February 13, 1431
The officers appointed take oath
On the morning of Tuesday, February 13th of the same year there appeared before us in our dwelling the following lords and masters:
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- , doctors;
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- , licentiates in canon law;
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- , bachelors of theology;
- and , canon of the cathedral of Rouen.
We summoned the officers already appointed and ordained by us in this suit, namely master , the promoter; and , notaries; master , executor of our convocations and commands. We required them to take oath to fulfil their offices faithfully, and in obedience to our request they swore between our hands to fulfil and exercise them faithfully.
February 14th 15th and 16th, 1431
The preparatory information is drawn up
On the Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday following, the said with the assistance of the two notaries proceeded to draw up the preparatory information which we had commanded.
February 19, 1431
Decision to summon the Inquisitor
On Monday, February 19th 1431, the following lords and masters appeared before us in our dwelling at eight o’clock in the morning.
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- , doctors of theology;
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- , licentiates in canon law;
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- , bachelors of theology;
- , canon of the cathedral of Rouen.
We the said bishop informed them that we had commanded a preparatory inquiry into certain articles concerning the words and deeds of this woman whom, as we had formerly said, our lord the king had surrendered and entrusted to us, to discover if there were sufficient cause to proceed against her and summon her in matters of faith. In their presence we read the articles and depositions contained in this preparatory evidence.
When this had been read they were fully considered by the lords and masters in a long and mature consultation.
Finally at their counsel and advice we concluded that we possessed sufficient evidence to proceed against this woman and summon her in matters of faith, and we decreed that she should be cited and summoned to reply to certain interrogations to be addressed to her.
Moreover for the more convenient and salutary conduct of the matter, and in our respect for the apostolic holy see which has especially appointed lord Inquisitors of Heretical Error to correct the evils which arise against the orthodox faith, we resolved at the advice of our experienced counselors to invite and summon the lord Inquisitor of Heretics cal Error for the kingdom of France to collaborate with us in this trial if it were according to his pleasure and interest.
Since however the said lord Inquisitor was then absent from the city of Rouen, we commanded that his deputy, who was present in Rouen, should be summoned and called in his stead.
The afternoon of the same day. The Vicar of the Lord Inquisitor is summoned
The same Monday, at four in the afternoon, we were visited in our house by the venerable and discreet master of the order of Preaching brothers, Vicar of the lord Inquisitor of the kingdom of France and appointed by him to the city and diocese of Rouen.
We summoned and required the said vicar to join with us so that we might proceed in conjunction in the said matter, and we offered to acquaint him with everything which had been or should in future be done therein. Whereupon the said vicar answered that he was prepared to show us his commission or letters of appointment given him by the lord Inquisitor and according to the tenor thereof he would gladly perform all that he was in duty bound to do on behalf of the holy inquisition.
Yet, since he was especially appointed for the diocese and city of Rouen only, he doubted whether his commission could be interpreted to include the present trial, although the territory had been ceded to us, because we had nevertheless undertaken these proceedings in virtue of our jurisdiction in the diocese of Beauvais.
We answered that he should return to us on the next day when we should have taken counsel upon the matter.
February 20, 1431
Tuesday, February 20th 1431. The Vicar of the lord Inquisitor refuses to act
On the following Tuesday, February 20th there appeared before us in our dwelling brother
- , vicar of the lord Inquisitor;
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- , canon of the cathedral of Rouen,
- and brother , of the order of Preaching brothers.
In their presence we reported that we had seen the commission or letter of appointment given to the said brother by the lord Inquisitor, and that it was the opinion of the learned authorities to whom we had shown this letter that the said vicar could in virtue of this commission collaborate with us, that this commission included this city and the entire diocese of Rouen, and that he could conduct the present trial conjointly with us.
But nevertheless to avoid the nullification of the trial we had resolved to address a summons or requisition in the form of letters patent to the lord inquisitor, requesting him to come in person to this town of Rouen and conduct the trial in person or provide a deputy authorized with more extensive and particular powers, according to the tenor of our letters transcribed below.
Whereupon the said brother replied that for the serenity of his conscience and the safer conduct of the trial he would not participate in the present matter, unless he received especial authority.
Nevertheless as far as he lawfully might he allowed that we the said bishop should proceed further until he had received more ample counsel upon the question whether he could in virtue of his commission undertake the conduct of this trial.
Thus with his consent we once again offered to acquaint him with the past and future procedure. And after receiving the decisions of the assessors, we decreed in our letters of citation transcribed below, that this woman should be summoned to appear before us on the following Wednesday, February 29th.
First follows the tenor of letters of appointment of the said Jean Le Maistre
“Brother , of the order of Preaching brothers, professor in sacred theology, by apostolic authority Inquisitor of Heretical Error in all the kingdom of France, to his well loved brother in Christ, , of the same order, greeting in Our Lord Jesus Christ, the author and consummator of our faith.
Heresy is a disease which creeps like a cancer, secretly killing the simple, unless the knife of the inquisitor cuts it away.
Hence, with confidence in your zeal for the faith, in your discretion and integrity, and in virtue of the apostolic authority which we enjoy, we have made, created and constituted you, and by the tenor of these present letters we make, create and constitute you our vicar in the town and diocese of Rouen, giving and granting you entire authority in this town and diocese against all heretics and them suspected of heresy, their accomplices, protectors and concealers, to investigate, cite, summon, excommunicate, apprehend, detain, correct and proceed against them by all opportune means, up to and including the final sentence, with absolution and the pronouncement of salutary penances, to perform and exercise in general each and every duty pertaining to the office of inquisitor by law, custom or special privilege, which we ourselves should perform if we were acting in person.
Given at Rouen, August 21st in the year of Our Lord 1424.”
