Execution of Jeanne d’Arc in Rouen

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Jeanne d’Arc’s captors moved her about France. Eventually she was sold by the Duke of Burgundy to the English and they brought her to Rouen, the capital of the English controlled Duchy of Normandy.

Rouen was one of the most prosperous cities in medieval Europe and it is a fascinating city to visit. Although extensively bombed during the Second World War, the city center offers many half-timbered buildings of traditional Normandy design, medieval churches, and the actual location of Jeanne’s execution.

03d Execution of Jeanne d’Arc in Rouen
Département: Seine-Maritime
Region: Haute-Normandie
Country: France

A French Battlefields “Virtual Battlefield Tour” [This battlefield is not included in Fields of War.]

Summary:  Jeanne d’Arc was bought from the Duke of Burgundy by the English ruler of occupied France, John Lancaster, Duke of Bedford. She was brought to Rouen on Christmas Day 1430 and imprisoned in the Château Bouvreuil built by Philip Augustus in 1205. After a lengthy trial, she was found guilty of heresy. On 30 May 1431 she was burned at the stake in the place du Vieux-Marché and her ashes were scattered in the Seine River.

View Execution of Jeanne d’Arc in Rouen- A Virtual Battlefield Tour by French Battlefields (www.frenchbattlefields.com) in a larger map

Captivity of Jeanne d’Arc

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03c Captivity of Jeanne d’Arc: 18 June 1430 to 25 December 1430
Region: Picardy, Nord Pas-de-Calais, and Haute-Normandy
Country: France

A French Battlefields “Virtual Battlefield Tour” [This battlefield is not included in Fields of War.]

Summary: After her capture at the gates of Compiègne by Count Jean II of Luxembourg, Jeanne d’Arc was held captive at several locations while negotiations for the payment of a ransom took place. Eventually the Duke of Bedford purchased her from Count Jean and she was released into English custody.
This Virtual Battlefields Tour traces Jeanne’s route as she was moved towards English held territory along the Channel coast, then as the English moved her to Rouen, their capital in France.

 


View Jeanne in Captivity- A Virtual Battlefield Tour by French Battlefields (www.frenchbattlefields.com) in a larger map

Capture of Jeanne d’Arc

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After the elimination of the English threat to the Loire valley, Jeanne pressured the Dauphin to seek his rightful throne as king of France. Two months later, amidst great pageantry, she stood beside the new king at his coronation as Charles VII in Reims Cathedral, the traditional location for crowning kings of France.

Compiegne, one of the earliest royal cities in France, retains numerous large buildings that date from the 15th century or earlier. The city provides an opportunity to view original structures dating from this period.

03b Capture of Jeanne d’Arc at Compiègne: 18 June 1430
Département: Oise
Region: Picardy
Country: France

A French Battlefields “Virtual Battlefield Tour” [This battlefield is not included in Fields of War.]

Summary: In March 1430, Jeanne left the court to help with the defense of Compiegne against attack by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, an English ally. On 23 May she led a sortie against the besiegers. Jeanne became trapped and taken prisoner by the men of Count Jean II of Luxembourg when the gates closed during her force’s retreat.

Charles made no attempt to rescue his heroine, mainly due to court intrigue against her by those jealous of her increasing influence. In November, she was sold by Jean to the English, as was the custom of the time for important captives.


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Waltzing Australia

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We recently had the opportunity to tour New Zealand and we were impressed with the remembrances of the country’s wartime efforts. ANZAC (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps) troops were a significant contingent to British Commonwealth forces in the First World War and they fought in some of the most difficult engagements on the Western Front. In the second war, they fought in Greece and Crete before the Japanese entry into the war required them to be returned to the Pacific. It is said that there are over 500 world war memorials in New Zealand – I believe it. More about them at some later date.

While we did not get to Australia, that country’s history, legends, and flavor can be had by reading Cynthia Clampitt’s book Waltzing Australia. Through reminiscences of her six months criss-crossing the country, Cynthia helps us Yanks understand the personality of this rugged and slightly in-your-face country. While not strictly a travel guide, anyone thinking of visiting Australia, or just doing some ‘armchair traveling’ should read Cynthia’s book for her keen observations on interesting people and beautiful places. There is a lot more to the country than Crocodile Dundee and Sidney Opera House. You might even learn something about yourself in the process. In addition, her short observations on Australia and other topics can be found on her blog site, Waltzing Australia.

Jeanne d’Arc, Maid of Orléans

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No historical figure has had as dramatic an impact in as short a time as a seventeen-year-old peasant girl from the small Lorraine village of Domrémy-la-Pucelle. No one has come from more obscure beginnings or has remained more controversial. As France’s youngest and most revered hero and as patron saint of the country, homage to her is found throughout the land. Few towns or villages do not have a rue or place ‘Jeanne d’Arc’. For a person of whom no formal portrait exists, her image is the most reproduced in France. Few personalities from this period have had their every move and utterance as well documented, translated, or analyzed.

We started our series of Virtual Battlefield Tours with those of the Hundred Years War in celebration of the 600th anniversary of Jeanne’s birth in 1412 – the exact date is not known. Jeanne d’Arc appeared at the court of as yet uncrowned Charles VII at Chinon begging for an opportunity to defend France from English invaders. She was determined to eliminate the English from French soil and to have the Dauphin, Charles, crowned as king of France. To her, it was a holy quest; the result of divine guidance. Her military aggressiveness revitalized French forces and leadership. Despite her untimely capture and execution, her inspiration eventually led to a French military and political victory twenty-two years later.

Our signature volume, ‘Fields of War: Fifty Key Battlefields in France and Belgium’, only includes one Jeanne d’Arc battlefield, the lifting of the Siege of Orléans. Blogs, however, offer the opportunity to present additional material. Thus, we have already posted a Virtual Battlefield Tour of the Battle of Patay, where French forces including Jeanne routed the English survivors from the Siege of Orléans. Several other Jeanne locations will follow shortly. We hope that you will find them of interest.