The story of the Rosary of the Seven Joys of the Blessed Virgin dates back to the early 15th century. A young Franciscan novice used to weave a crown of flowers he picked and place it on a statue of Mary. For some reason he discovered he would not be able to continue to honor the Blessed Mother in this way and decided to abandon his vocation.

He was praying in the chapel when Our Lady appeared and asked him remain in the order. She told him that instead of weaving a crown of flowers which fade, he could weave a crown of prayers at any time that would form a crown that would never wilt, but would last into eternity. She then told him during her life there were seven joys and taught him to pray the Rosary of the Seven Joys

Tradition also tells us that the young novice proceeded to pray the rosary immediately and while he prayed, angels appeared to be weaving a crown over his head. Unbeknownst to him, the novice master saw the angels and afterwards demanded to know what it meant. Under holy obedience, the young novice explained what transpired.

This simple but beautiful devotion of praying the Crown of the Seven Joys of the Blessed Virgin soon spread over the entire Franciscan Order and was officially established in 1422.

If you are interested in reflections on both the mysteries and how they connect to St. Francis, the link is http://franciscancards.com/fran/crown1.shtml

Franciscan Crown Rosary The Franciscan Crown Rosary consists of seven decades with each one representing joy in the life of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The Seven Joys are:

1) The Annunciation
2) The Visitation
3) The Birth of Our Lord Jesus Christ
4) The Adoration of the Magi
5) The Finding of the Child Jesus in the Temple
6) The Appearance of Christ to Mary after the Resurrection
7) The Assumption and Coronation of Mary as Queen of Heaven

How to Pray the Crown Rosary

Each decade, highlighting of one of Mary's joys, begins with the Our Father and is followed by ten Hail Mary's. Two Hail Mary's are added after the seventh decade to make a total of seventy-two, a number honoring the traditional belief of Mary's seventy-two years of life on earth.
In conclusion, an Our Father and Hail Mary are also recited for the intentions of the Pope.