Page "Joan of Arc" Paragraph 11

At the age of 16, she asked a kinsman, Durand Lassois, to bring her to nearby Vaucouleurs, where she petitioned the garrison commander, Count Robert de Baudricourt, for permission to visit the royal French court at Chinon.

Baudricourt's sarcastic response did not deter her.

She returned the following January and gained support from two men of standing: Jean de Metz and Bertrand de Poulengy.

Under their auspices, she gained a second meeting, where she made a remarkable prediction about a military reversal near Orléans.