In Joan of Arc: La Pucelle, Craig Taylor tells us that the trial against Joan of Arc “is perhaps the best recorded heresy trial of the middle ages.” This only scratches the surface, as there is so much more in this volume of English translations of documents, transcripts, journal entries, and chronicles related to her life and aftermath. I’ve enjoyed this book since my undergraduate days and I keep returning to it.
La Pucelle is a somehow both a sourcebook and readable cover-to-cover. Other works have accomplished the latter, but as a sourcebook, La Pucelle is unchallenged in English. Comparable works do not cover the breadth and depth, as they either focus purely on the condemnation and nullification trial transcripts such as The Trial of Joan of Arc (2005) or The Retrial of Joan of Arc: The Evidence for her Vindication (1955). It also tells her story differently than Joan of Arc: By Herself and Her Witnesses (1969), which presents quotes and narratives thematically and chronologically.
Taylor’s 67-page introduction is superb for both the uninitiated and expert, as it provides an overview of Joan’s life, trial, supporters, enemies, memory, and of course, early 15th-century gender issues while referencing relevant documents throughout the volume. Taylor is quick to identify common misconceptions for the readers. For example, Joan wasn’t executed purely for wearing men’s clothing (a common meme), but for relapsing and communicating with her voices.
His approach with the translations is literal, avoiding misleading approaches from previous works that put everything in quotation marks as though a court stenographer typed it all word for word. The reality is sometimes the trial transcripts purport to quote directly, but they typically surmised the questions and responses. This is a break from other translations that tend to put everything in quotation marks.
The breakdown of the documents follows a chronological order, grouping them by her life, trial, immediate aftermath, and finally, the nullification trial. Among these documents, you will find 9 letters purported to be from Joan, as well as letters to Joan. Also included are a variety of documents that discuss Joan, such as letters from King Henry VI informing people of Joan’s transgressions and execution, as well as an excerpt from Martin Le Franc’s chapter on warrior women.
Taylor’s annotations throughout are immensely helpful. Each document includes basic details such as the author, audience, date, and language, but typically also includes invaluable context. Taylor also provides links between the documents. For example, the trial will mention a letter from Joan, and Taylor will provide a footnote to said letter. He is also transparent where a mentioned document has not survived. For the trial transcripts, Taylor relies on the more complete Latin version, but where it varies with the French fragments, he footnotes and explains. He also identifies discrepancies in the questioning and in Joan’s answers.
While a book of documents may seem more like a reference work at first, there are so many documents on Joan of Arc that it is possible to read through them in chronological order without too many gaps. Regardless, Taylor’s commentary fills in those gaps. I have been able to read through Joan of Arc: La Pucelle several times while also returning to it over the years for reference.