05/30/2023
On this day in 1431, nineteen year-old Jeanne d'Arc (Joan of Arc) was executed as a witch.
Jeanne, who only referred to herself as "Jeanne la Pucelle (Joan the Maid)" was born in Domremy, France, and had religious visions which she said called her to help in the war against England. Despite her astounding successes in battle, she was abandoned by the French king and captured by the English, who put her on trial for witchcraft and heresy. Hers is the most famous witch trial in history, and Jeanne d'Arc is one of thousands of people who were accused of witchcraft long before Salem existed.
This life-size statue of Jeanne d'Arc, called "Jeanne d'Arc a Domremy," (Henri Chapu, 1872) depicts Jeanne when she first received her visions, and is currently on display in our lobby. The statue will be part of our Spirits of Salem Museum to address how witchcraft trials in Europe influenced and differed from Salem in 1692.