Joan of Arc: Maid, Myth and History [Hardcover]

Timothy Wilson-Smith (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2006

Joan of Arc, born in Domremy in France in 1412, began to hear voices when she was thirteen and, believing they were directives from God, followed them - to the French court, to battle to wrest France from the English in the Hundred Years War, and to defeat and capture. She was put on trial for heresy and, on 30 May 1431, burned at the stake. Even today many people are fascinated by this teenage woman who persuaded her king to believe that she could lead her nation to victory. In the retrial of 1452-6 she was vindicated, but it took almost five hundred years after an English soldier declared 'we have burnt a saint' for the Catholic Church to conclude that she was indeed one. This new book is not merely an account of a life that was cut short; its focus is also on Joan's history, which in 1431 had just begun, and which, the author shows, was influenced just as much by the transformation in Anglo-French relations and by internal politics, issues of freedom and republicanism, and by changes in society regarding secularisation and belief, as by our response to the central issue of Joan's voices themselves.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Timothy Wilson-Smith is a writer and lecturer. He taught history and English at Eton for many years and has also been a lecturer for the WEA and Cambridge University Institute of Continuing Education. He has written several books, including Delacroix: A Life, Napoleon and his Artists, Caravaggio, and biographies of Johnson and Napoleon. He lives in Norfolk and France.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: The History Press (June 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0750943416
• ISBN-13: 978-0750943413
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,532,250 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding Saint of God...A must read book..., March 12, 2007

By 

Donald E. Mccallister - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Joan of Arc: Maid, Myth and History (Hardcover)

As a new historic reader, I must say this book has some outstanding forums! It historically demonstrates the events based upon actual records and it shows how the fear of God drives one soul to victory even after her death! While reading, it almost puts you in the court room and on the battlefield witnessing her triump over dark forces of england! Timothy Wilson-smith wrote this book very well and I know any Joan of Arc fan would enjoy it! A must read book! While I don't like to much dry dramatics, this book doesn't really have any. It does give circumstances and stories of important key people such as Charles VII and yet it doesn't dig too deep into their life, but focuses souly on Joan and her quest to free france. It also gives first hand accounts of the men who fought along side of her while giving testimony! I didn't fully understand (but always heard of) her full story until I read this book. I'm not sure if this book is with full details of 'all' accounts of the historic records, but it sure will start you off in learning and understanding a true saint for Christ! As a christian, I don't speak a word of french, but all that serve God is a fellow child of the King!

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Joan of Arc, June 29, 2009

By 

B. K. Baur "BK Baur" (Texas) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Joan of Arc: Maid, Myth and History (Paperback)

Good book but some times hard to follow. The book is concerned more about the events around her, before her life, during and after than actually about her. You can easily loose track during the various chapters when different witnesses are testifying.

3 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Well written, but no new insights, February 9, 2008

By 

Mark Gibbs (Singapore) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Joan of Arc: Maid, Myth and History (Hardcover)

This book is easy on the eye. It is written in a pleasant style guaranteed to ruffle no feathers. Yet the author has nothing new to say about Joan herself. It's a good repackaging of what is already out there, so while I enjoyed the read, I drew little from it. Perhaps he feels there is nothing new to say, but too many coincidences are taken a face value, too many important questions are left unanswered, even unasked. For example, what was the nature of the relationship between Joan and the Duke of Lorraine and Rene d" Anjou? What was the heresy with which the Church charged her? Why did it take over 500 years for the Vatican to canonize Joan? The author can't even bring himself to opine whether Joan's "visions" were real, imagined or a calculated deception. He has no clues as to whether or not Joan was part of a larger conspiracy. And so on and so on. These topics should not be the sole domain of conspiracy theorists. The only reason they are, is because historians like Wilson-Smith are afraid of ridicule. Well, Mr Wilson-Smith, God gave you a neck, so you might as well stick it out from time to time...