Which young girl helped drive the English from French soil in the 15th century? Joan of Arc did. Also known as Jeanne d’Arc, she was a French peasant who claimed divine guidance during the later stages of the Hundred Years’ War.
In 1429, Joan persuaded the future King Charles VII to let her accompany French forces to Orléans, a strategically important city under English siege. Her presence helped inspire the French army, and the siege was lifted after a series of victories. Joan later helped Charles reach Reims, where he was crowned king.
Joan did not personally expel every English soldier from France, and the war continued for years after her capture. She was captured by Burgundian forces allied with England in 1430 and executed at Rouen in 1431, aged about 19. A retrial later cleared her name, and she was canonized as a saint in 1920.