Unsure of what to make of this peasant girl who was rumored to be the prophesied virgin who would save France, Charles devised a test in which he disguised himself and blended in with the 300 courtiers gathered at his castle. Not fooled, Joan quickly picked him out from the crowd, and allegedly relayed surprising knowledge of private information about the dauphin. Following further questioning by trusted church authorities, Charles agreed to make use of her passion for his military campaigns.

In late April 1429, Joan traveled with a French army to the city of Orléans, which had been under siege by Anglo-Burgundian forces since the previous October. After successfully attacking surrounding forts, the French side turned to the besieged city, with Joan a conspicuous presence in her white armor. Although she never actually took up arms, Joan outlined strategies and served as a motivational figure by standing near the fighting, exhorting the men as she waved her banner. Recovering from an arrow to the shoulder, she claimed triumph when the siege was lifted on May 8.

While Charles' advisors urged him to take the fighting to Normandy, Joan instead convinced the dauphin to travel to Reims, the traditional site for the investiture of French royalty. That meant clearing a path through the heavily fortified Anglo-Burgundian Loire Valley, where Joan continued to turn the tide of the war by pushing French forces through skirmishes at Jargeau, Meung-sur-Loire, and Beaugency.

On July 17, 1429, Joan saw her mission fulfilled when the dauphin was crowned King Charles VII at Reims. However, Charles neglected to immediately take up Joan's advice that they seize the momentum and march on Paris, which gave the city’s pro-Henry forces time to fortify their position. By the time Charles finally sent Joan and his army to Paris in September, they were unable to penetrate the city’s defenses.

Following the end of a temporary truce for territories north of the river Seine, Joan led efforts to dismantle a Burgundian siege of Compiègne in May 1430. However, she was thrown from her horse amid the fighting and stranded as the town gates closed. Her attempts to escape confinement failed, and she was sold to the English for 10,000 francs, with Charles VII making little effort to intervene.

The highly publicized trial of Joan of Arc began in Rouen, Normandy, on January 9, 1431. Over the course of six public and nine private examinations, she deftly answered questions from the ecclesiastic interrogators about her divine guiding voices, her obedience to the church, and her penchant for wearing men's clothing. Although most of the original 70 articles of accusation were dropped, the judges ultimately settled on 12 charges of heresy.

Faced with the prospect of execution, Joan initially abjured her claims to earn a reduced sentence of life imprisonment. However, she recanted her abjuration after being found wearing men's clothes again a few days later, and was declared a relapsed heretic. On May 30, 1431, Joan was led to the Rouen town square and tied to a pyre, where she gazed at a crucifix held high as flames engulfed her body.

After Rouen fell into French hands in 1449, Charles VII ordered an examination of the records that documented Joan's legal proceedings. The investigation eventually reached Rome, with Pope Callixtus III consenting to a rehabilitation trial for the deceased Joan. On July 7, 1456, after it was found that the original trial had violated church law, Joan's sentence was formally annulled.

While the exoneration made Joan a martyr, it would be another four centuries before the Maid of Orléans, as she became known, underwent another round of rehabilitation that propelled her to mythical status. Following the call for her canonization by Bishop Dupanloup of Orléans, Joan of Arc was beatified by Pope Pius X in 1909, and declared a saint by Pope Benedict XV in 1920. Meanwhile, she became a symbol of French nationalism during the Franco-Prussian War, an image that carried through the country's involvement in both world wars of the 20th century.

Today, along with her place among the holy figures of the Catholic Church, Joan of Arc is recognized as a patron saint of France, soldiers, prisoners, and those ridiculed for their faith. She is honored with celebrations such as the St. Joan of Arc Feast Day, and continues to be memorialized in art, literature, and music. 

Given the magnitude of her accomplishments before reaching adulthood, and her devotion to her ideals until the very end, it’s easy to see why Joan of Arc remains a source of inspiration more than 600 years after she first swore allegiance to the uncrowned king of a fractured land.

Alexander Was Never Defeated in Battle

Alexander succeeded to the throne in 336 BCE, and soon went to war, spending most of his reign engaged in lengthy military campaigns throughout Western Asia, Central Asia, parts of South Asia, and Egypt. Incredibly, Alexander was never defeated in battle, despite often being outnumbered. He won at least 20 major battles against significant military powers, including the Greek city-states, Egypt, and Persia. Not only was Alexander a masterful tactician and general, but he also inspired extreme loyalty among his soldiers, who refused his orders only once during the so-called Hyphasis Mutiny, when his exhausted men refused to march further into the Indian subcontinent. 

Alexander Founded Many Cities 

During his reign, Alexander the Great conquered the Greek city-states and the mighty Persian Empire. In doing so, he created an empire that spanned three continents and covered about 2 million square miles. According to the ancient Greek philosopher Plutarch, Alexander also founded more than 70 cities, though modern historians place the number between 10 and 20. Many of these he named after himself, including Alexandria Troas in Turkey, Alexandria Arachosia and Alexandria Ariana in what is now Afghanistan, and, most notably, Alexandria, which is the second largest city in Egypt today.

Bucephalus Was Alexander’s Faithful Warhorse

Bucephalus is one of the most famous horses from classical antiquity. According to Plutarch, the horse was given as a gift to Alexander's father, Philip II. But the animal was aggressive and unmanageable, and wouldn’t allow anyone to mount him. Seeing this, Alexander, just a boy at the time, asked permission to tame the horse, saying, “What an excellent horse do they lose, for want of address and boldness to manage him!” His elders laughed at him, but Alexander proved them wrong, managing to ride and ultimately tame the wild creature. Bucephalus became Alexander’s mount of choice and was with him throughout his campaigns. He held the horse in such high regard that he even named a city — Bucephala in modern-day Pakistan — in honor of his faithful steed. 

Alexander Took Huge Risks With His Own Life

One of the reasons Alexander inspired such devotion and sacrifice in his soldiers was his willingness to charge into battle on the front lines beside them. This, however, was a huge risk, and Alexander came close to death more than once. At the Battle of Granicus in 334 BCE, for example, Alexander was seconds away from receiving a fatal blow from a Persian soldier, only to be saved in the last moment by one of his companions, Cleitus the Black. Later, during the Indian campaign, Alexander received his most severe wound when an enemy arrow pierced his lung. Word soon spread that he had died, but Alexander survived. When he had fully recovered, he presented himself to his awaiting troops, to the cheers and even tears of his soldiers. 

Alexander’s Death Is Shrouded in Mystery

The death of Alexander the Great remains one of history’s greatest mysteries. We know that Alexander, at the age of 32, fell ill during a days-long period of festivities, collapsing and complaining of a searing pain in his back. An intense fever followed, and he died 12 days later. From that moment up until the present day, the exact cause of his death has been a topic of much debate. Numerous theories have been proposed, including alcoholic liver disease, malaria, typhoid fever, and assassination by strychnine poisoning. While we might never know the truth about Alexander’s death, we could one day solve one of archaeology’s other great mysteries: the location of his tomb. Numerous theories exist regarding the tomb’s location, placing it anywhere from Egypt to Greece. It’s possible it was destroyed and will never be found — but that won’t stop archaeologists from searching for the final resting place of history’s greatest general.