Joan of Arc, memory of

Among the many important figures of history, some few stand out as transcending the accidents of their time and place. The young 15th century French peasant girl, known to history as Joan of Arc, who led her nation's armies to victory in the later stages of the Hundred Years' War and became a French national heroine, is one such.

In Joan's case, although she has become a French national heroine, she has also become a heroine to many of other nationalities. And although she was a pious and devout Catholic (and, since 1920, a recognized saint within the Catholic Church), she has become a religious inspiration to many of other faiths and, not only people of faith, but aetheists and agnostics as well. And although very much a child of the 15th century, into which she was born, she has remained an inspiration over the centuries since.

Belonging to all people, all times, and all religions, the transcendent figures of history possess two biographies. First, there is the record of their lives and deeds. In Joan's case, the documentary sources for this are voluminous, especially when one considers the fact that she lived in the years before the printing press and widespread literacy, and was also young, female, and not of noble class.

But beyond Joan's actual life, there is a second biography, and that is the record of how men and women of subsequent ages have viewed her as seen in literature, drama, folklore, and other other media and forms. The story of Joan of Arc, as seen by her viewers and storytellers, is the subject of this article.

Joan's voices and visions

The subject of the nature and origin of the voices and visions which Joan of Arc experienced has been of intense interest not only to her contemporaries, but to scholars, religious figures, and students of history all the way down to modern times.

Joan of Arc's transvestism

Question: Did God order you to wear a man's dress?

Joan: The dress is a small, nay, the least thing. I did not put on man's dress by the advice of any man whatsoever; I did not put it on, nor did I do aught, but by the command of God.

Question: Did this commmand to assume male attire seem lawful to you?

Joan: Everything I have done is at God's command; and if He had ordered me to assume a different habit, I should have done it, because it would have been his command.

Further reading

• Fresh Verdicts on Joan of Arc, edited by Bonnie Wheeler
• Marina Warner, Joan of Arc: the Image of Female Heroism, University of California Press, 1981
• Timothy Wilson-Smith, Joan of Arc: Maid, Myth, and History, Sutton Publishing, 2006, ISBN 0-7509-4341-6