iris that is used as a decorative design or symbol. It may be "at one and the same time, political, dynastic, artistic, emblematic, and symbolic", especially in heraldry...

"). Many other questions about her standard and pennons and those of her followers ensued.

After briefly describing her meeting with brother Richard at Troyes
Troyes
Troyes is a commune and the capital of the Aube department in north-central France. It is located on the Seine river about southeast of Paris. Many half-timbered houses survive in the old town...

, the questioning turned to the issue of likenesses of Joan ("At Arras
Arras
Arras is the capital of the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. The historic centre of the Artois region, its local speech is characterized as a Picard dialect...

, I saw a painting of myself done by the hands of a Scot") and the response of the common people to her - the kissing of her rings, hands, garments, and the like. ("many women touched my hands and my rings; but I do not know with what thought or intention".)

Joan was then asked about her meeting with Catherine de la Rochelle, a French mystic who likewise claimed to have revelations from God. After consulting with her Saints, Joan described Catherine as "folly and nothing more".

Finally, the session closed with some questions about Joan's escape attempt from the castle at Beaurevoir, where she was held for a number of months by her Burgundian captors. She stated that though her voices forbade it, "from fear of the English, I leaped and commended myself to God" and "in leaping was wounded", further stating that she would "rather surrender her soul to God than fall into the hands of the English".

Seventh session: Saturday, March 10, 1431

Questioning resumed, this time in her prison cell, with only a handful of assessors present. Joan described the action outside Compiegne when she was taken prisoner by the Burgundians. Asked about the role of her voices in this action, Joan reported that "Easter week last, when I was in the trenches at Melun, I was told by my voices . . . that I would be captured before St. John's Day" adding that "it had to be so" and that "I should not be distressed, but take it in good part, and God would aid me". However, although she had known that she would be captured, she did not know the date and time.

She was then asked about her banner and the meaning of the designs painted thereon. Finally, the session closed with questions about the sign she gave to Charles as proof of her mission.

Eighth session: Monday, March 12, 1431 (morning)

Joan was questioned concerning the first meeting with her King when he was shown a sign. Then attention turned to whether or not her voices / saints had ever failed her in any respect.
Question: Did not the angel fail you . . . when you were taken prisoner?

Joan: . . . since it pleased God, it was better for me to be taken prisoner.


She further stated that they (her saints) "often come without my calling, but sometimes if they did not come, I would pray God to send them", adding "I have never needed them without having them."

Later, when commenting on when she first heard her voices, Joan said that she "vowed to keep her virginity as long as it should please God" adding that she was then "thirteen years old, or thereabouts". She said that she had not told anyone of her visions (neither her parents, nor her priest, nor any churchman), save Robert de Baudricourt.

Asked whether she thought it was right to leave her parents without permission, she responded that she did so at the command of God and therefore "it was right to do so" further stating that "afterwards, I wrote to them, and they forgave me."

Ninth session: Monday, March 12, 1431 (afternoon)

Joan was asked concerning a dream which her father had prior to her leaving Domremy. She replied that she was "often told by my mother that my father spoke of having dreamed that I would go off with men-at-arms" and that she had heard her mother tell how "my father said to my brothers 'in truth, if I thought this thing would happen which I have dreamed about my daughter, I would want you to drown her; and if you would not, I would drown her myself'."

The questioning then turned again to her adoption of male attire. She answered that the decision to adopt same was "of her own accord, and not at the request of any man alive." She added that "Everything I have done I have done at the instruction of my voices" this latter comment in response to a question as to whether or not her voices ordered her to wear a man's costume.

Tenth session: Tuesday, March 13, 1431

The bulk of this session was taken up with a discussion of the "sign" shown to the King (Charles) when Joan first met him at Chinon. When asked whether she had sworn to St. Catherine not to tell the sign, Joan replied, "I have sworn and promised not to tell this sign, of my own accord".

Nevertheless, she then went on to describe the sign and the meeting in detail. She described an angel bringing the King a crown of pure gold, rich and precious, which was put in the King's treasure. She added that when she first came to the King accompanied by the angel, she told him, "Sire, this is your sign; take it." When asked why God had chosen her for this task, she replied simply, "it pleased God so to do, by a simple maid to drive back the King's enemies."

