Joan of Arc: The (Staggering) Siege of Orléans 1428 / 29 | Hundred Years’ War

In 1428 an English army commanded by the kingdom’s most formidable general, the Earl of Salisbury, arrived at the French town of Orléans. This marked a turning point in the Hundred Years’ War between the Kingdoms of France and England. In 1428 England had the upper hand, and the attack on the strategically important city of Orléans was meant to devastate French resistance. But France had an ace up its sleeves: a warrior maiden, instructed by divine visions, was to unite the kingdom’s people and give them fresh hope. Orléans was the siege that made the famous Joan of Arc a leader, a national hero, and ultimately a legend. This is how modern historiography tells the story of the staggering siege of Orléans. Patreon (thank you): Paypal (thank you: Twitter: Bibliography Barker, J., Conquest. The English Kingdom of France 1417-1450, Harvard 2012.