Why did St. Joan of Arc’s judges object to her wearing men’s clothing?

St. Joan of Arc’s judges objected to her wearing men’s clothing because they viewed it as a sign of her heresy and a manifestation of her "blasphemous presumption".1

During her trial, the court categorized her choice of attire as one of the primary charges against her. In the context of the 15th century, the ecclesiastical authorities considered the act of a woman wearing male clothing to be a violation of divine order and social norms. By persisting in this behavior, Joan was seen as defying the authority of the church, which had explicitly ordered her to wear women’s clothes.12

When she resumed wearing men’s attire after an initial abjuration, her judges interpreted this as a "relapse" into her former errors. This act, combined with her claim that she acted under the direct command of her voices rather than the authority of the church, provided the legal basis for her condemnation as a relapsed heretic, ultimately leading to her execution.21