Queen Of Four Kingdoms, The (35 page)

‘Maman dearest, I feel strongly that she could be of use to you. But not in the same compliant way as other girls you have employed in the country’s interests. I am convinced she is a maid and intends to remain one. Her mission is for God alone, but her sincere, almost passionate desire to help France has moved me sufficiently to alert you. She has impressed us all here at our court – and in our desperate situation I believe any help may be welcome. Please advise me what to do.’

When the Queen of Sicily receives this letter from René, she writes by return telling him to send Jeanne d’Arc, at her expense, from Nancy to join her at Chinon. It is a long way and through enemy territory, but Yolande must decide for herself if there is any merit in her.

To get the girl to Chinon safely, Yolande instructs René to have her hair cut chin-length like a boy’s, dress her in a black jerkin and short black tunic, black leggings and trunk-hose, spurs and a black hat with a black feather. In this way she will pass for a young man, and the numerous cords with which the long boots and trousers are tied to the tunic will offer an added measure of security in the company of soldiers if captured. In this way she will pass for a young man. Jeanne should also wear a sword – God only knows if she can use it – and she should have a sound, strong black horse. As a country girl, Yolande is reliably informed, she can ride. Dressed in her man’s clothing and accompanied by just six mounted men-at-arms, all in black and on black horses – she will pass for one of their number and not draw attention. It is forbidden by the Church for a woman to dress as a man, but for Jeanne d’Arc’s survival, it is a necessary precaution.

Yolande has made her own enquiries about this extraordinary girl. It seems that Jeanne d’Arc was born on 6 January 1412 in Domrémy in Lorraine, the daughter of a fairly substantial tenant farmer; a sensible, plain-speaking, strong country girl. It would not have been hard for her to recognize the pitiless state of the country, or the indifference of her king to the plight of his people. With soothsayers and fortune-tellers in every village, it is not unusual for a maid to claim she hears voices, as Jeanne does. It was in 1425, when her own town of Domrémy – on the frontier between the France of the Anglo-Burgundians and that of the king – was under attack from the Burgundians, that Jeanne claims she first heard the voices of Saints Michael, Margaret and Catherine, all urging her to save France.

Yolande is informed when the little band sets out from Nancy by night to ride south-west to her at Chinon. She stays quiet as she waits for Jeanne d’Arc to reach her. Secretly she nurtures a tiny, flickering hope in the person of an unknown girl she has yet to meet. This young girl with her small band of guards must reach Chinon, unscathed, from Lorraine, riding hard through enemy territory, in the dark, for at least ten nights! It is too bizarre an aspiration to share with anyone else at the court.

W
hen – indeed, if – Jeanne d’Arc arrives at Chinon, Yolande intends to keep her hidden for at least two days in order to interview her thoroughly. Should the girl have convinced the Queen of Sicily by then that she has been sent by God, Yolande will set Jeanne d’Arc an almost impossible task: to lift the siege of Orléans.

And there is no doubt the situation there has reached the point of desperation. Jean Dunois, who is inside the city, sends Yolande a message that the siege is reaching a critical stage. Food can no longer get through their tunnels and fresh water is running out. The older citizens are dying of starvation, the very young also. The extra soldiers who came to help did not bring much food and are depleting the stores. They are counting on help from the outside so that they can fight from the battlements, squeezing the enemy in between. If Orléans falls to the enemy, it will totally demoralize the king and the country, and England will have no further obstacle to prevent their conquest of France – no one is in any doubt about that. The atmosphere at Chinon is leaden, along with everyone’s spirits.

After eleven nights’ hard riding, Jeanne d’Arc and her party arrive at Chinon. Yolande’s own servant immediately takes Jeanne into seclusion, with instructions from the Queen of Sicily that the girl should wash, be given dinner and rest a while.

Two hours later, Jeanne is brought to the queen’s quarters through a secret passage, and stands waiting. When Yolande enters, she sees before her a very slim girl, not tall, boyish with her short brown hair – neither plain nor pretty. The queen has come from dinner at court and is still in full regalia, although she has just had time to remove her crown. A tall woman in a dress and train of deep blue velvet, sapphires covering her chest, her long blonde hair in an elaborate plaited chignon entwined with pearls, she must appear quite ethereal to a country girl. She sits and asks Jeanne to do the same, to lessen the difference in their height, but the girl seems neither timid nor nervous of the imposing royal personage before her. She is still wearing her black leather jerkin and hose, although her boots were cleaned before she was brought into the suite. Her face and hands are also clean and she has a fresh country smell about her – like a meadow after rain. Yolande studies her for some moments. Can this simple girl have the spirit to save France?

