Joan of Arc, in battle armor, kneeling before the clergy in Blois.
Jeanne d'Arc (Sainte-Jeanne pour les intimes) is a legendary figure in France's history. She led many successful battles in the Hundred Years' War (which, according to Wikipedia, lasted 116 years) and spent a lot of time in what is now central France before being tried, convicted, and executed as a heretic. Jeanne was burned at the stake in Rouen, Normandy, in 1431. She was nineteen years old.
Throughout our region you can find plaques indicating that Jeanne d'Arc fought here, traveled there, or spent the night in this or that building. They remind me of the ubiquitous "George Washington slept here" signs you find in the eastern United States.
Here, Joan of Arc is receiving her standard from the bishop of Blois before going to deliver Orléans, upstream on the Loire River.
ReplyDeleteThe drawing by my grandfather I gave you several years ago is a study for the page's head in the center of the painting.
It truly is a beautiful painting!
ReplyDeleteOooh, I recognized it right away :) I love it!
ReplyDeletechm- your grandfather was quite an artist. Do you paint or draw?
ReplyDeleteWhen I'm in France, I look for Joan of Arc-she's in many places. If I'd lived back then, I hope I'd have a chance to see her.
Walt
ReplyDeleteCorrect - reason I asked a couple of posts whether you went into the chapel.
Chinon is another great place to learn about Joan of Arc.
Walt,
ReplyDeleteOur post yesterday shows a plaque on a building in Tours that claims it was where Jeanne d'Arc's armor was made just before the scene of this painting.
The sature in Chinon of her on horseback is one of my favorites.
Leon
I must have seen this in Blois but I don't remember it, so this is thrilling to have a very "itty-bitty" connection vis-a-vis this blog and you, CHM! I'll have to go back, now when I return. Using the red to really separate the clergy from the rest of the group (except for that man with the red tights, of course) makes for a striking scene. Just how large is this?
ReplyDeletechm, I'll have to take another look!
ReplyDeletenadege, :)
judy, I know... Ken posted about it a few years back.
evelyn, you might have even been able to fight along side! LOL
t.b., I knew it! And yes, the Tour Jeanne d'Arc at Chinon is cool.
leon, I'm sure she slept there, too. :)
mary, it's pretty big... maybe 3 or 4 meters across?
What are the odds she was a lesbian?
ReplyDelete