After the city of Orléans had been relieved of its siege, Joan felt compelled to fulfill her next prophecy: to lead the king to Reims for his coronation. She knew from her visions that she did not have much time to complete her mission, and she had to seize the moment. The English were weakened, while the French soldiers were encouraged.
The Count of Dunois reports:
After the liberation of Orléans, we—the Maid, myself, and others—went together to the king, who was at the castle of Loches, to request new troops from him for the recapture of the fortresses and towns along the Loire, especially Meung, Beaugency, and Jargeau, so that he might operate more safely and undisturbed in the future all the way to Reims for his coronation. Joan implored the king, urging him tirelessly to act quickly and warning him against hesitation. From that moment on, the king acted with all possible haste and dispatched the Duke of Alençon, other military commanders, and me—together with Joan—to capture those towns and castles. And indeed, they were once again brought under the king’s rule—through Joan’s help, I believe.
Time and again, however, Joan had to assert herself against other ideas about how to proceed in the war. In this phase of her mission, she succeeded, and she repeatedly urged the king not to deliberate for too long. He listened to her, and thus the path to Reims for his coronation was cleared.
The following should be noted regarding the conduct of the war, over which Joan had a decisive influence. Before she attacked the English, she sent letters to the English king and their commanders, as well as to their Burgundian allies, stating that they could withdraw freely if they surrendered. She did not tolerate French soldiers committing atrocities, such as seizing church property, when they restored the towns and cities to the rule of the King of France. She also protected the local priests who had performed their religious duties in the occupied cities. Overall, she showed great mercy toward her enemies and was particularly concerned for their salvation.
We can conclude that Joan waged a “just war” and that her entire intervention in France’s hopeless situation under English occupation was carried out at God’s command. She repeatedly emphasized that she would have gladly returned to her family had she not been entrusted with this mission. She remained a thoroughly sensitive girl—she was seventeen at the time—who could not bear the sight of blood and was deeply hurt when the English insulted her. Yet in her decisions and in all matters concerning the art of war, she displayed a confidence and practical wisdom that astonished the experienced leaders of the various troops.
As long as Joan was heeded, her predictions came true to the letter. Her divinely inspired intervention stands before us as a shining example in history of how the cooperation of king and church, under the authority of a messenger sent by Him, turned the misfortune of a nation around. Joan had asked Charles VII to place his kingship under the King of Heaven and to act as His servant, which he did on the advice of the Virgin.
Finally, on July 17, 1429, the king was crowned in Reims in the presence of Joan, who carried her banner. It was a great moment for France and for the Maid of Orléans. What God had promised and entrusted to her was fulfilled.
The Moroni Journal (Chronicle of the Maid), a newspaper that summarized the events of that time, reported:
“The French came to Reims, where the French kings are crowned. On Saturday, July 16, the Dauphin arrived, and the city gates were opened to him without resistance. On Sunday, July 17, he was crowned with great festivity.”
On the same day, Joan had the following letter written to the Burgundian prince Philip the Good, who had not responded to her invitation nor to that of the king’s cousin:
“High and venerable Prince, Duke of Burgundy, the Virgin begs you in the name of the King of Heaven, my rightful and sovereign King, that the King of France and you may conclude a good and lasting peace that shall endure for a long time. Forgive one another completely with sincere hearts as faithful Christians … I implore you with folded hands that you do not fight against us, and believe that no matter how many you bring against us, you will never prevail; and great harm will result from a battle, and blood will be shed by those who fight against us…”
However, after the coronation of Charles VII, events took a different turn—one over which Joan could no longer exert decisive influence. Negotiations took place between the king and envoys of the Duke of Burgundy, from which Joan was deliberately excluded. The result was that the momentum of the royal army slowed, and false promises were made by Burgundy, which merely sought to buy time. The betrayal that Joan had feared had begun.