knights, among whom Charles himself had mixed unnoted, and in plain attire. 5. Joan entered without 'embarrassment; the glare of the lights, the gaze of the spectators did not disconcert her. Singling out the dauphin at the first glance, she walked up to him with a firm step, bent her knee, and said, “God give you good life, gentle king." He was surprised, but replied, "I am not the king, he is there," pointing at the same time to a different part of the hall. "In the name of God," she exclaimed, "it is not they, but you are the king. Most noble lord dauphin, I am Joan the maid, sent on the part of God to aid you and the kingdom; and by his order I announce to you that you will be crowned in the city of Rheims.” 4 6. The following day she made her appearance in public, and on horseback. From her look she was thought to be in her sixteenth or seventeenth year; her figure was slender and graceful, and her long black locks fell in ringlets on her shoulders. She ran a course with the lance, and managed her horse with ease and dexterity. The crowd burst into shouts of admiration: they saw in her something more than human; she was, they thought, a knight descended from heaven, for the salvation of France. Men of every rank caught the enthusiasm, and thousands offered their services to follow her to battle. 7. Sixty bastiles or forts, erected in a circle round Orleans, had effectually intercepted the communication with the country; and the horrors of famine were 1429 already felt within the walls, when it was resolved A D. by the French Cabinet to make a desperate effort to throw a supply of provisions into the city. A strong body of men, under some of the bravest officers in France, assembled at Blois, and Joan 'solicited and obtained permission not only to join, but also to direct, the expedition. 8. To the English commanders she sent orders, in the name of God, to withdraw from France, and return to their native country. Dunois, the governor of Orleans, led her secretly into that city, where she was received by the citizens, with lighted torches and 'acclamations of joy. Her presence created in the soldiers a spirit of daring, and a confidence of success. Day after day sallies were made, and the strongest of the English forts successively fell into the hands of the assailants. 9. One day, while she was in the act of planting a ladder, an arrow passed through an opening in her corselet, and fixed itself between the chest and the shoulder. Her companions conveyed her out of the crowd, the wound was dressed, and the heroine, after a few minutes spent in prayer, rejoined the 'combatants. At her appearance the assailants redoubled their efforts, and the fort was soon won. 10. Suffolk, 'disconcerted by repeated losses, determined to raise the siege; and the soldiers, with feelings of shame and regret, turned their backs to the city. The Earl of Suffolk was soon besieged in a neighbouring town, and the place was carried by storm. More than three hundred of the garrison perished; and Suffolk, with the remainder, fell into the hands of the enemy. 11. Joan had always declared that the object of her mission was twofold: the liberation of Orleans, and the coronation of the king at Rheims. Of these the first had been accomplished; and she 'vehemently urged the execution of the second. Though to penetrate as far as Rheims was an enterprise of difficulty and danger, for every intermediate fortress was in the possession of the enemy, Charles determined to trust to his own fortune and the prediction of his inspired deliverer. 12. Having sent a strong division of troops to alarm the 'frontiers of Normandy, and another to insult those of Guienne, Charles commenced his march with an army of ten thousand cavalry. The citizens of Rheims having expelled the Burgundian garrison, received him with the most flattering testimonies of joy. The coronation was performed in the usual manner; but as none of the peers of France attended, Charles appointed 'proxies to perform their duties. During the ceremony, Joan, with her banner unfurled, stood by the king's side: as soon as it was over, she threw herself on her knees, embraced his feet, declared her mission accomplished, and with tears solicited his leave to return to her former station. 13. But the king was unwilling to lose the services of one who had hitherto proved so useful; and at his earnest request she consented to remain with the army, and to strengthen that throne which she had in a great measure established. Bedford obtained fresh 'assurances of fidelity from the Duke of Burgundy, withdrew five thousand men from his Norman garrisons, and received an equal number from his uncle Beaufort. With these he went in pursuit of Charles, who was unwilling to stake his crown on the uncertain event of a battle. 14. In the neighbourhood of Senlis, however, the two armies undesignedly came in sight of each other. The English, inferior in numbers, prepared for the fight after their usual manner: the French officers, flushed with success, impatiently demanded the signal for battle. But the defeats of Agincourt and Verneuil led Charles not to rely on mere superiority of number. The armies separated as if it had been by mutual consent. into Normandy; and Charles, at the female companion, took advantage of to make an attempt on the capital. Soissons, Senlis,s Beauvais, and St. Denis 10 opened their gates. He advanced to Montmartre, 11 published an amnesty, and directed an assault on the Fauxbourg of St. Honoré, 12 The regent hastened solicitation of his the duke's absence 7 At its very com 15. The action lasted four hours. mencement Joan received a dangerous wound, was thrown into the ditch, and lay there unnoticed till she was discovered in the evening, and carried off by a party sent in search after her. Charles, mortified by the obstinate resistance of the Parisians, retired to Bourges; 13 while the maid, looking on her wound as an admonition from Heaven that her commission had ceased with the coronation at Rheims, consecrated her armour to God in the church at St. Denis. Her services, however, were still wanted. At the solicitation of her sovereign, she consented to resume the profession of arms, and accepted a patent of nobility for herself and her family, accompanied with a grant of income equal to that of an earl. A. D. 16. At the commencement of spring, the Duke of Burgundy undertook to reduce the city of Compiègne; 14 and the maid was selected to raise the 1430 siege. Her troops were defeated, however; she was taken prisoner, and was handed over to the regent Bedford. The unfortunate maid was treated with neglect by her friends, with cruelty by her enemies. If ever prince had been indebted to a subject, Charles VII. was indebted to Joan of Arc; yet from the moment of her captivity she appears to have been forgotten. We read not of any sum offered for her ransom, or of any attempt made to alleviate the rigour of her confinement, or of any notice taken of her trial and execution. 17. The Bishop of Beauvais, in whose diocese she had been taken, claimed the right of trying her in his court on an accusation of sorcery and imposture. It is generally supposed that this claim was made at the suggestion of the Duke of Bedford. The inquiry was opened at Rouen; 15 on sixteen different days she was brought to the bar; the questions, with her answers, were laid before the University of Paris; and the opinion of that body concurred with the judgment of the court. Still the sentence was delayed from day to day; and repeated attempts were made to save her from the punishment of death, by inducing her to make a frank and explicit confession. 18. But the spirit of the heroine continued undaunted. She proudly maintained that she had been the inspired minister of the Almighty. The fatal day arrived, and the captive was placed at the bar; but when the judge had prepared to pronounce sentence, she yielded to a sudden impulse of terror, subscribed an act of abjuration, and, having promised upon oath never more to wear male attire, was remanded to her former place of confinement. 19. Her enthusiasm, however, revived in the solitude of a prison, and her judges condemned her, on the charge of having relapsed into her former errors. She was led sobbing and struggling to the stake; but the ex1431 pectation of a heavenly deliverer did not forsake A.D. her though she saw the fire kindled at her feet. She then burst into loud exclamations, protesting her innocence, and invoking the aid of the Almighty; and just before the flames enveloped her, was seen embracing a crucifix, and calling on Christ for mercy. This cruel and unjustifiable tragedy was acted in the market-place of Rouen, before an immense concourse of spectators, about twelve months after her capture. JOHN LINGARD: History of England. ab-ju-ra-tion, disavowing; withdraw-em-bar-rass-ment, confusion. ing on oath. ac-cla-ma-tions, shouts. dex-ter-i-ty, cleverness; skill. trated. dis-tiñ-guished, noted; eminent. fron-tiers, borders; confines. ve-he-ment-ly, strongly; earnestly. |