Summary
Overview
This epic concluding episode covers Joan of Arc's trial, execution, and eventual rehabilitation. After capturing Joan, the English orchestrate an ecclesiastical trial for heresy presided over by Bishop Pierre Cauchon. Despite her peasant background, Joan displays remarkable courage and wit during intense interrogation about her voices and male dress. After initially recanting under threat of death, she reclaims her identity and is burned at the stake on May 30, 1431. Nearly two decades later, as French fortunes reversed and Charles VII reclaimed France, Joan's trial was declared invalid, transforming her into France's greatest heroine.
The Young King's Failure and Joan's Imprisonment
In January 1431, nine-year-old Henry VI arrives in Rouen as the English claimant to the French throne, but proves spectacularly uncharismatic, complaining about crowd noise and refusing to leave the castle. Meanwhile, Charles VII has been crowned at Reims with Joan's help, delivering a major propaganda victory. To counter this, the English need to discredit Joan, who has been captured and is now imprisoned in brutal conditions at Rouen castle, shackled and guarded constantly by English soldiers.
- Henry VI proves to be an unimpressive king from the start, complaining about crowds and hiding in the castle
- Joan is imprisoned in a cold, unfurnished cell with only two arrow slits for light, shackled to a wooden beam
- Joan is forbidden from speaking to anyone without permission and receives no legal advice
- The English are determined Joan will be tried, convicted, and executed
" He's this kind of nervous, very uncharismatic, effectively invisible little boy. "
" You either have that sense for the Stardust, or you don't. And Henry doesn't. "
Pierre Cauchon's Meticulous Inquisition
Bishop Pierre Cauchon of Beauvais presides over Joan's trial with extraordinary attention to legal procedure. Far from being a simple English kangaroo court, the proceedings involve 131 lawyers, theologians, and clergy—all but eight of them French. Cauchon spends six weeks before the trial even begins ensuring everything is done precisely by the book, knowing the case will receive massive international scrutiny. The trial focuses on two main charges: Joan's claims to hear heavenly voices, and her insistence on wearing male clothing.
- Pierre Cauchon indicts Joan on January 9th for heretical behavior and wearing male clothing
- Cauchon recruits 131 experts for the trial, all but eight of them French, only three English
- Investigators are sent to Joan's home village of Domremy to gather evidence
- The Duchess of Bedford conducts another virginity examination, which Joan passes
" Cauchon believed his role in the trial would bear examination from even hostile observers. "
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