The Hundred Years' War between England and France lasted from 1337 to 1453. This prolonged conflict had ups and downs for both sides, but in the early fifteenth century, England seemed to have achieved victory. In 1429, things looked very bleak for the French: the English and Burgundians had taken over large parts of France, and were quarreling among themselves over who would claim the throne. The French dauphin (crown prince) Charles VII  was dejected by his losses and also over the parts of France that were still in his possession, he lost his grip. He was even mockingly called 'the king of Bourges' by his own subjects, because he barely left this small town while his enemies slowly conquered more and more of the French mainland. At the same time, a 17-year-old girl in the French farming village of Domrémy heard voices in her head and had visions of angels and saints, who told her that God had given her a holy mission to help Charles ascend to the throne. This girl was Jeanne d'Arc, the famous female French military leader who would turn the tide of the war in just two years.

After opposition from the church and Charles's court, she managed to convince the desperate crown prince of her holy mission. She was given a horse, armour and a small French army under her command, with which she quickly achieved spectacular victories. Her success at the siege of Orléans not only inspired her own troops but also the rest of the French armies. Charles officially had himself crowned as king of France while his enemies were driven back. Her leadership ushered in a new phase of the war, in which France slowly began to reclaim all the land that had been conquered by her enemies. However, her own fortune did not last long; when Jeanne was captured by the Burgundians and English in 1430 and sentenced to the stake, Charles did nothing to help her. In 1431, despite the protests of her companions, she was burned as a witch and cursed by the church. This would remain so for almost 500 years until she was exonerated by the Catholic Church in 1920 and declared a saint. To this day, she is counted among the greatest French heroes. 

Since the fifteenth century, there has been much discussion about the way she broke social norms and the position assigned to women. There was outrage over the fact that she dressed as a man on the battlefield and also gave orders to men; her enemies portrayed her as a witch because of this. Jeanne's allies and soldiers were less concerned with the 'role' she was assigned as a woman, but looked at the victories she achieved. For them, she was neither 'man' nor 'woman', but the commander who took action to reconquer France. Both civilians, soldiers, and noble knights followed her leadership without question. Despite the official position of the church, many important figures, such as the Archbishop of Embrun, risked their positions by advocating for her exoneration. The unparalleled respect she garnered from her troops and companions was widely described by her contemporaries. 

In this blog, we provide an interpretation of the clothing, equipment, and the armour that Jeanne d'Arc would have worn. With this, you can create your own ensemble based on one of the most studied (female) figures in history. 

For Jeanne d'Arc's outfit, there are two different options: In her early life, she dressed according to the female fashion of the day, but when she led the French army, she would also have worn a military (male) outfit. This caused much controversy because Jeanne d'Arc broke many social norms with this; at her trial, this was even used as evidence of her 'witchcraft.' Many figures in the church, both in her own time and after her execution, argued that her male clothing was not a reason to persecute her. It is unclear whether Jeanne d'Arc had special reasons for wearing male clothing, besides the fact that this clothing was simply the most practical for her military role. 

The first outfit of Jeanne d'Arc consists of a cotehardie with underdress, shoes and a belt with pouch. This would have been the simple outfit she wore in her life as a farmer's daughter.

The cotehardie was a long, flowing garment that was fashionable during the late Middle Ages among both women and men. People preferred bright colors, contrary to how this period is often depicted. If they could afford it, their clothing was richly decorated, but even without decoration, clothing in the Middle Ages was very expensive. In the summer, Jeanne d'Arc would have worn a cotehardie with short sleeves, but a model with long sleeves in the winter.

Joan of Arc also wears a petticoat under her cotehardie. By wearing undergarments, medieval clothing became less soiled from the body and the outer layer needed to be washed less frequently, causing it to discolor less quickly. 

Late medieval Europe was predominantly (Catholic) Christian. In these turbulent times, it was considered important to be devout because death could lurk around every corner (memento mori). The rosary was developed as a tool for ordinary people to perform prayers. It consisted of a wooden cross with various beads, each symbolizing a prayer. The medieval ‘Carthusian’ variant that Joan of Arc is said to have used was particularly associated with Mary, the mother of Jesus. The rosary became very popular among ordinary people in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, but was also often worn by soldiers on the battlefield to pray without a church nearby or to say a quick prayer.

In the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, people wore pointed shoes. Over time, it became a fashion trend to make them increasingly longer and more pointed. 

The military outfit worn by Jeanne d'Arc consists of a chaperon, surcoat or arming doublet, chausses and a belt with her dagger and sword. The devout Jeanne d'Arc would have still kept her rosary close at hand.

The chaperon was a medieval garment originally intended as a hood to protect the head from rain and cold. In the fourteenth century, it became fashionable among the nobility and bourgeoisie to wear the chaperon as a type of turban by turning it inside out.

This garment originated from the tabard that knights wore over their armor in previous centuries to recognize each other on the battlefield, but in the fourteenth and early fifteenth century, it was also worn on its own. Joan of Arc wears this garment to make herself visible as a military leader on both the battlefield and in daily life.

Many garments from this period were also worn in a half-and-half color pattern, also known as Mi-parti. This surcoat model is available in different halves, allowing you to mix and match colors yourself. 

Joan of Arc also wears an undershirt beneath the surcoat. Wearing undergarments made medieval clothing less likely to get dirty from the body, and the outer layer needed to be washed less often, thus fading less quickly. 

In the fifteenth century, fashion transitioned from long, flowing robes to short, tight-fitting clothing. Men began to wear doublets, which ended around the hips and emphasized the chest and waist. Full trousers also started to become more fashionable as a result. Joan of Arc wore this garment not only to carry her armour but also to represent her important status as a female military leader.