Follows the tenor of the letter which we the said Bishop addressed to the Lord Inquisitor of Heretical Error
“Pierre, by divine mercy , to the venerable father master , doctor of theology, Inquisitor of Heretical Error, greeting and sincere love in Christ. Our lord the King, burning with zeal for the orthodox faith and the Christian religion, has surrendered to us as ordinary judge a certain woman named Jeanne, commonly called The Maid, who, notoriously accused of many crimes against the Christian faith and religion, suspected of Heresy, was captured and apprehended in our diocese of Beauvais.
The chapter of the cathedral of Rouen, in the vacancy of the archiepiscopal see, having granted and assigned us territory in this city and diocese in which to hold this trial, we, desiring to drive out all unholy errors disseminated among the people of God, to establish the integrity of the wounded Catholic faith, and to instruct the christian people, teaching them salvation, particularly in this diocese and other parts of this most Christian realm, resolved to examine the case of this woman with all diligence and zeal, to inquire into her acts and ways concerning the Catholic faith, and, after assembling a certain number of doctors of theology and canon law, with other experienced persons, did, after great and mature consultation, begin her legal trial in this town.
But as this particularly concerns your office of inquisitor, whose duty is to direct the light of truth upon the suspicions of heresy, we beg you, venerable father, require and summon you for the faith’s sake to return without delay to the town of Rouen for the further conduct of the trial and to participate therein as is incumbent upon your office, according to legal form and apostolic sanctions, so that we may continue in this suit with a common sentiment and uniform procedure. And if your occupation or other reasonable cause should occasion any delay, at least entrust your authority to brother your vicar in this city and diocese of Rouen, or to some other deputy, so that you are not charged with the grievous delay caused by your absence after so urgent a summons, to the prejudice of the faith and the scandal of the Christian people.
Whatever you decide to do, please inform us of forthwith in your letters patent. Given under our seat at Rouen, February 22nd, in the year of Our Lord 1431.”
Signed: .
February 21, 1431
Wednesday, February 21st. The First Public Session
On Wednesday, February 21st, at eight o’clock in the morning we the said bishop repaired to the chapel royal of the castle of Rouen, where we had summoned the said woman to appear before us at that hour and day. When we were seated in tribunal there were present the reverend fathers, lords and masters:
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- , doctors of sacred theology;
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- , abbots;
- , canon,
- , doctors of canon and civil law;
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- , bachelors of theology;
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- , bachelors of canon and civil law;
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- , bachelors of canon law;
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- , licentiates in civil law.
In their presence there were read first the letters from the king upon the restoration and surrender of the said woman to us, then the letters from the chapter of Rouen granting us territory: the tenor of which is given below.
Then master , appointed and constituted our promoter in this trial, reported that he had caused the said Jeanne to be cited and summoned by our usher to appear at the said place, on the day and hour prescribed, to answer the questions which should legally be put to her, as is clearly shown in the report of the usher affixed to our letters of citation.
Follows the tenor of the letters of citation and writ
“Pierre, by divine mercy bishop of Beauvais, being in possession of territory in the city and diocese of Rouen, by the authority of the venerable chapter of the cathedral of Rouen in the vacancy of the archiepiscopal see, for the purpose of undertaking and concluding the aforementioned matter, to the dean of the Christendom of Rouen, to all priests, whether curates or not, of this city and diocese, who shall see these present letters, greeting in the author and consummator of our faith.
Since a woman commonly called Jeanne the Maid had been captured and apprehended within our diocese of Beauvais, and had been surrendered, dispatched, given and delivered to us by the most Christian and serene prince the lord King of France and England as a person vehemently suspected of heresy, so that we should institute proceedings against her in matters of faith in view of the fact that rumors of her acts and sayings wounding our faith had notoriously spread not only through the kingdom of France, but also through all christendom, we, desirous of proceeding maturely in the affairs, resolved, after a diligent inquiry and consultation with learned men, that the said Jeanne should be summoned, cited, and heard upon the articles and interrogations given and made against her, and upon things concerning the faith.
Hence we require each and every one of you not to wait for another if he is summoned by us nor to excuse himself by another. Therefore peremptorily summon the said Jeanne so vehemently suspected of heresy to appear before us in the chapel royal of the castle of Rouen at eight o’clock in the morning of Wednesday, February 21St, to speak the truth upon the said articles, interrogations and other matters of which we esteem her suspect, and to be dealt with as we shall think just and reasonable, intimating to her that she will be excommunicated if she fails to appear before us on that day. Give us a faithful account thereof in writing, you who are to be present to follow it. Given at Rouen under our seal
Tuesday, February 20th 1431.”
Signed: .
The Usher’s writ
“To the reverend father in Christ, the lord Pierre by divine mercy bishop of Beauvais, possessing territory in the city and diocese of Rouen by the pleasure of the venerable chapter of the cathedral of Rouen in the vacancy of the archiepiscopal see for the purpose of undertaking and concluding the aforementioned matter, your humble , priest, dean of the Christendom of Rouen, prompt obedience to your orders in all reverence and honor.
Be it known to you, reverend father, that in virtue of the summons you addressed to me, to which this present writ is joined, I have peremptorily cited to appear before you at eight o’clock in the morning of Wednesday, February 21st, in the chapel royal of the castle of Rouen, the woman commonly called The Maid, whom I have apprehended in person in the limits of this castle, and whom you vehemently suspect of heresy, to answer truthfully to the articles and interrogations which shall be addressed to her upon matters of faith and other points on which you deem her suspect, and to be dealt with according to law and reason and the intimation of your letters.
The said Jeanne replied that she would willingly appear before you and answer the truth to the interrogations to which she shall be subjected; that, nevertheless, she requested you to summon in this suit ecclesiastics of the French side equal in number to those of the English party and, further, she humbly begged you, reverend father, to permit her to hear Mass before she appears before you, and to inform you of these requests, which I have done.
By these present letters sealed with my seal and signed with my sign manual, I testify to you, reverend father, that all the foregoing has been done by me. Given in the year of Our Lord, 1431, On Tuesday preceding the said Wednesday.
Signed: Jean.
