Middle+Ages+Letter

Dear Mother and Father, I am afraid that I write to you with bad news, I have been charged with being a relapsed heretic and am sentenced to die. I hope you have no regrets about raising me, as I have little regrets about the way I lived my life. As you know I chose to help Charles VII after I had visions from god instructing me to help him and the country of France. I am proud that I got the opportunity to help my country and to show my strength by leading the army that won back the key town of Orleans from the British. I would still be serving Charles if not for that little skirmish outside of Compiegne that resulted in my capture. After my captors turned me over to the British, I was unfairly charged with heresy, witchcraft, and fraud. During the first phase of my trial, I was questioned and eventually condemned for persisting in wearing men’s clothing. Because this is an offense against the church, I was charged with heresy. I admitted to my charges and signed a general statement apologizing for my faults and agreeing to wear women’s clothes again. With this statement, I expected to be put in a more gracious prison with less hateful guards, and be allowed to go to church to appease my sins. I exclaimed that,” I would rather die, than be kept in these chains.” However, Pierre Cauchon, one of my judges, brushed my request aside. Angered, I once again put on my male clothing and was charged with relapsed heresy. I am sure that Cauchon had decided my fate even before I started the trial, and that is why I am asking you to try to clear my name after I am gone. On another note, I am proud of my actions and I hope I inspire other women to fight for what they believe. Farewell, Jeanne D’Arc (Joan of Arc)

"Joan of Arc." ////Biography Resource Center////. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Mar. 2010. .