Joan of Arc.(Continued from page 95.)TheEnglish, driven by these successes from their entrenchments, lost, with their spirit of confidence, more than six thousand men. Joan was once more received by the city as a delivering angel; skepticism itself yielded to these prodigies; the French, as if inspired by a celestial energy, passed from despair to a sanguine enthusiasm, before which obstacles melted away as mists in the sun’s ray.The English generals, surprised and dismayed, sought to combat fanaticism with its own weapons, by attributing their discomfiture to the ascendancy of malignant demons, of whom they gravely declared the maid to be the implement. To discover and weigh the operation of motives on the human mind, was an effort too arduous for an unenlightened age. The doctrine of demons did little towards raising the drooping spirits of the besiegers, who sagely concluded a contest with superior powers, whether of light or darkness, to be unequal and hopeless. Unable to maintain his ground with a panic-struck army, Suffolk prudently raised the siege, May 8th, 1429, and retreated.The French, determined to pursue their advantage, allowed the enemy no time to rally; a body of six thousand men were deputed by the Dauphin to attack the English at Jergean, where a detachment had retired with Suffolk. The place was obstinately defended during a siege of ten days. Joan, in leading the attack, descended rapidly into the fosse, where she received a blow on the head from a stone, which stunned her and threw her down; but quickly recovering herself, the assault was carried, and Suffolk was compelled to yield himself a prisoner. The remains of the English army, solicitous only to effect a retreat, sought for a place of safety; while the vanguard of the French, attacking their rear, at the village of Patay, they were wholly routed; two thousand men fell in the action, and two of their generals were taken prisoners. The conduct of the troops, the military operations, and even the decisions of the council, were poetically attributed to Joan, to whose sagacity and promptitude, in availing herself of the suggestions of more experienced commanders, no mean praise is due.Having performed a part of her mission in raising the siege of Orleans, the crowning of Charles at Rheims only remained to be effected, on which enterprise she now insisted. Rheims, situated in a distant part of the kingdom, was still in the hands of the enemy, whose garrisons occupied the road which led to it; the idea of passing them would, a few weeks before, have been deemed rash and impracticable; but the spirit which now animated the French made them invincible.To avail himself of the enthusiasm of his troops, and the consternation of the English, for which the belief of a supernatural agency afforded but a delicate and critical support, was undoubtedly the interest of Charles; persuaded by his friends that the safety of the state depended on his person, he had hitherto restrained his military ardor; he now placed himself at the head of his troops, and under the auspices of Heaven andfortune, inspired new zeal into his adherents. At the head of twelve thousand men he began his career. Troye opened to him its gates; Chalons followed the example, while, before his approach, Rheims sent him a deputation with its keys; every obstacle thus overcome, the ceremony of the coronation was performed, July 17th, with the holy oil, brought from heaven by a pigeon to Clovis, on the first establishment of the French monarchy.The maid, clothed in armor, and displaying her sacred and victorious banner, took her place, on this occasion, by the side of the king; while the people hailed this combination of miracles with shouts and acclamations, Joan, after the ceremony was completed, throwing herself at the feet of the monarch, embraced his knees, and, shedding tears of tenderness and joy, congratulated him and herself on the success of her mission.The mystical inauguration of Charles shed over him a kind of glory, and gave him in the eyes of the nation new and divine rights; triumph and success, the best proofs of inspiration, by flattering the inclination of the people, gave support and stability to their faith; no one presumed to doubt that, in all that had passed, the finger of Heaven was evident and clear.Lyons, Soissons, Chateau-Thierre, Provins, with various other towns and fortresses, submitted to the summons of the king and that of the prophetic maid; while the whole country disposed itself to testify its loyalty and zeal. A medal was struck in honor of the heroine, bearing on one side her portrait; on the other, a hand grasping a sword, with this motto, “Consilio confirmata Dei,”—“Sustained by the hand of God.”The