The questioning then turned to the assault on Paris. She stated that she went to Paris not at the behest of a revelation, but "at the request of nobles who wanted to make an attack" adding that "after it had been revealed to me . . . at Melun that I would be captured, I usually deferred to the captains on questions of war."

Eleventh session: Wednesday, March 14, 1431 (morning)

The morning session of March 14 began with lengthy questioning concerning Joan's leap from the tower at Beaurevoir where she had been held captive prior to being delivered to the English. She gave as one of the reasons for the leap that she knew she "had been sold to the English, and I would have died rather than fall into the hands of my enemies the English."

Asked directly whether, in leaping from the tower, she expected to kill herself, Joan replied, "No, for as I leaped I commended myself to God." By leaping she hoped to escape and avoid deliverance to the English.

The questioning then turned to her Saints and the light which accompanied them when they spoke to her. She stated that there was not a day when they did not come, and that they were always accompanied by a light. She asked three things of her voices: her deliverance (from imprisonment by the English), that God should aid the French, and, finally, she asked for the salvation of her soul.

The prisoner was asked about a warning which she had given to Bishop Cauchon. She reported her words as follows:
Joan: (to Cauchon) "You say that you are my judge; I do not know if you are: but take good heed not to judge me ill, because you would put yourself in great peril. And I warn you so that if God punish you for it, I shall have done my duty in telling you."


Asked what this meant, she reported that St. Catherine had told her she would have aid, that she would be delivered by a great victory, adding, "Take everything peacefully; have no care for thy martyrdom; in the end thou shalt come to the Kingdom of Paradise".

The questioning ended for this session with Joan being asked whether, after hearing this revelation, she felt she could no longer commit mortal sin. She replied, "I do not know; but in everything I commit myself to God."

Twelfth session: Wednesday, March 14, 1431 (afternoon)

In the afternoon of the same day, the assessors convened again in Joan's prison cell, taking up where the morning session had left off, namely, with the question of Joan's salvation and the certainty she felt concerning same. Joan qualified her earlier reply by adding that her belief in her salvation was "provided that I kept my oath and promise to Our Lord to keep safe my virginity of body and of soul".

Asked about any need she felt to confess, she responded that she "did not know of having committed mortal sin" adding that "if I were in mortal sin, I think St. Catherine and St. Margaret would at once abandon me."

After a question was raised concerning allegations that Joan had taken a man at ransom and subsequently had him put to death, she answered that she had not done that. Then the assessors read off a list of charges, all of which had been dealt with in previous examinations, and asked her, in reference thereto, whether or not she felt herself in mortal sin as a result. She replied:
Joan: "I do not think I am in mortal sin, and if I am, it is for God, and the priest in confession, to know it."


Apart from this, her replies to the charges (concerning the attack on Paris on a Feast Day, the allegation that she had stolen a horse from the Bishop of Senlis, her leap from the tower of Beaurevoir, her wearing of men's dress, and the aforesaid charge concerning prisoner who was put to death) were a recapitulation of earlier replies. Regarding the horse, her statement was that she had purchased the horse from the Bishop, but that she did not know if he received the money.

Ordinary trial

The ordinary, or regular, trial of Joan began on March 26 with the reading of the 70 articles (later summarized in a 12 article indictment) and concluded on May 24 with the abjuration
Abjuration
Abjuration is the solemn repudiation, abandonment, or renunciation by or upon oath, often the renunciation of citizenship or some other right or privilege. .-Abjuration of the realm:...

.

Execution

Joan recanted her previous abjuration, donned men's apparel once more, was brought to trial as a relapsed heretic
Heresy
Heresy is a controversial or novel change to a system of beliefs, especially a religion, that conflicts with established dogma. It is distinct from apostasy, which is the formal denunciation of one's religion, principles or cause, and blasphemy, which is irreverence toward religion...

and burned at the stake on May 30, 1431 in the Old Marketplace in Rouen.

Further reading

  • Joan's Trial and Execution at Rouen, in Joan of Arc: Her Story by Régine Pernoud and Marie-Véronique Clin.
  • True Lies: Transvestism and Idolatry in the Trial of Joan of Arc, by Susan Schibanoff (in Fresh Verdicts on Joan of Arc, edited by Bonnie Wheeler and Charles T. Wood.)
  • The Trial of Joan of Arc, translated and introduced by Daniel Hobbins, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 2005 (ISBN 0-674-02405-2)

Internet resources

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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