Summary
After some delay following Orleans, Joan managed to convince
the Dauphin to travel to Reims for his coronation ceremony. One major
contingent of English troops, at Patay, remained to be dealt with
before Charles could march unimpeded to Reims.
On June 18, 1429, French and English forces met at the
Battle of Patay. Joan promised that it would be the Dauphin's
greatest victory yet. In fact, unlike Orleans, the English had
a very poor position to defend at Patay. La Hire's contingent
was able to attack the deadly English longbow archers before they
were in position. As a result, England lost 500 of its best archers
and really had no hope in the battle. Seeing La Hire's attack
on the valuable archers, a group of English soldiers made a quick
counterattack, but to no avail: the English were forced to flee
the field or be destroyed. Without cover from their archers, and
with all of the English leaders long gone on their galloping horses,
the English footmen were systematically mowed down and massacred
by the French army. Ultimately, about 2,000 English troops died
at Patay, while only a handful of Frenchmen lost their lives.
Thus the French completely routed the English for the
first time in years. And coming so soon after Orleans, the English
embarrassment at Patay was another impressive victory for Joan.
Joan ordered the Duke of Alencon to ride through Orleans announcing that
she would be taking the king to Reims soon for his coronation.
The people of Patay now decorated the city in the Dauphin's honor, as
they expected the Dauphin to make a triumphal visit to the city.
And they celebrated even when Charles failed to make his appearance:
the Dauphin, indecisive as always, was holding another meeting
on whether or not to go to Reims. Furthermore, he worried as to
whether he should endanger his wife by bringing her to the coronation
ceremony. Ultimately, he left her behind in safety.
After the Siege of Orleans, and especially after the Battle
of Patay, Joan had acquired a tremendous amount of honor, power,
and fame. Moreover, the previously skeptical Dauphin became increasingly
grateful to her, and was more and more willing to grant whatever
she asked. She was dangerous because she was so popular with the
masses of soldiers, and the Dauphin's jealous court realized that she
was growing so powerful because of her support within the population
that no one could control her. While the Dauphin knew that going
to Reims would be difficult, he increasingly tended to do what Joan
said and believed that she would be able to protect him. The Battle
of Patay helped clear the Dauphin's path to his coronation in Reims.
When the English fled, they left behind many valuable supplies
greatly enjoyed by the French army and even the surrounding French
townspeople who looted the English supplies. Joan and the Duke
of Alencon, increasingly at her side now, questioned the captured
English commander of the longbow archers.
The location of the English near Patay was discovered
when a stag ran through their hidden camp. It caused such a noisy
commotion that nearby French scouts easily pinpointed the English
location, giving the French the benefit of a surprise attack.
One of the things the Hundred Years' War proved was the decisive
impact of good archers in battle. The English longbowmen were famous
for their deadly accuracy, and their presence always greatly helped
the English. When La Hire decimated the English archers at Patay,
this alone was almost enough to ensure French victory. Indeed,
at Patay more than at Orleans, it was mostly the leadership of
commanders like La Hire, and not that of Joan herself, that won
the day; Joan seemed to serve as a good luck charm, but she was
not the one responsible for the French army's clever tactics.
Nonetheless, Joan started to unrealistically take full credit for
the victories in the letters she dictated at this time, and by
this point the French eagerly believed her claims.
Joan arrived late to the battle of Patay, and was shocked
by the gruesome scene there. The French troops were essentially
butchering the fleeing English, and Joan did her best to console
several English soldiers as they died, praying with them and receiving
their confessions. This shows how compassionate Joan could be,
how little zest she had for battle in itself.