Duke of Bedford, firm, vigilant, and resolute, still preserved his footing in France, where he employed every resource which circumstances had yet left to him; his garrisons were held in postures of defence, and a watchful eye kept over the French; while the Parisians were, by alternate severity and caresses, yet retained in the English interest. An alliance with the Duke of Burgundy, the most important to their sinking credit, was, at the same time renewed and strengthened. The supplies of money from the British parliament were tardy and scanty; while the impression produced on the minds of the troops of the wonderful power and resources of the maid, occasioned daily desertions in the army.In this perilous state of their affairs, their spirits were revived by the arrival of Cardinal Winchester, who landed at Calais, with a body of five thousand men, which had been levied originally for a crusade. The Cardinal suffered himself to be prevailed upon by the Duke of Bedford to lend hire these troops, for the purpose of opposing the French king, who with his forces was advancing towards Paris.Charles, having left Rheims, and taken St. Denis and Lagni, proceeded to the capital, to which he laid siege. The barriers of the port of St. Honoré were forced, when Joan, flushed with military ardor, and animated by success, in attempting to pass the fosse, received a wound in her thigh. Pressing forward, regardless of the blood which streamed through her armor, she was at lengthperceived by the Duke of Alençon, who observing her situation, carried her forcibly back to the camp. The king was, however, compelled, by want of provisions, to raise the siege, and to retreat from before Paris with his troops.The mission of the maid having been thus accomplished, she expressed a wish to be allowed to retire; but this request was overruled. Charles, still solicitous to retain her in his service, conferred, as a testimony of his gratitude, nobility upon her family and their posterity, both in the male and female line. Armorial bearings were accordingly assigned to her, and her name was changed from Arc to Lys. Domremi, the city which gave her birth, received at the same time a perpetual exemption from subsidies and taxes.The Duke of Bedford, prudently declining a present engagement with a victorious foe, chose his posts with wisdom and caution, attended the French in all their movements, covered the towns and garrisons which remained in his possession, and attentively watched the steps of the enemy. The French army, consisting mostly of volunteers, were soon after disbanded. The king, having made himself master of various towns in the neighborhood of Paris, retired to Bourges, the place of his ordinary residence.The Duke of Bedford, with the hope of reviving the courage of the troops, proposed that the young king of England should pass over to France, be crowned at Paris, and receive from his vassals a new oath of allegiance. This ceremony, however, politically planned, afforded but a spiritless spectacle, when compared with the coronation at Rheims. But an event soon after took place, which gave a different aspect to affairs, while it reflected upon both nations lasting dishonor.The English, supported by the Duke of Burgundy, laid siege to the town of Compéigne, into which Joan threw herself. The garrison, who, with her assistance, believed themselves invincible, received her with transports of joy. On the day following her arrival, May 24th, 1430, she headed a sally made on the quarters of John de Luxemberg. Having thrice driven the enemy from their intrenchments, and finding their numbers increasing every moment, she prudently ordered a retreat. But the pursuers pressing hard upon her, she turned upon them and forced them to recoil. The besieged, protected in the rear by Joan, had in the mean time gained the city in safety, the gates of which were instantly closed. Joan, thus deserted and alone, perceiving herself excluded, surrounded by the enemy, suspecting treachery, and rendered desperate, exerted herself with a courage, deserving a better fate. Her horse at length falling under her, she was compelled, after performing prodigies of valor, to surrender to the enemy. The Burgundians, into whose hands she had fallen, carried their prisoner to Luxemburg, where, for ten thousand livres, they basely sold her to the English. It is believed that the French officers, jealous of the glory of the maid, had designedly exposed her to this fatal catastrophe. Such is human gratitude and the fate of merit, and such the recompense awarded to the benefactors of their species.The savage triumph of her enemies on her capture, was the unequivocal eulogium of the heroine.Te Deum, a serviceso often profaned, was