Saint Catherine is a Roman Egyptian and a virgin martyr. She is revered as one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers in Catholicism and a Great Martyr in Eastern Orthodoxy. Her hagiographical account states that she converted hundreds to Christianity. She is killed for her faith at the age of 18, and later appears to Joan of Arc and offers her counsel as one of her voices.

Saint Margaret of Antioch (in modern day Turkey) suffers during the Diocletian Persecution, the last great persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire. When Margaret refuses to renounce her faith, she is tortured and eventually executed. She is a virgin martyr and one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers. Like Catherine, St. Margaret also appears to Joan of Arc and offers her counsel as one of her voices.

Edward III of England advances his claim to the throne of France, launching a dynastic struggle between the two kingdoms that would last–albeit intermittently–for the next 116 years. There are two main points of contention: inheritance of the French crown and jurisdiction over the Duchy of Gascony (a large and wealthy territory located in France, which had been loyal to English rule since the 12th century). Joan of Arc's brief career would prove to be the decisive turning point of this conflict.

Marie Robine is a French mystic who travels across the countryside, proclaims revelations, performs miracles, and speaks out about the papal schism. She receives support in her holy vocation from Marie of Blois, the Duchess of Anjou and Queen of Naples and Jerusalem. Jean Erault, a master of theology, would later claim that Marie Robine had foretold Joan's coming with a prophecy that an armed virgin would save the kingdom of France, though no record of any such prophecy exists. During the 14th-15th centuries, other itinerant holy women, like Jeanne Marie of Maille and Collette of Corbie, were also patronized by noble women.

Christine de Pisan (Italian: Cristina da Pizzano), a poet at the French royal court, writes this book as a defense of women's value and importance in society. In it, she tells the stories of heroic women from throughout classical and Christian history. Among them are warrior women, such as Hippolyta, queen of the Amazons, and Deborah, who led the Israelites to victory over the Canaanites. The Book of the City of Ladies can be viewed as the first work of proto-feminist literature written by a woman.

A digitized copy of The Book of the City of Ladies can be found through the Library of Congress here.