The Saber and Scroll Journal Volume 6, Issue 1, Winter 2017 | Page 26

hold no longer in their earth-and-timber fortress, and after witnessing that Joan
was not dead, fled the flimsy ill-constructed fort for the safer stone fortress of Les
Tourelles. It was at this moment that Joan saw Glasdale fleeing and shouted to
him. “Glasdale! Glasdale! Yield to the King of Heaven! You called me a whore,
but I have great pity on your soul and the souls of your men!” 8 Whether Glasdale
stopped or not is up for debate, but during the chaos around them, a French
incendiary boat became wedged beneath the wooden drawbridge, causing it to
catch fire. Glasdale and his men attempting to cross it to reach the safety of Les
Tourelles, did not make it, for the bridge caught fire and soon weakened. The
bridge could not hold the weight of the men and it disintegrated and gave way.
Glasdale, and the men with him, crashed into the river and drowned due to the
weight of their armor.
Figure 8. French troops of Joan of Arc besieging the English fortifications during
the siege of Orléans, c. fifteenth century.
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