The large, beautiful room is lit by a fire blazing in a huge stone chimney piece, and candelabra with many branches stand on every surface. The smell of smoke is masked by the frankincense the servants have thrown on the blaze, the lavender on the floor and the cloves stuck into oranges on tables. Everywhere the glow of firelight or candlelight is reflected in silver bowls, drinking vessels and objects, and bright tapestries cover the walls. Jeanne is offered a beaker of mulled wine, which she declines.

Yolande begins gently. ‘Jeanne, my dear, tell me about yourself?’ and the girl tells her how she has tried for several years to reach someone who would believe in her mission to save France; how she has asked again and again to meet René, knowing he could influence the king (if only that were true), and finally, how her town of Domrémy was sacked in 1425 with great brutality by the Anglo-Burgundian army.

‘Is it not then that you began to hear your voices?’ the queen prompts her.

‘Madame, yes, it was at that time.’

‘And what did they tell you, my dear,’ she asks softly, trying not to show even a hint of scepticism. Certainly Jeanne’s fervour is beyond doubt. When she begins talking about her voices, her own takes on a different timbre, and there is great confidence in her when she says: ‘I must find a way of saving France. That is my mission from God, and He has asked my saints to help me convince the dauphin to let me do it.’

‘And how do you propose to save France, my dear?’ Yolande almost whispers.

‘Why, with the help of my saints, madame.’ There is no argument.

At another time and in another place, Yolande would have dismissed Jeanne d’Arc as a young madwoman making ridiculous claims. But these are desperate days, and she is experiencing the same growing conviction about Jeanne d’Arc that René wrote he felt when he met her.

Unbeknown to the court, the Queen of Sicily spends the next two days and nights with her young guest, never leaving her rooms. They pray together and they eat together, but most of the time they talk. Jeanne tells Yolande about her home life, her family, her belief in God, the Virgin Mary and the saints, but using language so simple, so pure and with a conviction Yolande has never encountered in anyone – that God has given her this mission and it must be done. She tells Yolande of the years she has spent trying to find a way to the dauphin, convinced that if she can speak with him, he will believe her. She says she has a message for him that she will not divulge to Yolande or to anyone else but him.

Finally, and without knowing why, Yolande does believe that Jeanne d’Arc has indeed been sent by God. The strength of her zeal and the utter certainty of her faith, her overwhelming desire to serve God and her country has convinced the Queen of Sicily to let her meet her son-in-law the king. But what can Charles do, even if he does believe in her? No, only the Queen of Sicily has the power to take action. Only she has an army of seasoned soldiers, but at this time they are marching to Marseilles to sail for Naples to fight for Louis. Her son’s needs – or her king’s? That is the dilemma she is facing.

She promised her beloved husband on his deathbed that the answer to that question would always be her king – but Charles is so unworthy, and Louis is the best of sons. She cannot break her promise to her dead husband, but nor can she abandon her beloved eldest. Yolande lies awake reasoning with herself for the two nights Jeanne d’Arc is covertly with her in Chinon, unable to resolve her conscience.

On the third morning, the Queen of Sicily has reached her decision. Her army must fight in both wars – the king’s and her son’s. After they have relieved the siege and brought the king through the enemy lines to Rheims to be crowned, then they can march to Marseilles and sail for Naples; and she prays they will have few casualties.

She summons René, and sends word to her army – which has left Anjou and is well on its way to her port – to turn and march north to Bourges instead of south to Marseilles. Changing the direction of an army is no simple matter – and costly. Once again, Yolande is taking an enormous chance on the king’s agreement. It is hard to enthuse him about anything – it seems he sees naught but Armageddon.

When they arrive in Bourges, Yolande will meet her captains – who she knows respect her – explain her plan, and then present Jeanne d’Arc to them. René, Pierre de Brézé and the Maid’s carefully chosen guards will surround her and ride with the army further north to Orléans.

