Aeneas Sylvius Piccolomini, a statesman, poet and humanist, ascended to the Papal throne as Pius II in 1458. Writing in the third person, his work, the Commentaries of Pius II is part autobiography, memoir, diary and history. Much of his work revolves around the warfare and politics of Italy, but he also makes many remarks on events further away, including the following item on Joan of Arc. The text below starts just after Joan arrives in the presence of the Dauphin and asks for an army to re...
