France and England had an unstable history with one another and in 1337, King Edward III of England decided to lay claim to the French throne based on a relation on his mother's side (Walker 219). This led to the Hundred Years' War, which would consume the people's lives from 1337 to 1453 (Walker 220). During this time there was a great plague sweeping Europe, the "Black Death" which was the cause of millions of people's unseemly demise. Joan was a young peasant girl born in 1412, whose strong faith and belief in God led her to fight in his name for her country (Walker 221). Why English political leaders wanted Joan of Arc discredited and burned as a witch. English political leaders used the Roman Catholic Church to have Joan of Arc discredited and burned as a witch because they feared she had supernatural powers, was being used as a symbol by the French Nationalists and that she might become a martyr in the event of her death. English political leaders believed Joan of Arc possessed supernatural powers of some sort and they feared what kind of advantage this could bring to the French armies. The English political leaders didn't like that the French Nationalists, particularly King Charles VII and the Duke of Alencon, were using Joan as a symbol of French family and purity. English political leaders feared that if Joan were to die in the heat of battle, then the French people would make her a martyr.
             English political leaders believed Joan of Arc possessed some sort of supernatural powers and they feared what kind of advantage this could bring to the French armies (Nardo 42). Joan had admitted openly to hearing "voices" from saints since the age of thirteen (Gies 24). Joan said the voices told her what to do in order to fight the war for France (Moritz). Miraculously, Joan was never seriously injured in battle (Encarta 2001). Whenever she led an army, she never attacked a man
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