The Petition of the Promoter. Decision forbidding Jeanne to attend divine offices
After the reading of these letters the aforesaid promoter urgently required this woman to be commanded to appear in judgment before us in accordance with the summons, to be examined upon certain articles concerning the faith; which we granted. But since in the meantime this woman had requested to be allowed to hear Mass, we informed the assessors that we had consulted with notable lords and masters on this question, and in view of the crimes of which this woman was defamed, especially the impropriety of the garments to which she clung, it was their opinion that we should properly defer permission for her to hear Mass and attend the divine offices.
Jeanne is led in to judgment
Whilst we were saying these things this woman was brought in by our usher.
Since she was appearing in judgment before us we began to explain how this Jeanne had been taken and apprehended within the boundaries and limits of our diocese of Beauvais; how many of her actions, not in our diocese alone but in many other regions also, had injured the orthodox faith, and how common report of them had spread through all the realms of Christendom; how recently the most serene and Christian prince our lord the king had given and delivered this woman to us to be tried in matters of faith according to law and reason.
Therefore, considering the public rumor and common report and also certain information already mentioned, after mature consultation with men learned in canon and civil law, we decreed that the said Jeanne should be summoned and cited by letter to answer the interrogations in matters of faith and other points truthfully according to law and reason, as set forth in the letters shown by the promoter.
First exhortation to Jeanne
As it is our office to keep and exalt the Catholic faith, we did first, with the gentle succor of Jesus Christ (whose issue this is), charitably admonish and require the said Jeanne, then seated before us, that to the quicker ending of the present trial and the unburdening of her own conscience, she should answer the whole truth to the questions put to her upon these matters of faith, eschewing subterfuge and shift which hinder truthful confession.
She is required to take oath
Moreover, according to our office, we lawfully required the said Jeanne to take proper oath, with her hands on the holy gospels, to speak the truth in answer to such questions put to her, as beforesaid.
The said Jeanne replied in this manner: I do not know what you wish to examine me on. Perhaps you might ask such things that I would not tell.”
Whereupon we said: “Will you swear to speak the truth upon those things which are asked you concerning the faith, which you know?”
She replied that concerning her father and her mother and what she had done since she had taken the road to France, she would gladly swear; but concerning the revelations from God, these she had never told or revealed to any one, save only to Charles whom she called King; nor would she reveal them to save her head; for she had them in visions or in her secret counsel; and within a week she would know certainly whether she might reveal them.
Thereupon, and repeatedly, we, the aforementioned bishop, admonished and required her to take an oath to speak the truth in those things which concerned our faith.
The said Jeanne, kneeling, and with her two hands upon the book, namely the missal, swore to answer truthfully whatever should be asked her, which she knew, concerning matters of faith, and was silent with regard to the said condition, that she would not tell or reveal to any person the revelations made to her.
First Inquiry after the oath
When she had thus taken the oath the said Jeanne was questioned by us about her name and her surname.
To which she replied that in her own country she was called Jeannette, and after she came to France, she was called Jeanne. Of her surname she said she knew nothing.
Consequently she was questioned about the district from which she came.
She replied she was born in the village of Domrémy, which is one with the village of Greux; and in Greux is the principal church.
Asked about the name of her father and mother,
She replied that her father’s name was Jacques d’Arc, and her mother’s Isabelle.
Asked where she was baptized,
She replied it was in the church of Domrémy.
Asked who were her godfathers and godmothers,
She said one of her godmothers was named Agnes, another Jeanne, another Sibylle; of her godfathers, one was named Jean Lingué, another Jean Barrey: she had several other godmothers, she had heard her mother say.
Asked what priest had baptized her,
She replied that it was master Jean Minet, as far as she knew.
Asked if he was still living,
She said she believed he was.
Asked how old she was,
She replied she thought nineteen. She said moreover that her mother taught her the Paternoster, Ave Maria and Credo; and that no one but her mother had taught her her Credo.
Asked by us to say her Paternoster,
She replied that if we would hear her in confession then she would gladly say it for us.
And as we repeatedly demanded that she should repeat it,
She replied she would not say her Paternoster unless we would hear her in confession.
Then we told her that we would gladly send one or two notable men, speaking the French tongue, to hear her say her Paternoster, etc.;
to which Jeanne replied that she would not say it to them, except in confession.
Prohibition against her leaving prison
Whereupon we, the aforementioned bishop, forbade Jeanne to leave the prison assigned to her in the castle of Rouen without our authorization under penalty of conviction of the crime of heresy.
She answered that she did not accept this prohibition, adding that if she escaped, none could accuse her of breaking or violating her oath, since she had given her oath to none. Then she complained that she was imprisoned with chains and bonds of iron.
We told her that she had tried elsewhere and on several occasions to escape from prison, and therefore, that she might be more safely and securely guarded, an order had been given to bind her with chains of iron.
To which she replied: “It is true that I wished and still wish to escape, as is lawful for any captive or prisoner.”
We then commissioned as the safeguard of the said Jeanne the noble man John Grey, Squire, of the bodyguard of our lord the King, and with him Jean Berwoit and William Talbot, enjoining them to guard her well and faithfully, and to permit no person to speak with her without our order. Which, with their hands on the Gospel, they solemnly swore to do.
And finally, having completed all the preliminaries, we assigned the said Jeanne to appear the next day, Thursday, at eight o’clock in the morning, in the Robing Room at the end of the great hall of the castle of Rouen.
Thursday, February 22nd second session
On Thursday, February 22nd, we entered the Robing Room at the end of the great hall of the castle of Rouen, where there were assembled the reverend fathers, lords, and masters:
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- , doctors of sacred theology;
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- , abbots;
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- , canons, doctors of canon and civil law;
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- , bachelors of sacred theology;
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- , bachelors of canon and civil law;
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- , bachelors of canon law;
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- , licentiates in civil law;
- the abbot of Préaux,
- brother ,
- , doctor of medicine,
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- , canons of the cathedral of Rouen.