celebrated at Paris on the event. The courage of the English, blasted by the successes of Joan, began, on her imprisonment, to revive. The Duke of Bedford, instigated by a policy alike barbarous and disgraceful, commenced a prosecution against his magnanimous captive, who, by the circumstances of her defeat, the gallantry of her conduct, and her irreproachable life, was justly entitled to the privileges of a prisoner of war. Her youth, her sex, whose appropriate decorum she had strictly observed, her extraordinary qualities, added to the services she had performed for her country, gave her novel and singular claims, to which fanaticism alone could have remained insensible. Under the sanction of religion, justice was outraged and humanity violated.A petition against the maid was presented by the Bishop of Beauvais, who was devoted to the cause of the English, under the pretence that she was taken within the bounds of his diocese, he requested that she might be delivered over to the ecclesiastical court, to be tried for sorcery, impiety, and magic. The University of Paris covered itself with infamy, by joining in this petition. The title ofInquisitor of the Faithwas assumed on the occasion by the Bishop of Beauvais.The court was held at Rouen, where the young king of England then resided, and where Joan, loaded with irons, and clothed in her military apparel, was produced before this prejudiced tribunal. She had previously endeavored to procure her liberty by leaping from the top of the tower in which she was confined; but, stunned by the fall, had been discovered by the sentinel, and retaken. An accusation of intending suicide, was, on this justifiable attempt, added to the offences with which the prisoner was charged. Having requested of her judges to be eased from her chains, she was reproached with her design of escaping. She boldly avowed and justified the fact, declaring at the same time, that if she hesitated to repeat her attempt, it was only from despair of success. Throughout her trial, she discovered equal firmness and courage. Being interrogated respecting the affairs of the court of France, she refused to reply to the questions made to her, alleging that where the secrets of the king were concerned, she owed no obedience to the ecclesiastical powers.Nearly four months she was continually harassed by questions and persecutions the most ridiculous and absurd. Her enemies termed her a “sorceress and a heretic.” The assembled university, having pronounced her a schismatic, proceeded to threaten her with the stake. She was repeatedly examined respecting her visions, revelations, and intercourse with departed saints, and required to submit to the church the truth of her inspirations. “To God,” she replied, “the fountain of truth, I am willing to submit them.” By this answer, she drew upon herself the charge of denying the authority of the church. She appealed from her judges to the Pope, but her appeal was fruitless.It was demanded whether she had not put her trust in a standard consecrated by magical incantations? Whether, at the coronation of Charles, she had not still displayed this mysterious standard?“Her trust,” she replied, “was in the image of the Almighty impressed on the banner, and that she, who had shared the danger of the field, was entitled to partake of the glory at Rheims.” Accused of violating the decorums of her sex, by assuming the habits and command over men, she boldly avowed and justified the purpose of this violation—“the defeat of the enemies of her country, and their expulsion from the kingdom.” During these examinations, she betrayed no weakness, nor gave to her persecutors any advantage; she disgraced not, when in the power of her determined adversaries, the heroism she had displayed in the field.Every species of imposition and baseness was practised upon her; she was required to abjure the masculine habit, and a paper for this purpose was tendered her to sign, to which a promise was subjoined never more to bear arms. Having complied with this proposition, a new deed was substituted in its place, in which she was made to criminate herself by the most odious and false imputations. The malice of her enemies, aggravated by superstition, led them to accuse her of various crimes, particularly of a compact made with infernal spirits. After having received judgment, she was delivered over for sentence to the secular arm.Harassed by injustice, exhausted by suffering, and subdued by cruelty, the spirit of Joan at length gave way; browbeaten by men of superior rank, condemned by those whose injunctions she had been accustomed to regard as sacred, basely deserted by the monarch she had served, sustained no longer by applause and success, her