The Rest Is History, Episode 632: Joan of Arc—Warrior Maid (Part 1)

Hosts: Tom Holland & Dominic Sandbrook
Date: January 5, 2026

Episode Overview

Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook embark on a gripping exploration of Joan of Arc’s origins, the political and military landscape of 15th-century France, and the extraordinary circumstances that led to her miraculous rise. They set the stage for the defining moments of the Hundred Years War, offering rich context and lively analysis, and closely examine Joan’s character, religious vision, and the societal forces that shaped her. This episode is part one of a multi-part deep dive into Joan’s story, her myth, and her historical legacy.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Myth and Magnitude of Joan of Arc

• Literary and Historical Celebration

  • Tom and Dominic begin with Christine de Pizan’s 1429 poem celebrating Joan, described as "the chief captain" and “formidable,” surpassing even Hector and Achilles.
    Quote (Read by Dominic, 00:53):
    "Not hundreds, not thousands of men can compare with her. Of our brave and able warriors, she is the chief captain. Neither Hector nor Achilles can rival her prowess. But it is God who has wrought this, God who leads her on."
  • Christine de Pizan, possibly the first professional female writer in Western history, is introduced as a witness to Joan’s rise.

• Joan’s Pop Culture Fame

  • They note Joan's enduring legacy, from 15th-century poems to songs by Leonard Cohen and Madonna (04:00).

2. Joan as a Paradox: Peasant Girl, Military Leader, and Icon

• Improbability of Her Rise

  • The hosts underscore the sheer miraculousness of Joan—a 16-year-old peasant girl—leading armies and reversing the fortunes of France during the height of the Hundred Years War.
  • Tom (05:12):
    "It feels like something less from the pages of history than from the pages of either fantasy George R.R. Martin, or indeed a fairy tale."

• Polarizing Perceptions

  • French veneration vs. English fear and loathing. The Duke of Bedford, English regent, called her “a monstrous sorceress…a disciple and limb of the fiend.”
    Quote (Dominic, 08:45):
    "She's a loose, infamous and immoral woman dressed as a man… a monstrous sorceress, a disciple and limb of the fiend called the Pucelle that used false enchantment and sorcery."

3. The Hundred Years War: Setting the Stage

• English Ascendancy

  • A recounting of England’s victories (Crécy, Poitiers, Agincourt) and how, despite being smaller and less populous, England—thanks to military prowess and effective government—appeared on the verge of conquering France (12:00–14:00).
  • Noteworthy commentary on England as the historical underdog, compared (with deliberate provocation) to Ukraine vs. Russia.

• Internal French Divisions

  • The civil war between the Burgundians and Armagnacs is described as a destructive feud weakening France’s resistance (15:00–17:00).
  • The assassination of John the Fearless by the Dauphin’s men and its fatal consequences (19:00).

• The Treaty of Troyes

  • Outlines the 1420 agreement that disinherited the Dauphin, making Henry V and his heirs future kings of France and England (20:17).
  • Consideration of what might have happened had Henry V survived:
    Dominic (21:23):
    "Would England and France have become one kingdom?"

• English-Burgundian Alliance

  • Explains the pragmatic choices of French elites like Pierre Cauchon, who sided with the Anglo-Burgundians for stability, not cowardice (24:55).

4. The Road to Siege at Orléans

• Collapse of the Dauphin’s Cause

  • By late 1420s, the English and Burgundians controlled nearly all of northern France. The Dauphin—future Charles VII—remained uncrowned, ostracized, and powerless (32:09–33:52).

• Orléans As The Turning Point

  • The hosts detail the strategic importance of Orléans as the key to southern France, and the high-stakes siege led by William de la Pole and the feared John Talbot (35:47–36:56).
  • General European expectation that the city would fall, sealing French fate—unless a miracle occurred.

5. Joan’s Emergence and the Reality of Her Trial Records

• Joan’s Own Words

  • The episode transitions (39:00) to examining Joan through her trial and rehabilitation depositions, highlighting the rare preservation of a peasant girl’s voice from the Middle Ages.

  Quote (Tom, 41:45):
  "When we hear her speak, I think what we're also hearing all the more loudly is the silence of all those kind of numberless peasants from medieval Christendom whose words no one ever thought to record."

• Joan’s Family and Social Status

  • Joan's family is introduced as well-off peasants (not mere shepherds), more respectable than later mythmaking suggests (42:54–43:09).
  • The village of Domremy’s borderland and conflict-ridden status is stressed as crucial shaping influence (43:25–44:00).