In their presence we showed that , vicar of the lord Inquisitor, then present, had been summoned and required by us to take part in the present proceedings, and that we had offered to communicate to him all that had been so far or should subsequently be done; but the deputy said that he had been appointed and commissioned by the lord Inquisitor for the city and diocese of Rouen only, whereas we were holding the trial, by reason of our jurisdiction in Beauvais, on ceded territory.
Therefore, to avoid the nullification of the trial, and for the peace of his conscience, he put off his participation with us until such time as he should receive a fuller counsel and should have from the lord Inquisitor more extended power or a commission; in the meantime the said deputy, as far as he might, would be pleased to see us proceed further and without interruption with the trial. When he heard our account, the deputy answered, saying:
“What you have said is true. I have been and I am, as far as in me lies, content that you should continue the trial.”
The said Jeanne was then brought before us there, and we admonished and required her, under penalty of law, to take the oath that she had taken the day before; and to swear to speak the truth, absolutely and simply, on everything which she was asked in the respect of the matter of which she was accused and defamed.
To which she replied that she had taken an oath yesterday, and that should suffice.
Then we required her to swear; for none, not even a prince, could refuse to take oath when required in matter of faith.
She answered again: “I swore yesterday; that should be quite enough. You overburden me.” At last she swore to speak the truth on that which concerned the faith.
Whereupon the distinguished professor of sacred theology, master at our order and command questioned the said Jeanne as follows:
And first he exhorted her to answer truly, as she had sworn, what he should ask her.
To which she replied: “You may well ask me such things, that to some I shall answer truly, and to others I shall not.” And she added, “If you were well informed about me, you would wish me to be out of your hands. I have done nothing except by revelation.”
Asked how old she was when she left her father’s house,
She said she could not vouch for her age.
Asked if in her youth she had learned any craft,
She said yes, to sew and spin: and in sewing and spinning, she feared no woman in Rouen. And moreover she confessed that for dread of the Burgundians she left her father’s house and went to the town of Neufchâteau, in Lorraine, to the house of a certain woman called La Rousse, where she stayed about a fortnight. She added too, that as long as she was at home with her father, she saw to the ordinary domestic tasks; and that she did not go to the fields to look after the sheep and other animals.
Asked if she confessed her sins once a year,
She said yes, to her own cure; and when he was prevented, she confessed to another priest, with his permission. Sometimes, too, twice or thrice perhaps, she confessed to mendicant friars: but that was in the town of Neufchâteau. And she received the sacrament of the Eucharist at Easter.
Asked if, at other feasts than Easter, she received the said sacrament of the Eucharist,
She told the interrogator to continue to the next question. Afterwards she declared that at the age of thirteen she had a voice from God to help her and guide her. And the first time she was much afraid. And this voice came towards noon, in summer, in her father’s garden: and the said Jeanne had (not) fasted on the preceding day. She heard the voice on her right, in the direction of the church; and she seldom heard it without a light. This light came from the same side as the voice, and generally there was a great light. When she came to France she often heard the voice.
Asked how she could see the light of which she spoke, since it was at the side,
She made no reply, and went on to other things. She said that if she was in a wood she easily heard the voices come to her. It seemed to her a worthy voice, and she believed it was sent from God; when she heard the voice a third time she knew that it was the voice of an angel. She said also that this voice always protected her well and that she understood it well.
Asked what instruction this voice gave her for the salvation of her soul:
She said it taught her to be good and to go to church often; and it told her that she must come to France. And, Jeanne added, Beaupère would not learn from her, this time, in what form that voice appeared to her. She further said that this voice told her once or twice a week that she should leave and come to France, and that her father knew nothing of her leaving.
She said that the voice told her to come, and she could no longer stay where she was; and the voice told her again that she should raise the siege of the city of Orleans. She said moreover that the voice told her that she, Jeanne, should go to Robert de Baudricourt, in the town of Vaucouleurs of which he was captain, and he would provide an escort for her. And the said Jeanne answered that she was a poor maid, knowing nothing of riding or fighting.
She said she went to an uncle of hers, and told him she wanted to stay with him for some time; and she stayed there about eight days. And she told her uncle she must go to the said town of Vaucouleurs, and so her uncle took her.
Then she said that when she reached Vaucouleurs she easily recognized Robert de Baudricourt, although she had never seen him before; and she knew him through her voice, for the voice had told her it was he. And the said Jeanne told Robert she must come to France. The said Robert twice refused to hear her and repulsed her; the third time he listened to her and gave her an escort. And the voice had told her that it would be so.
Then she declared that the duke of Lorraine ordered that she should be taken to him; and she went to him and told him she wished to go to France. And the duke questioned her about the recovery of his health; but she said she knew nothing about that; and she spoke to him little concerning her journey. She told the duke nevertheless to send his son and some men to escort her to France, and she would pray to God for his health. She visited him with a safe conduct and returned to the town of Vaucouleurs.
She declared that, on her departure from Vaucouleurs, she wore the habit of a man, and carried a sword which Robert de Baudricourt had given her, but no other arms; and accompanied by a knight, a squire, and four servants, she reached the town of Saint Urbain, where she slept in an abbey.
She said that on her journey she passed through Auxerre, and she heard Mass in the principal church there; and from that time she frequently heard her voices, including the one already mentioned.
Required to say by what advice she took to man’s dress,
She several times refused to answer. Finally She answered that she charged no one with that; and several times She answered variously.
She said that Robert de Baudricourt had sworn those who accompanied her to conduct her well and safely. “Go,” said Robert to Jeanne, as she departed, “Go, and come what may.”
Jeanne said furthermore that she knows very well that God loves the duke of Orleans; and so she had more revelations concerning him than any man alive, except him whom she calls her king. She said also that it was altogether necessary to change her women’s clothes for men’s. She believed that her counsel said well.
She said that she sent to the English at Orleans letters telling them to depart, as shown in the copy of the letters which had been read to her in this town of Rouen, except two or three words in the copy: for example, where in this copy it read Surrender to the Maid it should read Surrender to the King. There are also these words, body for body and chieftain of war, which were not in the original letters.