enthusiasm began to subside; the dreams of inspiration were superseded by the feelings of nature, while before the terrors of impending death, the visions of a distempered fancy faded away. Recanting, she acknowledged that she had been misled by illusions; which she solemnly engaged henceforward to renounce, and prayed to be reconciled to the bosom of the church. In consequence of this humiliation, her sentence was mitigated to perpetual imprisonment.No steps were taken by Charles to rescue from destruction the deliverer of himself and the saviour of his dominions; nor, while he held in his hands, as prisoners of war, English of the first distinction, were any proposals offered to exchange them for the heroic Joan:—a memorable example of the gratitude of princes.Political vengeance might here have ceased; but the malignity of the adversaries of the unfortunate Joan, was not yet fully glutted—barbarous and insatiable, they thirsted for her blood! Having consented to abjure the masculine habit, and to assume the habits and attire of her sex, it was determined to tempt her to a violation of her engagement. For that purpose a suit of men’s apparel was placed in her room, and spies were appointed to observe her conduct. Whether the sight of a dress associated with so many flattering, so many glorious ideas, induced her to re-assume it, or whether, as has been alleged, her own clothes were removed while she slept, and were designedly withheld from her, is of little moment; certain it is, that she was tempted in the solitude of her prison, to array herself in the forbiddengarb. Seized by her treacherous enemies in this situation, and declared guilty of a relapse into heresy, she was excommunicated, and all pardon, and all mercy refused to her. Crowned with a paper, on which was inscribed the terms “apostate, heretic, and idolatress,” and guarded by armed soldiers, she was soon after delivered over to the stake, which had been erected for the purpose in the market-place of Rouen.On the right hand of the scaffold, on which she was exposed to the savage fury of the people, were stationed the clergy, and on the left, the secular officers. In this situation, she was with solemn mockery, interrogated on the principles of her faith; principles, which in no respect appeared to differ from those of her merciless persecutors. A discourse was pronounced by Nicholas Midi, towards the conclusion of the ceremony, in which the poor culprit was informed that “the meek and merciful ministers of the Gospel had, for the execution of their sentence, consigned her over to the secular powers.”The bailli of Rouen, less firm than the preacher, could only say, “Let it be.” The tears of Joan even softened the executioner, while the theologians, incapable of the weakness of humanity, remained firm and unmoved. “Dieu soit bene!”—“Blessed be God!” exclaimed the sufferer, as she placed herself upon the pile. Her body was quickly consumed, and her ashes were scattered to the winds. Thus perished this admirable woman, June 14, 1431, to whom “the more liberal and generous superstition of the ancients would have erected altars.” Thus were the services rendered by Joan to her ungrateful prince and country ultimately rewarded.The following character of the maid of Orleans, from Fuller, is to be found in the preface to Mr. Southey’s Joan of Arc. “People found out a nest of miracles in her education, that so lion-like a spirit should be bred among sheep like David. Even after she went in man’s clothing, being armed cap-a-pie, and mounted on a brave steed; and which was a wonder, when she was on horseback, none was more bold and daring; when alighted, none more tame and meek; so that one could scarce see her for herself, she was so changed and altered, as if her spirits dismounted with her body.”Some years after her decease, Joan was, by a bull of Pope Calixtus III., declared a martyr to her religion, her country, and her king. She is made by Chapelain the subject of a French epic poem, entitledLa Pucelle.A Blacksmith’s Shop in the West.—Some years ago a man was travelling in the western country, when one of his horse’s shoes being loose, he inquired of a person he met in the woods, if there was a blacksmith in those parts. “Yes, stranger,” was the reply. “Will you direct me to his shop?” said the traveller. “You are in it now!” said the other. “In it now!” said the stranger; “but my friend—without joking—where shall I find the blacksmith?” “Four miles off,” was the reply. “I do not understand you,” said the horseman. “Well, stranger,” said the woodsman, “I will tell you all about it. The blacksmith’s shop is all out of doors, but his anvil is at the cross road, four miles ahead.”
(Continued from page 95.)
