Joan of Arc

Painting, c. 1485. The only known portrait for which she sat has not survived, so all depictions of her represent artistic license. (Centre Historique des Archives Nationales, Paris, AE II 2490)

Joan of Arc (Jeanne d'Arc) (1412-1431 AD) was a girl who felt called by God to lead the French army, defeated the English at the siege at Orleans in A.D. 1430 at the age of seventeen, but was later captured by the English and burned at stake as a heretic in 1431. She was canonized by the Catholic Church in 1920 and is accordingly known today as St. Joan.

Joan of Arc is the English translation of the French name Jeanne d'Arc. Her name was spelled in a variety of ways; she herself signed her first name as "Jehanne" on some letters. She is also known as "the Maid of Orleans" and "La Pucelle" (French for "the maid").

Relics thought to be those of Joan of Arc were recently proved to be a nineteenth century forgery involving the remains of an Egyptian mummy. The survival of her organs was thought to be a miracle, since contemporary historical records describe how she was burned three times to ensure nothing remained.

Her story has inspired numerous works of art, notably George Bernard Shaw's 1923 play Saint Joan (considered one of his greatest plays) and Mark Twain's novel Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc (largely forgotten but believed by Twain to be his best work). Both are sympathetic and admiring depictions. In contrast, in Shakespeare's play Henry VI, Part 1, the character "Joan La Pucelle" is depicted as she was generally viewed by the English at the time: as a witch and sorceress who was justly executed.