Untitled Document
 There
was a brave girl in France in the
15th Century. Her name was Joan (Jeanne in French). She was a national heroine of France. At the
age of 17, she led the entire French army in the Hundred Years
War! She was the only teenager ever recorded to
have commanded the entire army
of a nation. This week, let's go back to 15th Century France and meet
the amazing girl!
Joan of Arc (Jeanne d'Arc in French) was born in 1412 in France. She
was the third of five children to Jacques Darc and his wife Isabelle.
Her father was a farmer. Young Joan used to help her father in
the fields. She also learned housekeeping skills from
her mother.
When Joan was about 12 years old, something very special happened to her.
She began hearing voices of saints! These voices told
her that "You have to free your country from England." At
that time, France and England didn't like each other. And there was
a series of wars between the two countries.
The Hundred Years War백년전쟁 lasted 116 years from 1337
to 1453!
 The voices
told Joan that she had to save her homeland. So she cut her
hair and dressed in man's uniform to fight in the war.
King Charles VII sent her to Orleans. Orleans is a city in north central
France. At first, people thought that young Joan couldn't do anything.
But the brave girl surprised everyone. At the
battle of Orleans in May
1429, Joan led the French troops to a victory over the English!
Joan continued fighting the enemy in other places. The
English soldiers were afraid of her.
Most of the English troops ran away when she appeared! But in 1430, she
was captured by the English. On May 30, 1431, Joan was burned at the
stake by the English. She was only 19 years old.
Jeanne d'Arc was one of the most important people in history. She
loved her country very much. And she did her best to save her homeland.
Many people all over the world still
remember the brave girl. On May 16 in 1920, Jeanne d'Arc was canonized
as a saint. |
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