TheEnglish, driven by these successes from their entrenchments, lost, with their spirit of confidence, more than six thousand men. Joan was once more received by the city as a delivering angel; skepticism itself yielded to these prodigies; the French, as if inspired by a celestial energy, passed from despair to a sanguine enthusiasm, before which obstacles melted away as mists in the sun’s ray.
The English generals, surprised and dismayed, sought to combat fanaticism with its own weapons, by attributing their discomfiture to the ascendancy of malignant demons, of whom they gravely declared the maid to be the implement. To discover and weigh the operation of motives on the human mind, was an effort too arduous for an unenlightened age. The doctrine of demons did little towards raising the drooping spirits of the besiegers, who sagely concluded a contest with superior powers, whether of light or darkness, to be unequal and hopeless. Unable to maintain his ground with a panic-struck army, Suffolk prudently raised the siege, May 8th, 1429, and retreated.
The French, determined to pursue their advantage, allowed the enemy no time to rally; a body of six thousand men were deputed by the Dauphin to attack the English at Jergean, where a detachment had retired with Suffolk. The place was obstinately defended during a siege of ten days. Joan, in leading the attack, descended rapidly into the fosse, where she received a blow on the head from a stone, which stunned her and threw her down; but quickly recovering herself, the assault was carried, and Suffolk was compelled to yield himself a prisoner. The remains of the English army, solicitous only to effect a retreat, sought for a place of safety; while the vanguard of the French, attacking their rear, at the village of Patay, they were wholly routed; two thousand men fell in the action, and two of their generals were taken prisoners. The conduct of the troops, the military operations, and even the decisions of the council, were poetically attributed to Joan, to whose sagacity and promptitude, in availing herself of the suggestions of more experienced commanders, no mean praise is due.
Having performed a part of her mission in raising the siege of Orleans, the crowning of Charles at Rheims only remained to be effected, on which enterprise she now insisted. Rheims, situated in a distant part of the kingdom, was still in the hands of the enemy, whose garrisons occupied the road which led to it; the idea of passing them would, a few weeks before, have been deemed rash and impracticable; but the spirit which now animated the French made them invincible.
To avail himself of the enthusiasm of his troops, and the consternation of the English, for which the belief of a supernatural agency afforded but a delicate and critical support, was undoubtedly the interest of Charles; persuaded by his friends that the safety of the state depended on his person, he had hitherto restrained his military ardor; he now placed himself at the head of his troops, and under the auspices of Heaven andfortune, inspired new zeal into his adherents. At the head of twelve thousand men he began his career. Troye opened to him its gates; Chalons followed the example, while, before his approach, Rheims sent him a deputation with its keys; every obstacle thus overcome, the ceremony of the coronation was performed, July 17th, with the holy oil, brought from heaven by a pigeon to Clovis, on the first establishment of the French monarchy.
The maid, clothed in armor, and displaying her sacred and victorious banner, took her place, on this occasion, by the side of the king; while the people hailed this combination of miracles with shouts and acclamations, Joan, after the ceremony was completed, throwing herself at the feet of the monarch, embraced his knees, and, shedding tears of tenderness and joy, congratulated him and herself on the success of her mission.
The mystical inauguration of Charles shed over him a kind of glory, and gave him in the eyes of the nation new and divine rights; triumph and success, the best proofs of inspiration, by flattering the inclination of the people, gave support and stability to their faith; no one presumed to doubt that, in all that had passed, the finger of Heaven was evident and clear.
Lyons, Soissons, Chateau-Thierre, Provins, with various other towns and fortresses, submitted to the summons of the king and that of the prophetic maid; while the whole country disposed itself to testify its loyalty and zeal. A medal was struck in honor of the heroine, bearing on one side her portrait; on the other, a hand grasping a sword, with this motto, “Consilio confirmata Dei,”—“Sustained by the hand of God.”
