Joan of Arc
How did I not know this? • 50m
The first woman who made history in Western civilisation, who believed she had a divine mission and saved France during the dark days of the Hundred Years War, was a girl from a simple background who defied all the institutions of the day. Her victories enabled the dauphin to be crowned Charles VII of France in the cathedral at Reims, but in the end she was charged with heresy and burned at the stake... still just 19 years of age.
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