In 1429 the voices told her to
go see the future ruler of France, Charles VII. She convinced him that it was
her divine mission to help save France. He made her talk to his priests and they
decided that she was telling the truth. She was given troops to fight England
and dressed as a man to lead them. Joan won many military victories over England
and saved France from English rule. Her biggest victory was winning back Orleans
from the English in 1429 when she was 17 years old.
Joan of Arc was captured and
sold to the English during a battle near Paris in 1430. They put Joan on trial
because the English thought she was hearing voices from the devil and they
thought she was a witch. They also thought that she was wrong to dress like a
man. She was burned at the stake in 1431.
In 1456, the people of France
finally realized that Joan was innocent. In 1920 Joan was made a saint by the
Roman Catholic Church and has been known as St. Joan of Arc ever since. St. Joan
of Arc was a very caring and brave woman who helped France win the Hundred Years
War.