The Duke of Bedford, firm, vigilant, and resolute, still preserved his footing in France, where he employed every resource which circumstances had yet left to him; his garrisons were held in postures of defence, and a watchful eye kept over the French; while the Parisians were, by alternate severity and caresses, yet retained in the English interest. An alliance with the Duke of Burgundy, the most important to their sinking credit, was, at the same time renewed and strengthened. The supplies of money from the British parliament were tardy and scanty; while the impression produced on the minds of the troops of the wonderful power and resources of the maid, occasioned daily desertions in the army.
In this perilous state of their affairs, their spirits were revived by the arrival of Cardinal Winchester, who landed at Calais, with a body of five thousand men, which had been levied originally for a crusade. The Cardinal suffered himself to be prevailed upon by the Duke of Bedford to lend hire these troops, for the purpose of opposing the French king, who with his forces was advancing towards Paris.
Charles, having left Rheims, and taken St. Denis and Lagni, proceeded to the capital, to which he laid siege. The barriers of the port of St. Honoré were forced, when Joan, flushed with military ardor, and animated by success, in attempting to pass the fosse, received a wound in her thigh. Pressing forward, regardless of the blood which streamed through her armor, she was at lengthperceived by the Duke of Alençon, who observing her situation, carried her forcibly back to the camp. The king was, however, compelled, by want of provisions, to raise the siege, and to retreat from before Paris with his troops.
The mission of the maid having been thus accomplished, she expressed a wish to be allowed to retire; but this request was overruled. Charles, still solicitous to retain her in his service, conferred, as a testimony of his gratitude, nobility upon her family and their posterity, both in the male and female line. Armorial bearings were accordingly assigned to her, and her name was changed from Arc to Lys. Domremi, the city which gave her birth, received at the same time a perpetual exemption from subsidies and taxes.
The Duke of Bedford, prudently declining a present engagement with a victorious foe, chose his posts with wisdom and caution, attended the French in all their movements, covered the towns and garrisons which remained in his possession, and attentively watched the steps of the enemy. The French army, consisting mostly of volunteers, were soon after disbanded. The king, having made himself master of various towns in the neighborhood of Paris, retired to Bourges, the place of his ordinary residence.
The Duke of Bedford, with the hope of reviving the courage of the troops, proposed that the young king of England should pass over to France, be crowned at Paris, and receive from his vassals a new oath of allegiance. This ceremony, however, politically planned, afforded but a spiritless spectacle, when compared with the coronation at Rheims. But an event soon after took place, which gave a different aspect to affairs, while it reflected upon both nations lasting dishonor.
The English, supported by the Duke of Burgundy, laid siege to the town of Compéigne, into which Joan threw herself. The garrison, who, with her assistance, believed themselves invincible, received her with transports of joy. On the day following her arrival, May 24th, 1430, she headed a sally made on the quarters of John de Luxemberg. Having thrice driven the enemy from their intrenchments, and finding their numbers increasing every moment, she prudently ordered a retreat. But the pursuers pressing hard upon her, she turned upon them and forced them to recoil. The besieged, protected in the rear by Joan, had in the mean time gained the city in safety, the gates of which were instantly closed. Joan, thus deserted and alone, perceiving herself excluded, surrounded by the enemy, suspecting treachery, and rendered desperate, exerted herself with a courage, deserving a better fate. Her horse at length falling under her, she was compelled, after performing prodigies of valor, to surrender to the enemy. The Burgundians, into whose hands she had fallen, carried their prisoner to Luxemburg, where, for ten thousand livres, they basely sold her to the English. It is believed that the French officers, jealous of the glory of the maid, had designedly exposed her to this fatal catastrophe. Such is human gratitude and the fate of merit, and such the recompense awarded to the benefactors of their species.
