PETERSON’S MAGAZINE.
JOAN OF ARC.
BY CHARLES J. PETERSON,
Tax story of Joan of Are is familiar to all, But a doubt long existed as to the exact nature other character. Pailing a victim to treachery, and exeeuted by the enemies of her country, erery means was taken, by her murderers, to tleken her reputation. English history, even tw thie day, is generally unjust to her.
‘The truth, as Michelet has established from toemporary writers, is that Joan was an enthu- fiat, who, being endowed with « vivid imagina- tion, realized what to others were mere dreams. The advanced gcience of the nineteenth contory recognizes such phenomens. Joan honestly be- lieved that she saw angelic visions, that she was in communication with spiritcal advisera, and tat heaven had delegated to her the task of Uberating her country from the English yoke.
After baying been the terror of the invaders, fet more than © year, and achieved a series of scceeaea which ceased only with the final libera- tion of France, Joan was captured by « party of Bargandiana, who had joined the English against their native land and were then besieging Com- pens, To the disgrace of her king, Charles the Seventh, no effort was made to procure her tachange. To the still greater disgrace of the Trench prelates, they sought to get her into the hands of the Inquisition, instigated by a secret leaning to the British, Her doom was not left lng in doubt. The anserapatoos men, who directed English affairs during the infancy of Henry the Sixth, believing that the disgrace and dexth of Joan was necessary to the retention of the British conquesta, determined to buy her of the Borgundians. ‘Ten thousand livres, and an annuity of three hundred more, large sums in that day, were the price of her blood.
To have merely executed the poor girl would Bot have answered the ends of her enemies. It Ws requisite to destroy her influence as well as to take away her life; and for this purpose there was nothing so efficacious, in that age, as a charge of sorcery. The traitorous French prelates lent their aid to this maliguant plot. The bishop of Besuvsin and five others, with the Vicar-General of the French Inquisition, were the prominent jadges selected to be the toole of the Britieh party. Every ingenuity of mental torture was exhausted in order to induce Joan to confess to crime, Her answers were porverted; she was denied counsel; the rack was threatened; and even the pretended authority of the charch was invoked aguinst her. At last, on the pro- mise of life, she wes induced to sign a confession artfully put before her. But nothing could save her, for not only did the brutel English soldiery, who bsd been prejudiced against her as s witch, ory out for her blood, but even the nobility de- manded it,
‘The vile arts which were now adopted, to bring her to the stake, would seem incredible on any authority lose positive than that which bas come down to ug. At last the base intrigues succeeded. Hering laid aside the male attire, which she wore before her condemnation, she was tricked into resuming it, and for this was condemned to the flames as « relapeed heretic and sorcerer. Placed in a cart, she was hurried to the market- place of Rouen, where the dreadfal doom was to be inflicted.
‘The stake was fixed upon a lofty ecaffold, not only that all might see her suffer, but thet the executioner might not be able to approach her to shorten her agonies. Brought to the foot of the pile, Joan knelt down, and sfter imploring pardon for herself, and audibly forgiving ber enemies, turned to the bystanders and besought them to pray for her. Her behavior was co devout, humble and touching, that sympathy for her became contagious, The bishop of Beanvais himself melted into tears; the bishop of Boulogoe sobbed aloud; and even the English cried, the ernel Winchester with the rest,
But this emotion waa only temporary. Re-
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