Maid of Orléans

Joan of Arc was a French peasant born in the early fifteenth century. She experienced frequent visions of saints and, at about the age of seventeen, became convinced that God had commissioned her to lead the Dauphin Charles, one of the contenders for the throne of France during the Hundred Years’ War, to victory over his English and Burgundian rivals. After gaining an audience with Charles and winning his confidence, Joan went on to direct the French forces to several signal successes. These included the lifting of the Siege of Orléans, which led to Charles’ coronation in 1429.

The following spring, however, Joan was captured by the Burgundians, handed over to the English, subjected to a sham inquisition, and burned at the stake. She was about nineteen years old.

George and Polly’s monumental oil painting of St. Joan pays tribute to the teenage mystic’s magnetic charisma, bold faith, and heroic devotion to her mission. Although the details of her physical appearance and distinctive battle standard have been carefully researched, the depiction prioritizes the spiritual dimension of her quest over the earthly particulars. As the French infantry column trudges through a dreary landscape, Joan alone has access to a vision of heavenly glory. Her special patrons, St. Michael and St. Catherine of Alexandria, are joined by cherubs who bear aloft a banner displaying a famous quote from her trial, along with her martyr’s crown.