The savage triumph of her enemies on her capture, was the unequivocal eulogium of the heroine.Te Deum, a serviceso often profaned, was celebrated at Paris on the event. The courage of the English, blasted by the successes of Joan, began, on her imprisonment, to revive. The Duke of Bedford, instigated by a policy alike barbarous and disgraceful, commenced a prosecution against his magnanimous captive, who, by the circumstances of her defeat, the gallantry of her conduct, and her irreproachable life, was justly entitled to the privileges of a prisoner of war. Her youth, her sex, whose appropriate decorum she had strictly observed, her extraordinary qualities, added to the services she had performed for her country, gave her novel and singular claims, to which fanaticism alone could have remained insensible. Under the sanction of religion, justice was outraged and humanity violated.
A petition against the maid was presented by the Bishop of Beauvais, who was devoted to the cause of the English, under the pretence that she was taken within the bounds of his diocese, he requested that she might be delivered over to the ecclesiastical court, to be tried for sorcery, impiety, and magic. The University of Paris covered itself with infamy, by joining in this petition. The title ofInquisitor of the Faithwas assumed on the occasion by the Bishop of Beauvais.
The court was held at Rouen, where the young king of England then resided, and where Joan, loaded with irons, and clothed in her military apparel, was produced before this prejudiced tribunal. She had previously endeavored to procure her liberty by leaping from the top of the tower in which she was confined; but, stunned by the fall, had been discovered by the sentinel, and retaken. An accusation of intending suicide, was, on this justifiable attempt, added to the offences with which the prisoner was charged. Having requested of her judges to be eased from her chains, she was reproached with her design of escaping. She boldly avowed and justified the fact, declaring at the same time, that if she hesitated to repeat her attempt, it was only from despair of success. Throughout her trial, she discovered equal firmness and courage. Being interrogated respecting the affairs of the court of France, she refused to reply to the questions made to her, alleging that where the secrets of the king were concerned, she owed no obedience to the ecclesiastical powers.
Nearly four months she was continually harassed by questions and persecutions the most ridiculous and absurd. Her enemies termed her a “sorceress and a heretic.” The assembled university, having pronounced her a schismatic, proceeded to threaten her with the stake. She was repeatedly examined respecting her visions, revelations, and intercourse with departed saints, and required to submit to the church the truth of her inspirations. “To God,” she replied, “the fountain of truth, I am willing to submit them.” By this answer, she drew upon herself the charge of denying the authority of the church. She appealed from her judges to the Pope, but her appeal was fruitless.
It was demanded whether she had not put her trust in a standard consecrated by magical incantations? Whether, at the coronation of Charles, she had not still displayed this mysterious standard?“Her trust,” she replied, “was in the image of the Almighty impressed on the banner, and that she, who had shared the danger of the field, was entitled to partake of the glory at Rheims.” Accused of violating the decorums of her sex, by assuming the habits and command over men, she boldly avowed and justified the purpose of this violation—“the defeat of the enemies of her country, and their expulsion from the kingdom.” During these examinations, she betrayed no weakness, nor gave to her persecutors any advantage; she disgraced not, when in the power of her determined adversaries, the heroism she had displayed in the field.
Every species of imposition and baseness was practised upon her; she was required to abjure the masculine habit, and a paper for this purpose was tendered her to sign, to which a promise was subjoined never more to bear arms. Having complied with this proposition, a new deed was substituted in its place, in which she was made to criminate herself by the most odious and false imputations. The malice of her enemies, aggravated by superstition, led them to accuse her of various crimes, particularly of a compact made with infernal spirits. After having received judgment, she was delivered over for sentence to the secular arm.
Harassed by injustice, exhausted by suffering, and subdued by cruelty, the spirit of Joan at length gave way; browbeaten by men of superior rank, condemned by those whose injunctions she had been accustomed to regard as sacred, basely deserted by the monarch she had served, sustained no longer by applause and success, her enthusiasm began to subside; the dreams of inspiration were superseded by the feelings of nature, while before the terrors of impending death, the visions of a distempered fancy faded away. Recanting, she acknowledged that she had been misled by illusions; which she solemnly engaged henceforward to renounce, and prayed to be reconciled to the bosom of the church. In consequence of this humiliation, her sentence was mitigated to perpetual imprisonment.
