The church of St Remy in Domremy-la-Pucelle has undergone a lot of changes over the centuries.  Great modifications were made at the time the national road which passes through Domremy was built.  But some old drawings made when the Department of the Vosges bought the house of Jeanne's father (circa 1820), give us an idea what it looked like in the time of Jeanne d'Arc.  The tower was higher, there was a churchyard surrounded by a low stone wall, and a sacristy where the entrance now is.  In Jeanne's time the entrance was on the opposite side of the church, and could be seen from her father's house.  Both house and church can be seen in the image below (click on images for full scale versions).  When viewing any image of the church and house, one of the first and most striking observations is the  nearness of the two, whence Michelet wrote that "...she was born in the shadow of the church, lulled by the canticle of its bells…"  Without a doubt, the nearness of the church ---its looming presence--- figured prominently in Jeanne's youth.

When I stayed in Domremy (in the Hotel Jeanne d'Arc) for a week in April, 2001, I often stopped to listen to the canticle of the church bells ---though I doubt they are the same bells as in Jeanne's time.  It is a somber, medieval sound.   To the far left can be seen the little stream that empties into the nearby Meuse.  In Jeanne's time this stream was not there.  It was re-routed in the 18th century leading some to mistakenly suppose that Jeanne was born in Lorraine.  Below is another view of the church from the opposite side.  The building just visible behind and to the right of the church may be the rear of Jeanne's father's house.  Note the crosses visible in the little churchyard.  The main road of the town is to the left.