Summary

Alternative Name(s): Button, Pin

Small metal badge possibly from World War I depicting Jeanne d'Arc (Joan of Arc).

Jeanne d'Arc was a medieval peasant girl who believed she had been chosen by God to assist Charles of Valois (later Charles VII of France) to defeat the English during the Hundred Years' War (1337-1453). Jeanne was eventually captured by Anglo-Burgundian forces who burnt her at the stake in 1431 on charges of witchcraft and heresy. She was later exonerated in a trial held after her death by Charles VII and eventually canonised by the Catholic Church in 1920.

Jeanne was a popular patriotic figure in France and during World War I was associated with defeating the German invaders. An associated that was partly due to her childhood home and some of her campaigns having taken place in the area that had been invaded. After the war Jeanne remained a popular patriotic figure, she was posthumously awarded the croix de la légion d'honneur and the croix de guerre as well as featuring in the iconography of French war memorials.

The absence of any mention of her sainthood in the inscription makes it likely that this badge was sold during the war, possibly as part of a fundraiser to support the French.

Physical Description

Round metal badge in white, blue and brown. White border and blue centre with head and shoulders of woman holding cross and four stars in the sky behind her. Words in border in French "BIENHEUREUSE JEANNE D'ARC / PROTEGEZ LA FRANCE!" Pin at back fits into slot.

More Information