No steps were taken by Charles to rescue from destruction the deliverer of himself and the saviour of his dominions; nor, while he held in his hands, as prisoners of war, English of the first distinction, were any proposals offered to exchange them for the heroic Joan:—a memorable example of the gratitude of princes.
Political vengeance might here have ceased; but the malignity of the adversaries of the unfortunate Joan, was not yet fully glutted—barbarous and insatiable, they thirsted for her blood! Having consented to abjure the masculine habit, and to assume the habits and attire of her sex, it was determined to tempt her to a violation of her engagement. For that purpose a suit of men’s apparel was placed in her room, and spies were appointed to observe her conduct. Whether the sight of a dress associated with so many flattering, so many glorious ideas, induced her to re-assume it, or whether, as has been alleged, her own clothes were removed while she slept, and were designedly withheld from her, is of little moment; certain it is, that she was tempted in the solitude of her prison, to array herself in the forbiddengarb. Seized by her treacherous enemies in this situation, and declared guilty of a relapse into heresy, she was excommunicated, and all pardon, and all mercy refused to her. Crowned with a paper, on which was inscribed the terms “apostate, heretic, and idolatress,” and guarded by armed soldiers, she was soon after delivered over to the stake, which had been erected for the purpose in the market-place of Rouen.
On the right hand of the scaffold, on which she was exposed to the savage fury of the people, were stationed the clergy, and on the left, the secular officers. In this situation, she was with solemn mockery, interrogated on the principles of her faith; principles, which in no respect appeared to differ from those of her merciless persecutors. A discourse was pronounced by Nicholas Midi, towards the conclusion of the ceremony, in which the poor culprit was informed that “the meek and merciful ministers of the Gospel had, for the execution of their sentence, consigned her over to the secular powers.”
The bailli of Rouen, less firm than the preacher, could only say, “Let it be.” The tears of Joan even softened the executioner, while the theologians, incapable of the weakness of humanity, remained firm and unmoved. “Dieu soit bene!”—“Blessed be God!” exclaimed the sufferer, as she placed herself upon the pile. Her body was quickly consumed, and her ashes were scattered to the winds. Thus perished this admirable woman, June 14, 1431, to whom “the more liberal and generous superstition of the ancients would have erected altars.” Thus were the services rendered by Joan to her ungrateful prince and country ultimately rewarded.
The following character of the maid of Orleans, from Fuller, is to be found in the preface to Mr. Southey’s Joan of Arc. “People found out a nest of miracles in her education, that so lion-like a spirit should be bred among sheep like David. Even after she went in man’s clothing, being armed cap-a-pie, and mounted on a brave steed; and which was a wonder, when she was on horseback, none was more bold and daring; when alighted, none more tame and meek; so that one could scarce see her for herself, she was so changed and altered, as if her spirits dismounted with her body.”
Some years after her decease, Joan was, by a bull of Pope Calixtus III., declared a martyr to her religion, her country, and her king. She is made by Chapelain the subject of a French epic poem, entitledLa Pucelle.
A Blacksmith’s Shop in the West.—Some years ago a man was travelling in the western country, when one of his horse’s shoes being loose, he inquired of a person he met in the woods, if there was a blacksmith in those parts. “Yes, stranger,” was the reply. “Will you direct me to his shop?” said the traveller. “You are in it now!” said the other. “In it now!” said the stranger; “but my friend—without joking—where shall I find the blacksmith?” “Four miles off,” was the reply. “I do not understand you,” said the horseman. “Well, stranger,” said the woodsman, “I will tell you all about it. The blacksmith’s shop is all out of doors, but his anvil is at the cross road, four miles ahead.”