‘Once you have succeeded in lifting the siege,’ Yolande tells her – ‘no, don’t be afraid; my seasoned Angevin soldiers will be by your side – then, and this is important, instead of chasing the fleeing English, you must turn the army and ride north-east to Rheims, where your dauphin will be crowned king.’

Jeanne looks unsure but willing.

‘I will equip you. All you need do is sit calm and tall on your charger wearing the armour I will provide, and proudly holding your banner with the red cross of Lorraine I have prepared for you. My soldiers will do the rest. Your role is to inspire, not to fight.’ When Yolande sees there is still hesitation in her eyes, she continues more gently.

‘Jeanne, Jeanne, place your trust in me. Would your saints, who speak to you, not want to see your dauphin crowned at the cathedral in Rheims? It is the traditional place for our kings. You always refer to him as your dauphin, and so he will remain unless he is anointed with the Holy Oil of our first Christian King Clovis and crowned at Rheims.’

Jeanne’s eyes have a faraway look and begin to glow. She nods enthusiastically.

‘Yes, yes, until he is crowned and anointed,’ she cries, ‘he will remain my dauphin.’

Gently Yolande adds: ‘And he will remain so to many of the French. You, and all his faithful followers, must know that if he is anointed with the Holy Oil, and crowned in Rheims cathedral, the people will acclaim him as their rightful king. But before he can be crowned, you must help to inspire my army, raise the siege of Orléans and save those lost souls.’

C
harles has been alerted; he has been told of Jeanne’s extraordinary claim and knows he will shortly meet her.

The Queen of Sicily is well aware of her son-in-law’s complex mind; he will not be easy to persuade that a country maiden can be of any use to France, let alone the saviour of Orléans. But if this Maid, with her glowing faith in him and in her voices, can convince Charles of his need of her for success, they might have a chance. Yolande has placed another good voice near the king, that of Pierre de Brézé, who Charles knows is there as her equerry and has her confidence.

True to form, her timid and easily influenced son-in-law looks at the cynical, disbelieving faces of his noble friends when they hear about Jeanne d’Arc, and joins in their laughter. But the Queen of Sicily insists. This meeting will not be straightforward and Yolande is sure his courtiers will somehow connive to trick the innocent girl. It is their idea of a jape, an amusement to distract from dire times.

On the afternoon of the girl’s presentation, Pierre de Brézé comes quietly out of the king’s audience chamber as the Queen of Sicily prepares Jeanne.

‘Madame, it is as we thought: the king has been encouraged by his intimates to play a trick for their amusement. He has stepped down from his throne, switched his hat bearing the gold fleur-de-lis for a blue one from a young courtier, and exchanged his purple velvet cloak with a more modest grey one belonging to a page who now sits on the throne in his place.’

Yolande looks at Jeanne – has she listened and understood it? Yes.

The Queen of Sicily slips in through a side door to watch as Jeanne d’Arc enters the Great Hall. When she is announced, the room falls silent, all eyes turning to examine the slight, boyish girl who approaches the throne with the Lord Chamberlain. She is wearing a simple white dress of light wool that reaches the floor, with long sleeves and a high neck – somewhat like a novice nun.

‘Greet your king,’ she is urged by the audience as she is led before the impostor placed on Charles’s throne. But Jeanne has understood and ignoring the page on the throne, she allows her gaze to survey the crowd. Slowly, she turns and stops. Calmly she raises her hand and points out Charles, lurking behind a pillar.

‘There is my dauphin,’ she announces, and drops to one knee, head bowed, her clenched right hand on her heart.

Charles is swayed, as Yolande knew he would be, and comes forward. He raises Jeanne by her elbows, takes her hand and dismisses the page in his chair of office with a wave. He sits, still holding her hand. A stool is brought for her; he orders music and indicates to the company to continue talking, so he and Jeanne can speak privately. Yolande can see Jeanne whispering to him; as planned, she is telling him that she knows –
knows
– he is truly the rightful heir to the throne. For Charles, his confidence in himself is all-important. Yolande can see her whispering to him closely – is she, perhaps, telling him this precious secret of hers, the one that she kept even from Yolande? His look is serious and absorbed. Yolande does not know what it is that persuades him to believe in such an unlikely saviour, but believe her he does.