• Her Piety and Saintly Obsessions

  • Joan is presented as intensely pious, with special veneration for St. Michael, St. Catherine of Alexandria, and St. Margaret of Antioch—powerful figures for a young woman embedded in medieval Catholic culture.
  • The hosts explain saints’ mediating role between ordinary people and heaven (52:07–52:57).

6. Joan’s Unique Religious Experience

• Her Visions Begin

  • At age 13, Joan hears her first heavenly voice—“at noon in my father’s garden”—lit from the direction of the church, soon growing to multiple voices and a clarified political mission (53:53–56:01).
  • Her conversations with the voices are strikingly direct:
    Tom (55:43):
    "She has conversations with these voices in the way that she has conversations with everyone else, namely in a kind of very forthright and kind of firm manner."

• First Steps in Her Mission

  • She makes a vow of chastity, rebuffs her parents’ plans for marriage, and, driven by her voices, prepares to seek out the Dauphin and save France (57:18–58:03).

7. Joan on the Move: From Village Girl to Would-Be Savior

• Confronting Authority

  • Joan, against her father's wishes, seeks permission from Robert de Baudricourt—the hard-boiled commander at Vaucouleurs—only to be repeatedly dismissed and even subjected to exorcism (59:00–60:00).
  • Eventually, Baudricourt relents (61:36) after pressure from local nobles, and supplies Joan with a horse, a sword, two pages, and four men-at-arms for her journey.

• Assuming Male Dress

  • Joan insists on male clothing, a controversial act seen as abominable in the 15th century; yet she claims her voices instructed her to do so, refusing to justify it merely as practical (62:45–65:15).
  • The hosts flag this as a profound psychological and spiritual symbol to be explored in later episodes.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Joan’s Powers and God’s Agency (Tom, 05:55):
  "This is a girl who claims that she has been ordered by supernatural voices to save France. And she puts on male dress and she rides to the distant court of the king. And the king, amazingly, agrees to meet her and is persuaded by her that she has this God-given mission to defeat the King's enemies and to see him crowned."

• On Medieval Voices Lost and Found (Tom, 41:45):
  "When we hear her speak, I think what we're also hearing all the more loudly is the silence of all those kind of numberless peasants from medieval Christendom whose words no one ever thought to record."

• On English Justifying Their Wars (Tom, 11:20):
  "If the English were not justified invading France, God wouldn't have allowed them to win so many victories over the French."

• On the Saintly Appeal to Joan (Dominic, 51:05):
  "They occupy a space between the concrete, physical, very violent and brutal and dangerous world of 15th-century Europe and the transcendent world, the purity, the order of heaven."

• On Joan’s Defiance and Self-Will (Tom, 55:43):
  "She has conversations with these voices in the way that she has conversations with everyone else, namely in a kind of very forthright and kind of firm manner."

• On Joan’s Crossdressing, Symbolism, and Gender
  Tom (65:12):
  "The male clothing, as we will see in our next episode, serves for her—well, we will tease out what it means to her, but it is clearly something very, very spiritually, psychologically, symbolically significant to her."

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Christine de Pizan’s poem & Joan’s mythic status: 00:53–04:00
• Joan as icon & pop culture: 04:17–04:33
• English vs. French perspectives on Joan: 08:45–09:28
• The Treaty of Troyes explained: 20:17–21:38
• Orléans siege described: 35:47–36:56
• Joan’s trial records and rare voice of medieval women: 39:21–41:45
• Family background & Domremy: 42:54–44:00
• Joan’s saints and spiritual life: 49:05–52:57
• Joan’s first vision: 53:53–56:01
• The journey to Baudricourt & assuming male dress: 58:03–65:15

Tone & Style

Lively, inquisitive, sharp, and accessible, the hosts blend serious historical analysis with dry wit, modern comparisons (from George R.R. Martin to contemporary pop), and self-effacing humor. They openly signal when skepticism is appropriate, revel in narrative twists, and continually bring listeners back to the strangeness and humanity of the past.

Next Episode Tease

Tom and Dominic leave listeners on a classic cliffhanger: As Joan sets off in male dress to meet the Dauphin, will she succeed in saving Orléans and changing the course of history? The answer—and Joan’s unfolding saga—comes in the next episodes.

Au revoir!