After this the said Jeanne told that she went without hindrance to him whom she calls her king. And when she had arrived at Ste. Catherine de Fierbois, then she sent first to Chinon, where he who she calls her king was. She reached Chinon towards noon and lodged at an inn; and after dinner she went to him whom she calls king, who was at the castle.
She said that when she entered her king’s room she recognized him among many others by the counsel of her voice, which revealed him to her. She told him she wanted to make war on the English.
Asked whether, when the voice showed her her king, there was no light,
She answered: “Pass on to the next question.”
Asked if she saw no angel above the king,
She answered: “Spare me that. Continue.” She said also that before the king put her to work he had several apparitions and beautiful revelations.
Asked what revelations and apparitions the king had,
She answered: “I will not tell you. It is not now the time to tell you; but send to the king and he will tell you.”
Then Jeanne said that her voice had promised her that as soon as she should come to the king he would receive her. She said also that those of her party knew well that the voice was sent to Jeanne from God, and they saw and knew this voice. She said further that her king and several others heard and saw the voices which came to the said Jeanne; and there were present Charles de Bourbon, and two or three others.
Then Jeanne said that there is not a day when she does not hear this voice; and she has much need of it. She said she never asked of it any final reward but the salvation of her soul.
The voice told her to remain at Saint-Denis in France, and the said Jeanne wished to remain; but against her will the lords took her away. However, if she had not been wounded, she would not have left; she was wounded in the trenches before Paris, after she left Saint-Denis; but recovered in five days. Further she confessed that she caused an assault to be made before Paris.
And when she was asked if that day were a feast day,
She answered she thought it certainly was.
Asked if she thought it was a good thing to do,
She answered: “Pass on.”
When this was over, as it appeared to us sufficient for one day, we postponed the affair until the following Saturday, at eight o’clock in the morning.
February 24th. Third Session
On the following Saturday, February 24th, we the said bishop repaired to the same room in the castle of Rouen where Jeanne appeared in judgment before us in the presence on many reverend fathers, doctors and masters, namely:
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- , doctor of canon law and
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- , bachelors of sacred theology;
- the abbot of St. Ouen, of St. Georges, and of Préaux;
- the priors of St. Lô and of Sigy; also
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- , bachelors of canon and civil law;
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- , bachelors of canon law;
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- , licentiates in civil law;
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- , canons of the cathedral of Rouen, and
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We first of all required the aforementioned Jeanne to speak the simple and absolute truth on the questions put to her, and to make no reservation to her oath; and we thrice admonished her to do this.
The said Jeanne answered: “Give me Leave to speak” and then said: “By my faith, you could ask me things such as I would not answer.” She said also: “Perhaps I shall not answer you truly in many things that you ask me, concerning the revelations; for perhaps you would constrain me to tell things I have sworn not to utter, and so I should be perjured, and you would not want that.” And she added, “I tell you, take good heed of what you say, that you are my judge, for you assume a great responsibility, and overburden me.” She said also that she thought it should be enough to have twice taken the oath.
Moreover, asked if she would swear, simply and absolutely,
She answered: “You may well do without it! I have sworn enough, twice”; adding that all the clergy of Rouen and Paris could not condemn her, but by law. She said that of her coming to France she would willingly speak the truth, but not the whole truth; and a week would not be enough for that.
But we, the aforementioned bishop, told her to take the advice of the assessors, whether or not she should swear.
To that she replied that of her coming she would willingly speak the truth, and not otherwise; and that we must not speak of it to her any more.
We said that she lay herself open to suspicion if she would not swear to speak the truth.
She replied in the same way as before.
Again we required her to swear, precisely and absolutely.
Then She answered that she would willingly say what she knew, but not all. She said also that she came from God, and that there is nothing for her to do here, and asked to be sent back to God, from whom she came.
Required and admonished to swear, under pain of being charged with what was imputed to her,
She answered: “Continue.”
A last time we required her to swear, and urgently admonished her to speak the truth in matters concerning the trial, telling her she exposed herself to great danger by her refusal.
Then She answered: “I am ready to swear to speak the truth of what I know concerning the trial.” And in this manner she took the oath.
Then, at our order, she was questioned by the distinguished doctor above-mentioned, who first asked her when she had last taken food and drink.
She answered that since yesterday noon she had not taken either.
Asked when she had heard the voice come to her,
She answered: “I heard it yesterday and to-day.”
Asked at what hour yesterday she had heard this voice,
She answered that she had heard it three times: once in the morning, once at vespers, and once when the Ave Maria was rung in the evening. And often she heard it more frequently than she said.
Asked what she was doing yesterday morning when the voice came to her,
She said she was sleeping and the Voice awakened her.
Asked if the voice woke her by touching her on the arm,
She answered that it was without touching her.
Asked if the voice was actually in the room,
She said she did not know, but it was in the castle.
Asked if she did not thank it and kneel down,
She answered that she thanked it, but she was sitting on the bed, and she put her hands together; and this was after she asked counsel of it. Whereupon the voice told her to answer boldly.
Asked what the voice had said when she was awakened,
She answered that she asked the voice to counsel her in her replies, telling the voice to beseech therein the counsel of Our Lord. And the voice told her to answer boldly and God would comfort her.
Asked if it had not spoken certain words to her before she questioned it,
She replied that the voice spoke certain words, but she did not understand them all. However, when she awakened from her sleep, the voice told her to answer boldly.
Then she said to us, the aforementioned bishop:
You say that you are my judge; take good heed of what you do, because, in truth, I am sent by God, and you put yourself in great peril,” in French ‘en grant dangier.’
Asked if the voice sometimes varied in its counsel,
She answered that she had never found it utter two contrary opinions. She said also that that night she had heard it tell her to answer boldly.
Asked whether the voice had forbidden her to answer everything she was asked,
She said: I will not answer you that. I have revelations concerning the king which I shall not tell you.
