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Chapter companions for Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc by Mark Twain.

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  1. Chapter 1

    Epigraph

    The epigraph presents a striking observation by Louis Kossuth that Joan of Arc is the only person in all of recorded history to hold supreme command of a nation's military forces at the age of seventeen, highlighting her unique and unprecedented achievement.

  2. Chapter 2

    Bibliography

    This chapter lists the historical authorities and texts consulted to verify the truthfulness of the narrative, including works by Quicherat, Fabre, Wallon, Sepet, Michelet, and others.

  3. Chapter 3

    Translator's Preface

    The Translator's Preface presents a defense of Joan of Arc's character, arguing that she is unique in history for being flawless by any era's standards. It contrasts her virtues—truthfulness, honesty, modesty, courage, purity, and selflessness—with the corruption and brutality of her age. The preface highlights her miraculous achievements: a young, illiterate village girl who rallied a defeated nation, turned the tide of the Hundred Years' War, crowned the King, and died a martyr, betrayed by the very King and church she served.

  4. Chapter 4

    A Peculiarity of Joan of Arc's History

    This chapter explains that the biography of Joan of Arc is unique because it is the only life story that comes to us under oath, from the witness-stand, preserved in the official records of the Great Trial of 1431 and the Process of Rehabilitation. The Sieur Louis de Conte's Personal Recollections are faithful to this official history, but his added particulars depend on his word alone.

  5. Chapter 5

    The Sieur Louis de Conte to His Great-Great-Grand Nephews and Nieces

    The narrator, the Sieur Louis de Conte, introduces himself at age 82 in 1492, recalling his childhood friendship with Joan of Arc, his service as her page and secretary, and his presence with her from beginning to end. He reflects on her greatness and the tragedy of her martyrdom.

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  1. Chapter 6Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc
  2. Chapter 7Book I: In Domremy
  3. Chapter 8When Wolves Ran Free in Paris
  4. Chapter 9The Fairy Tree of Domremy
  5. Chapter 10All Aflame with Love of France
  6. Chapter 11Joan Tames the Mad Man
  7. Chapter 12Domremy Pillaged and Burned
  8. Chapter 13Joan and Archangel Michael
  9. Chapter 14VII: She Delivers the Divine Command
  10. Chapter 15Why the Scorners Relented
  11. Chapter 16Book II: In Court and Camp
  12. Chapter 17Joan Says Goodbye
  13. Chapter 18The Governor Speeds Joan
  14. Chapter 19The Paladin Groans and Boasts
  15. Chapter 20Joan Leads Us Through the Enemy
  16. Chapter 21We Pierce the Last Ambuscades
  17. Chapter 22VI: Joan Convinces the King
  18. Chapter 23Our Paladin in His Glory
  19. Chapter 24VIII: Joan Persuades Her Inquisitors
  20. Chapter 25She Is Made General-in-Chief
  21. Chapter 26The Maid's Sword and Banner
  22. Chapter 27The War March Is Begun
  23. Chapter 28Joan Puts Heart in Her Army
  24. Chapter 29Checked by the Folly of the Wise
  25. Chapter 30What the English Answered
  26. Chapter 31My Exquisite Poem Goes to Smash
  27. Chapter 32The Finding of the Dwarf
  28. Chapter 33Sweet Fruit of Bitter Truth
  29. Chapter 34Joan's First Battlefield
  30. Chapter 35We Burst in Upon Ghosts
  31. Chapter 36Joan Makes Cowards Brave Victors
  32. Chapter 37She Gently Reproves Her Dear Friend
  33. Chapter 38XXII: The Fate of France Decided
  34. Chapter 39XXIII: Joan Inspires the Tawdry King
  35. Chapter 40XXIV: Tinsel Trappings of Nobility
  36. Chapter 41At Last—Forward!
  37. Chapter 42XXVI: The Last Doubts Scattered
  38. Chapter 43How Joan Took Jargeau
  39. Chapter 44Joan Foretells Her Doom
  40. Chapter 45Fierce Talbot Reconsiders
  41. Chapter 46XXX: The Red Field of Patay
  42. Chapter 47France Begins to Live Again
  43. Chapter 48The Joyous News Flies Fast
  44. Chapter 49Joan's Five Great Deeds
  45. Chapter 50The Jests of the Burgundians
  46. Chapter 51XXXV: The Heir of France Is Crowned
  47. Chapter 52Joan Hears News from Home
  48. Chapter 53Again to Arms
  49. Chapter 54The King Cries “Forward!”
  50. Chapter 55We Win, but the King Balks
  51. Chapter 56XL: Treachery Conquers Joan
  52. Chapter 57XLI: The Maid Will March No More
  53. Chapter 58Book III: Trial and Martyrdom
  54. Chapter 59The Maid in Chains
  55. Chapter 60Joan Sold to the English
  56. Chapter 61III: Weaving the Net About Her
  57. Chapter 62All Ready to Condemn
  58. Chapter 63Fifty Experts Against a Novice
  59. Chapter 64The Maid Baffles Her Persecutors
  60. Chapter 65Craft That Was in Vain
  61. Chapter 66Joan Tells of Her Visions
  62. Chapter 67Her Sure Deliverance Foretold
  63. Chapter 68X: The Inquisitors at Their Wits’ End
  64. Chapter 69The Court Reorganized for Assassination
  65. Chapter 70Joan's Masterstroke Diverted
  66. Chapter 71XIII: The Third Trial Fails
  67. Chapter 72Joan Struggles with Her Twelve Lies
  68. Chapter 73Undaunted by Threat of Burning
  69. Chapter 74XVI: Joan Stands Defiant Before the Rack
  70. Chapter 75Supreme in Direst Peril
  71. Chapter 76Condemned Yet Unafraid
  72. Chapter 77Our Last Hopes of Rescue Fail
  73. Chapter 78The Betrayal
  74. Chapter 79Respited Only for Torture
  75. Chapter 80Joan Gives the Fatal Answer
  76. Chapter 81XXIII: The Time Is at Hand
  77. Chapter 82XXIV: Joan the Martyr
  78. Chapter 83Conclusion
  79. Chapter 84Endnotes