Britannica Sources used in this answer

How did Joan of Arc’s trial lead to her execution in Rouen?

Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

Medieval illustration of the Battle of Crecy shows armored soldiers fighting with swords, shields, and bows as mounted knights and banners fill the background. — Hundred Years’ War Image depicting the Battle of Crécy, during the Hundred Years' War, in which Edward III of England defeated Philip VI of France on August 26, 1346.

After being captured by Burgundian forces and sold to the English, Joan of Arc was taken to Rouen to face an ecclesiastical trial overseen by Pierre Cauchon, the bishop of Beauvais. The trial was politically motivated, intended to discredit Charles VII by branding his coronation as the work of a heretic or witch.123

During the proceedings, Joan was subjected to an unjust process that denied her defense counsel and utilized interrogation under duress. Although she initially signed a form of abjuration to avoid death, she soon revoked it after resuming male attire, which she claimed was done of her own free will following guidance from her voices.415

This act was deemed a heretical relapse by her judges. Consequently, she was abandoned to the secular arm and burned to death at the Place du Vieux-Marché in Rouen on May 30, 1431. Her sentence was later annulled in 1455–56 following an investigation ordered by Pope Calixtus III.516