An gambeson provides a layer of padded protection under mail and plate armor, but was worn on its own by poorer soldiers. Due to developments in armour, thick gambesons became unnecessary for knights, and they began to wear a thinner, lighter padded variant that also matched the fashion of the day, the so-called arming doublet. To this tight-fitting variant of the gambeson, armor parts could be attached that fit well to the body.

In Italy, the arming doublet was even worn as a regular garment by civilians and non-military nobility to give a martial appearance, similar to wearing combat boots or clothing with camouflage print in our present.

In the fourteenth and early fifteenth centuries, men generally wore chausses (chausses). These long stockings were attached to the underpants (braies) and usually worn under long garments. Joan of Arc wears underpants with chausses to be able to wear her armor.

During this period, there was also a gradual transition to the full trousers. It is a personal choice to wear chausses or a trousers.

People from all social classes attached pouches and other items to their belt. When putting together your outfit, consider what you would find important to carry in your daily life as Jeanne d'Arc, such as your cutlery but also your sword.

In the fourteenth and fifteenth century, people wore pointed shoes. Over time, the fashion trend was to make these increasingly longer and more pointed. On the battlefield, form followed function, and the pointedness of the shoes was much more modest to prevent tripping during a fight.

Jeanne d'Arc was known for leading her men on the battlefield in full armor. Jeanne d'Arc's armour was made for her at size and she also fought in it: There are even multiple primary sources that refer to the fact that she did not remove this armour until a battle was over, despite the severe injuries she had sustained on the battlefield. Jeanne d'Arc's armour consists of a cuirass, an open helmet, full arm and pauldrons and thigh armor.

Jeanne d'Arc wears a cuirass that protects her entire torso. Unlike earlier breastplates such as those of the Churburg armour, the lower abdomen and hips are covered with articulating steel plates. These can also be detached from the cuirass.

The armour of Jeanne d'Arc is often depicted with an open helmet, in our composition it takes the form of a kettle hat. During this period, open helmets were worn to provide the wearer with a better field of vision and to assist in giving commands. This was mainly done when the threat from the enemy was not very urgent, but some military leaders preferred an open helmet on the battlefield. You can choose which type of helmet you use in your composition. Here are examples of open helmets from this time period:

Joan of Arc wears large shoulder plates and a tight-fitting arm harness. The shoulder plates also protect her collarbone and are large enough that she does not need a besagews to protect her armpits. The arm harness have a large plate to fully protect the elbow and provide freedom of movement. Both are fastened to her arming doublet with laces.

The thighs of Jeanne d'Arc are protected with plate armor, but she has left her lower legs unprotected in this configuration. This is because she prefers more mobility when wearing the armour. 

Often an arming doublet or other gambeson was equipped with points to attach armor for the lower body, but this was not always the case. Therefore, to fasten leg armor and mail skirts to the body, a armor belt was often worn.

Although Jeanne d'Arc does not wear a chainmail shirt in our composition, it was indeed worn by many soldiers and knights during that time. The haubergon, the chainmail shirt with short sleeves, became more common in the fifteenth century due to developments in arm armor. Italian and French knights would continue to use full mail shirts until the end of the fifteenth century, while in England and the Holy Roman Empire the chainmail shirt was split into voiders and mail coats to save weight.

Although Jeanne d'Arc does not wear a gauntlets in this composition, she probably would have used it on the battlefield. It is your choice whether to wear this in your composition. These would have been contemporary gauntlet:

After receiving a horse and armour to lead her army, Joan of Arc was also offered a sword, but she refused and said that God had already chosen a weapon for her. This was an ancient sword with an inscription of five crosses, which she had unearthed behind the church in the village of Sainte-Catherine-de-Fierbois. No one except Joan of Arc knew that this sword was buried here, causing some of her allies to suspect her of witchcraft. In this composition, we have chosen a one-handed sword, but since the sword of Fierbois was never clearly described, it could also have been a longsword. On the battlefield, she would also have had a pole weapon such as a spear or guisarme (billhook).

In addition to her belt, Joan of Arc also carries a rondel dagger designed to penetrate the gaps in plate armor, should she encounter another heavily armored opponent in battle. In everyday life, this dagger was also used by ordinary women as a self-defense weapon.

Contrary to what many people think, armors were not intended to make the wearer completely invulnerable. Armor was always a compromise between mobility and protection. This compromise can be well seen in the difference between war armors and tournament armors (all our armors are war armors). During tournaments, much stronger but less mobile armor was worn to protect the wearer as fully as possible against the blow of a lance. This was possible because tournaments were not intended as a spectacle and not as a fight to the death. On the battlefield, mobility was much more important, which meant that war armors offered less protection, but were lighter and allowed the wearer to move much more freely. 

Armors were historically worn by people who were fully trained and specialized in waging war in the period they lived. It can be seen that these people made many choices between protection and mobility, which often came down to function and personal preference. For example, many foot soldiers wore less protection on their lower legs because this was more comfortable to march in, but the cavalry was often more fully armored. Knights sometimes chose to protect their hands with mittens in which the fingers could not move, but sometimes with gauntlets with individual fingers. Consider what is important to you and adjust your armour components and composition to your own preference. 

On medieval battlefields, only the aristocracy wore fully custom-made armor. The rest of the armies wore armor that was collected or taken over from previous wearers. These soldiers adapted these collected pieces of armor to their bodies and decorated it by painting religious symbols and the heraldry of their ruler on it. The armor components we sell are not custom-made, but they are adjustable. As the owner of armor, you are regularly engaged in adjusting the armor to your measurements to ensure it fits as comfortably as possible. You can do this by lengthening straps, adding straps, stretching arm and leg pieces, and adding laces.