Asked if the voice had forbidden her to tell of the revelations,
She answered: “I have not been advised upon that. Give me a fortnight and I will answer you.” And as she had again asked for a delay in her reply, she said: “If the voice forbade me, what would you say?”
Asked again if that had been forbidden her {by the voice},
She replied: “Believe me, it was not men who forbade me.” She said that she would not answer that day; and that she does not know if she ought to reply, or not, until it has been revealed to her. She said she firmly believes, as firmly as she believes in the Christian faith and that the Lord redeemed us from the pains of hell, that this voice comes from God, and by His command.
Asked whether this voice, which she says appears to her, comes as an angel, or directly from God, or whether it is the voice of one of the saints,
She answered: “This voice comes from God; I believe I do not tell you everything about it; and I am more afraid of failing the voices by saying what is displeasing to them, than of answering you. For this question, I beseech you to grant me a delay.”
Asked if she believes it displeasing to God to speak the truth,
She answered: “My voices told me to say certain things to the king, and not to you.” She saw that that night the voice told her many things for the good of the king, which she wished he might know forthwith, even if she had to go without wine till Easter! For, as she said, he would eat the more happily for it.
Asked if she could not so influence the voice that it would obey her and take news to her king:
She answered she did not know whether the voice would obey her, unless it were God’s will, and God consented thereto. “And if it please God,” she said, “He will be able to send revelations to the king; and with this I shall be well pleased.”
Asked why this voice no longer speaks with the king, as it did when Jeanne was in his presence,
She answered that she did not know, if it were not the will of God. And she added that but for the will of God she could do nothing.
Asked if her counsel revealed to her that she should escape from prison,
She answered: “Must I tell you that?”
Asked whether that night the voice had not counseled and advised her upon what she should reply,
She said that if the voice revealed such things she did not understand them.
Asked whether, on the two last days that she heard the voices, she had seen a light,
She answered that the light comes in the name of the voice.
Asked if she saw anything else with the voices,
She answered: “I will not tell you everything, I have not leave, nor does my oath touch on that. This voice is good and worthy; and I am not bound to answer you.” She asked that the points on which she did not straightway answer should be given her in writing.
Asked whether the voice, of which she asked counsel, had sight and eyes,
She answered: “You will not learn that yet”; and said that there was a saying among little children, “Men are sometimes hanged for telling the truth.”
Asked if she knows she is in God’s grace,
She answered: “If I am not, may God put me there; and if I am, may God so keep me. I should be the saddest creature in the world if I knew I were not in His grace.” She added, if she were in a state of sin, she did not think that the voice would come to her; and she wished every one could hear the voice as well as she did. She thought she was about thirteen when the voice came to her for the first time.
Asked whether in her youth she had played in the fields with the other children,
She answered that she certainly went sometimes, but she did not know at what age.
Asked if the people of Domrémy sided with the Burgundians or the other party,
She answered that she only knew one Burgundian; and she would have been quite willing for him to have his head cut off, that is if it had pleased God.
Asked if at Maxey the people were Burgundians or enemies of the Burgundians,
She answered they were Burgundians.
Asked if the voice told her in her youth to hate the Burgundians,
She answered that since she had known that the voices were for the king of France, she did not like the Burgundians.
She said the Burgundians will have war unless they do as they ought; she knows it from her voice.
Asked if it was revealed to her in her early years that the English should come to France,
She answered that the English were already in France when the voices began to come to her.
Asked if she was ever with the children who fought for her party,
She answered no, as far as she remembered; but she sometimes saw certain children from Domrémy, who had fought against those from Maxey, returning wounded and bleeding.
Asked whether in her youth she had any great intention of defeating the Burgundians,
She answered that she had a great desire and will for her king to have his kingdom.
Asked if she had wanted to be a man when it was necessary for her to come to France,
She said she had answered elsewhere.
Asked if she took the animals to the fields,
She said that she had answered elsewhere; and that since she had grown up, and had reached understanding, she did not generally look after the beasts, but helped to take them to the meadows and to a castle called the Island, for fear of the soldiers; but she does not recall whether or not she tended them in her youth.
Then she was questioned about a certain tree growing near her village.
To which She answered that, fairly near Domrémy, there was a certain tree called the Ladies’ Tree, and others called it the Fairies’ Tree; and near by is a fountain. And she has heard that people sick of the fever drink of this fountain and seek its water to restore their health; that, she has seen herself; but she does not know whether they are cured or not.
She said she has heard that the sick, when they can rise, go to the tree and walk about it. It is a big tree, a beech, from which they get the fair May, in French le beau may; and it belongs, it is said, to Pierre de Bourlemont, knight.
She said sometimes she would go playing with the other young girls, making garlands for Our Lady of Domrémy there; and often she had heard the old folk say (not those of her family) that the fairies frequented it. And she heard a certain Jeanne, the wife of mayor Aubery of Domrémy, her godmother, say that she had seen the fairies; but she herself doesn’t know whether it is true or not. As far as she knew, she said, she never saw the fairies at the tree.
Asked if she saw them elsewhere,
She does not know at all. She had seen the young girls putting garlands on the branches of the tree, and she herself sometimes hung them there with the other girls; sometimes they took them away, and sometimes they left them there.
She said that since she learned that she must come to France, she had taken as little part as possible in games or dancing; and did not know whether she had danced near the tree since she had grown to understanding. Although on occasions she may well have danced there with the children, she more often sang than danced. There is also a wood, called the oak-wood, in French le Bois-chesnu, which can be seen from her father’s door; not more than half a league away.
She does not know, nor has she ever heard, that the fairies repair there; but she has heard from her brother that in the country around it is said she received her message at the tree; but she says she did not, and she told him quite the contrary. Further, she says, when she came to the king, several people asked her if there were not in her part of the country a wood called the oak-wood; for there was a prophecy which said that out of this wood would come a maid who should work miracles; but Jeanne said that she put no faith in that.
Asked if she wanted a woman’s dress,
She answered: “Give me one. I will take it and go: otherwise I will not have it, and am content with this, since it pleases God that I wear it.”
