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<img height='275' src='http://vaticanstamps.org/VPS/images/296/1499.jpg'> 
Saint Joan of Arc: 600th Anniversary of Birth 
Scott 1499 (2012)</center>
 
On May 11, 2012, Vatican City issued a commemorative stamp to celebrate the 600th anniversary of the birth of Saint Joan of Arc. The issue was a joint release with France and contains an image of the saint taken from a miniature painted shortly after her death. Vatican City issued the stamp as part of a minisheet of eight stamps, which is shown at the bottom of this article.
 
Joan of Arc is a patron saint of France, honored as a defender of the French nation for her role in the siege of Orléans and her insistence on the coronation of Charles VII of France during the Hundred Years' War. Despite her young age, she became a military leader who transcended gender roles and gained recognition as a savior of France.
 
Born into a propertied peasant family at Domrémy in northeast France, around the age of 13 Joan reported visions from the archangel Michael, a patron saint of the Domrémy area who was seen as a defender of France. These visions also included Saints Margaret and Catherine (probably Margaret of Antioch and Catherine of Alexandria). Also at this time, a prophecy circulated through the French countryside that "an armed virgin would come forth to save France".
 
In early 1429, Joan met with Charles VII and convinced him of her devotion and her intentions. She was directed to proceed to Orléans, which was under siege by the English. Following her arrival, she rallied the demoralized French army and, nine days after her arrival, the English abandoned the siege. Joan then encouraged the French to aggressively pursue the English during the Loire Campaign, which culminated in another decisive victory at Patay. This opened the way for the French army to advance on Reims, where Charles VII was crowned as the King of France.
 
Following Charles's coronation, Joan participated in unsuccessful campaigns at Paris and La Charité. In 1430, Joan organized a campaign at Compiègne. There, she was captured, handed over to the English and eventually put on trial for heresy. Charges included blaspheming by wearing men's clothes, acting upon visions that were demonic, and refusing to submit her words and deeds to the judgment of the church. She was declared guilty and burned at the stake on May 30, 1431. She was only nineteen years of age.
 
In 1456, an inquisitorial court overturned Joan’s verdict of heresy. Since that time, her persona has taken on heroic proportions. In the Church, Joan of Arc is revered as a martyr and, in 1920, she was canonized by Pope Benedict XV. Two years later, Pope Pius XI declared her one of the patron saints of France.
 
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<img height='375' src='https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/79/Joan_of_Arc_Emmanuel_Fremiet.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=index&utm_content=original'> 
Equestrian statue of Jeanne d'Arc 
Place des Pyramides, Paris 
Photo by Jastrow 
From Wikimedia Commons, in the Public Domain</center>
 
REFERENCES: 
<li>Wikipedia, <a href='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joan_of_Arc'>Joan of Arc</a> 
<li>UPN, May 11, 2012, <a href= 'https://vaticanstamps.org/UFN/images/2012-2-04-1.jpg'>600th Anniversary of the Birth of St. Joan of Arc</a> 
<li>Vatican Philatelic Society website, www.vaticanstamps.org, Stamp Database Search 
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<img height='375' src='http://vaticanstamps.org/VPS/images/296/1499M.jpg'> Saint Joan of Arc 600th Anniversary of Birth Minisheet, Scott 1499M (2012)</center>

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