Charles had made his principal stronghold. Subsequently, when Louis XIII granted the castle to Cardinal Richelieu, the building fell into disrepair, and today only the outlines of a few walls remain, but to one of them is attached part of the chimney of the noble fireplace that warmed the great hall; and in that hall Joan met her king.
Charles, cunning, timid and superstitious, was intrigued by Joan but was dominated by his fat chamberlain, La Trémoïlle, who paid his debts, and by his formidable mother-in-law, Yolande of Aragon, who was also the mother-in-law of Isabella, daughter of the Duke of Lorraine. La Trémoïlle would do what was needed to hold on to power: the queen mother did not mind showing that she was a keen supporter of Joan. At court there may already have been enthusiasts for Joan. Of these the most important would be John II, Duke of Alençon, a cousin of the king, a warrior and like his cousin a dabbler in astrology. Charles must have heard of a prophecy that a virgin would save the kingdom; his cousin may have encouraged him to trust in Joan; he was willing to test her out. The story goes that on her arrival he hid in the crowd of courtiers, and that once she found him, she gave him some sort of sign during a private interview. What the sign was is unclear, but Charles was no fool. He knew that the people who must investigate her claims were the clergy. Before he would do anything for her, he insisted that she should be questioned by theologians resident at the University of Poitiers at a meeting whose details are lost. Since the most famous university in the land, the University of Paris, was under Anglo-Burgundian control, this was a prudent initiative.
The examination took eleven days. The clergy questioned her at length about her voices. They also asked her that if it were God’s will that the English should be driven back to England, why did she need soldiers? She snapped back that the soldiers were to fight in God’s name and that God would give the victory. Their findings were cautious. The king should neither reject Joan nor be in a hurry to believe her. He should seek a sign by which he could know if she were sent by God; and she herself said that she would give the sign before Orléans. As the king could find no evil in her, he agreed to supply troops to accompany her to Orléans. There was at this stage no mention of her plans for the coronation. A follow-up to the interrogations led to a test, at Tours, to find out whether she was a virgin; the test showed that she was.
It was now time for a grander test, a test on the field of battle. Having passed her first trial before clerics, Joan moved into action. She dictated a letter to the King of England. She was sure that once she intervened, she would help to change the course of the war.
THREE
Victory at Orléans and Reims
T he relief of Orléans changed Joan from God’s herald into God’s warrior. Joan’s strident claims, her eccentric election to dress as a man, her irruption into court life could have been mere topics for gossip if she had not led men to fight and win. Against the cautious policy of diplomacy advocated by La Trémoïlle she urged decisive action – and she had succeeded in getting men to follow her. She later said she had an army of 10,000–12,000, which the chronicler Enguerrand de Monstrelet estimates at 4,000–5,000, which was still a large force for the time; and she also had an abundance of provisions (supplies often determined the result of a siege). Charles paid for them, his mother-in-law produced them and Alençon organised them.
Before being greeted at Blois by the royal commander, the Bastard of Orléans, Joan turned her army into an unusual spectacle. At its head marched a brigade of priests, who were to sing hymns to Our Lady twice a day and to hear the soldiers’ confessions. As they began the march to Orléans, they held aloft their new banner, on which was painted an image of Christ crucified,
Charles, cunning, timid and superstitious, was intrigued by Joan but was dominated by his fat chamberlain, La Trémoïlle, who paid his debts, and by his formidable mother-in-law, Yolande of Aragon, who was also the mother-in-law of Isabella, daughter of the Duke of Lorraine. La Trémoïlle would do what was needed to hold on to power: the queen mother did not mind showing that she was a keen supporter of Joan. At court there may already have been enthusiasts for Joan. Of these the most important would be John II, Duke of Alençon, a cousin of the king, a warrior and like his cousin a dabbler in astrology. Charles must have heard of a prophecy that a virgin would save the kingdom; his cousin may have encouraged him to trust in Joan; he was willing to test her out. The story goes that on her arrival he hid in the crowd of courtiers, and that once she found him, she gave him some sort of sign during a private interview. What the sign was is unclear, but Charles was no fool. He knew that the people who must investigate her claims were the clergy. Before he would do anything for her, he insisted that she should be questioned by theologians resident at the University of Poitiers at a meeting whose details are lost. Since the most famous university in the land, the University of Paris, was under Anglo-Burgundian control, this was a prudent initiative.
The examination took eleven days. The clergy questioned her at length about her voices. They also asked her that if it were God’s will that the English should be driven back to England, why did she need soldiers? She snapped back that the soldiers were to fight in God’s name and that God would give the victory. Their findings were cautious. The king should neither reject Joan nor be in a hurry to believe her. He should seek a sign by which he could know if she were sent by God; and she herself said that she would give the sign before Orléans. As the king could find no evil in her, he agreed to supply troops to accompany her to Orléans. There was at this stage no mention of her plans for the coronation. A follow-up to the interrogations led to a test, at Tours, to find out whether she was a virgin; the test showed that she was.
It was now time for a grander test, a test on the field of battle. Having passed her first trial before clerics, Joan moved into action. She dictated a letter to the King of England. She was sure that once she intervened, she would help to change the course of the war.
THREE
Victory at Orléans and Reims
T he relief of Orléans changed Joan from God’s herald into God’s warrior. Joan’s strident claims, her eccentric election to dress as a man, her irruption into court life could have been mere topics for gossip if she had not led men to fight and win. Against the cautious policy of diplomacy advocated by La Trémoïlle she urged decisive action – and she had succeeded in getting men to follow her. She later said she had an army of 10,000–12,000, which the chronicler Enguerrand de Monstrelet estimates at 4,000–5,000, which was still a large force for the time; and she also had an abundance of provisions (supplies often determined the result of a siege). Charles paid for them, his mother-in-law produced them and Alençon organised them.
Before being greeted at Blois by the royal commander, the Bastard of Orléans, Joan turned her army into an unusual spectacle. At its head marched a brigade of priests, who were to sing hymns to Our Lady twice a day and to hear the soldiers’ confessions. As they began the march to Orléans, they held aloft their new banner, on which was painted an image of Christ crucified,
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