Whereupon we put an end to all interrogation for this day, and assigned for the next session the following Tuesday, so that at the same hour and in the same place the whole convocation should assemble and proceed to the subsequent interrogations.
February 27th. Fourth Session
On Tuesday, February 27th, we repaired as on the previous days to the room in the castle of Rouen where the tribunal had been hitherto sitting: there were also present master
- Gilles, abbot of Ste. Trinité de Fécamp
- Pierre, prior of Longueville;
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- the abbot of Préaux
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- , canons of the cathedral of Rouen.
In their presence we first required the said Jeanne to take an oath to speak the truth on whatever concerned the trial.
To which she replied that she would willingly swear to answer truly everything that concerned her trial, but not everything she knew.
Then we required her to swear to answer truthfully everything she should be asked.
She replied as before, saying: “You ought to be satisfied, for I have sworn enough.”
Then at our instruction, master aforementioned, began to examine her.
And first he asked her how she had been in health since the preceding Saturday.
She answered: “You see well enough how. I have been as well as possible.”
Asked if she would fast every day during this Lent,
She answered by this question: “Is that in your case?” And as she was answered that it was, she said: “Yes, truly. I have fasted the whole of Lent.”
Asked whether since Saturday she had heard her voice
She answered: “Yes, truly, many times.”
Asked if on Saturday she had heard it in this hall, where she was being examined,
She answered: “That is not in your case.” And then she said she had heard it.
Asked what the voice had said on Saturday,
She answered: “I did not altogether understand it, I understood nothing I could repeat to you, until I went back to my room.”
Asked what the voice said to her in her room, when she went back
She answered: “It told me to answer you boldly.” And she said she asked counsel from her voice on the questions we should ask her. She said further that she will gladly tell whatever she has Our Lord’s permission to reveal; but concerning the revelations about the king of France, she will not tell without permission from her voice.
Asked if the voice forbade her to tell everything,
She answered she did not quite understand that.
Asked what the voice said to her on the last occasion,
She said she asked counsel of it upon certain points of our interrogation.
Asked if the voice had given her counsel upon these points,
She answered that on some she had advice, and on others we might question her and she would not reply without leave. And if she replied without permission, perhaps she would not have the voices for warrant, in French “en garant”; when she had leave from Our Lord she would not be afraid to speak, for she would have a good warrant.
Asked whether the voice which spoke to her was that of an angel, or of a saint, male or female, or straight from God,
She answered that the voice was the voice of St. Catherine and of St. Margaret. And their heads were crowned in a rich and precious fashion with beautiful crowns. “And to tell this,” she said, “I have God’s permission. If you doubt it, send to Poitiers where I was examined before.”
Asked how she knew they were these two saints, and how she knew one from the other,
She answered she knew well who they were, and easily distinguished one from the other.
Asked how she knew one from the other,
She answered she knew them by the greeting they gave her. She said further that a good seven years have passed since they undertook to guide her. She said also she knows the saints because they tell her their names.
Asked if the said saints are dressed in the same cloth,
She answered “I will tell you no more now; I have not leave to reveal it. If you do not believe me, send to Poitiers!” She said also that there were some revelations made directly to the king of France, and not to those who question her.
Asked if the saints are the same age,
She answered that she had not leave to say.
Asked if the saints spoke at the same time, or one after another,
She answered: “I have not leave to tell you; nevertheless I have always had counsel from both.”
Asked which one appeared first,
She answered: “I did not recognize them immediately; I knew well enough once, but I have forgotten; if I had leave I would gladly tell you. It is written down in the register at Poitiers.” She added that she had received comfort from .
Asked which of the apparitions came to her first,
She answered that came first.
Asked whether it was a long time ago that she first heard the voice of St. Michael,
She answered: “I do not speak of St. Michael’s voice, but of his great comfort.”
Asked which was the first voice which came to her when she was about thirteen,
She answered that it was St. Michael whom she saw before her eyes; and he was not alone, but accompanied by many angels from heaven. She said also that she came into France only by the instruction of God.
Asked if she saw St. Michael and these angels corporeally and in reality,
She answered: “I saw them with my bodily eyes as well as I see you; and when they left me, I wept; and I fain would have had them take me with them too.”
Asked in what form St. Michael appeared,
She answered “There is as yet no reply to that, for I have not had leave to answer.”
Asked what St. Michael said to her the first time,
She answered: “You will get no further reply to-day.” She said the voices told her to answer boldly. She said she had indeed once told her king everything that had been revealed to her, since it concerned him. She said, however, that she had not yet leave to reveal what St. Michael said. She added that she wished her examiner had a copy of the book at Poitiers, provided that God desired it.
Asked if the voices told her not to tell her revelations without their permission,
She answered: “I will not answer you further about that; and what I have permission to, that I will gladly answer. If the voices forbade me, I did not understand.”
Asked what sign she gives that this revelation comes from God, and that it is St. Catherine and St. Margaret who speak to her,
She answered: “I have told you often enough that it is St. Catherine and St. Margaret; believe me if you will.”
Asked if it is forbidden for her to tell,
She answered: “I have not quite understood whether that is permitted or not.”
Asked how she can distinguish such points as she will answer, and such as she will not,
She answered that on some points she had asked permission, and on some points she had received it. Furthermore she said she would rather be torn asunder by horses than have come to France without God’s leave.
Asked if God ordered her to wear a man’s dress,
She answered that the dress is a small, nay, the least thing. Nor did she put on man’s dress by the advice of any man whatsoever; she did not put it on, nor did she do aught, but by the command of God and the angels.
Asked whether it seemed to her that this command to assume male attire was lawful,
She answered: “Everything I have done is at God’s command; and if He had ordered me to assume a different habit, I should have done it, because it would have been His command.”
Asked if she did it at the order of Robert de Baudricourt
She said no.
Asked if she thought she had done well to take man’s dress,
She answered that everything she did at God’s command she thought well done, and hoped for good warrant and succor in it.
Asked if, in this particular case, by taking man’s dress, she thought she had done well,
She answered that she had done nothing in the world but by God’s commands.
Asked whether, when she saw the voice coming to her, there was a light,
She answered that there was a great deal of light on all sides, as was most fitting. She added to the examiner that not all the light came to him alone!
Asked whether there was an angel over her king’s head, when she saw him for the first time,
She answered: “By Our Lady! if there was, I do not know and did not see it.”
Asked if there was a light,
She answered: “There were three hundred knights and fifty torches, without counting the spiritual light, and I seldom have revelations but there is a light.”
Asked how the king gave credence to her words,
She answered that he had good signs, and through the clergy.
Asked what revelations the king had,
She answered: “You will not learn them from me this year.” She said that for three weeks she was examined by the clergy, at Chinon and Poitiers; and her king had a sign touching of her mission before he believed in her. The clergy of her party held that there was nothing but good in her mission.
Asked if she had been to Ste. Catherine de Fierbois,
She answered yes; and there she heard Masses three times on the same day; and then went to Chinon. She said she sent letters to her king, to the effect that she was sending to find out if she should enter the town where her king was; and that she had journeyed a good hundred and fifty leagues to come to his aid, and that she knew many things to his advantage.
And she thought these letters said she would be able to recognize the king among all others. She said she had a sword which she took to the town of Vaucouleurs. She added that when she was at Tours or Chinon she sent for a sword which was in the church of Ste. Catherine de Fierbois, behind the altar; and immediately it was found there all rusted over.
Asked how she knew that this sword was there,
She answered that the sword was in the ground, rusted over, and upon it were five crosses; and she knew it was there through her voices, and she had never seen the man who fetched it. She wrote to the clergy of the place asking if it was their pleasure that she should have the sword, and they sent it to her. Nor was it buried deep behind the altar, but she believed she wrote saying it was behind.
She added that as soon as the sword was found the priests rubbed it, and the rust fell off at once without effort; a merchant, an armorer of Tours, fetched it.
The local priests gave her a scabbard, as did those of Tours also; they made two in all, one of crimson velvet, in French “de velous vermeil”, and the other of cloth of gold. She herself had another made of very strong leather. She added that when she was captured she had not this sword with her.
She said also that she carried it continually from the time she obtained it until her departure from St. Denis, after the assault on Paris.
Asked what blessing she said or asked over the sword,
She answered that she neither blessed it herself, nor had it blessed; she would not have known how to do it. She loved the sword, she said, since it had been found in the church of St. Catherine, whom she loved.
Asked if she had been to Coulange-la-Vineuse,
She answered she did not know.
Asked if she ever put her sword on the altar, and if she did so to bring it better fortune,
She answered no, as far as she knew.
Asked if she ever prayed for her sword to have better fortune,
She answered: “It is well to know that I could have wished my armor (in French “mon harnois”) to have good fortune.”
Asked if she had her sword when she was taken,
She answered no; but she had one which had been taken from a Burgundian.
Asked where this sword was, and in what town,
She answered that she offered a sword and armor at St. Denis, but not this sword. She said she had this sword at Lagny; and from Lagny to Compiègne she had worn the Burgundian’s sword, which was a good weapon for fighting, excellent for giving hard clouts and buffets (in French “de bonnes buffes et de bons torchons”). But she said that to say where she had lost it did not concern the case, and she would not answer now. She added that her brothers have her goods, her horses and swords, as far as she knows, and other things worth more than 12,000 crowns.
Asked whether, when she went to Orleans, she had a standard or banner, in French “estandart ou banière” and what color it was,
She answered she had a banner, with a field sown with lilies; the world was depicted on it, and two angels, one at each side; it was white, of white linen or boucassin, and on it were written, she thought, these names, Jhesus Maria; and it was fringed with silk.
Asked if these names Jhesus Maria were written above, or below, or at the side,
She answered, at the side, she believed.
Asked which she preferred, her standard or her sword,
She answered she much preferred her standard to her sword.
Asked who persuaded her to have this painting on her standard,
She answered: “I have told you often enough that I have done nothing but by God’s command.” She said also that she herself bore the standard, when attacking the enemy, so as not to kill any one; she never has killed any one, she said.
Asked what force her king gave her when he set her to work,
She answered that he gave her 10 or 12,000 men; and she went first to Orleans, to the fortress of Saint-Loup, and then to the fortress of the Bridge.
Asked to which fortress she ordered her men to retire,
She says she does not remember. She added that she was confident of raising the siege of Orleans, for it had been revealed to her, and she had told the king so before going there.
Asked whether, when the assault was to be made, she did not tell her men that she would receive arrows, crossbolts and stones hurled by catapults or cannons,
She answered no; there were a hundred wounded, or more. But she had indeed told her men not to fear and they would raise the siege. She said also that at the assault upon the fortress of the Bridge she was wounded in the neck by an arrow or crossbolt but she received great comfort from St. Margaret, and was better in a fortnight. But she did not on account of that give up her riding or work.
Asked if she knew beforehand that she would be wounded,
She answered that she did indeed, and she had told her king so; but that notwithstanding she would not give up her work. And it was revealed to her by the voices of the two saints, namely the blessed Catherine and Margaret. She added that she herself was the first to plant the ladder against the said fortress of the Bridge; and as she was raising the ladder she was wounded in the neck with the crossbolt, as she had said.
Asked why she had not concluded a treaty with the captain of Jargeau,
She answered that the lords of her party replied to the English that they would not get the delay of a fortnight which they asked for, but must go away, they and their horses, immediately. She added that for her own part, she told the people of Jargeau to retire if they wished, with their doublets or tunics, and their life safe; otherwise they would be taken by assault.
Asked if she had any conversation with her counsel, that is to say with her voices, to find out whether or not to grant the delay,
She answered she does not remember.
At this point the examination was postponed to a later date, and we fixed the following Thursday for the continuation of the inquiry and subsequent interrogations.