The Religious Wars
The French Religious
Wars
The French
Religious Wars…
France was
largest country
in Europe
Calvinism
spread quickly
into France
(Calvin himself
was French)
In France, a large proportion of the
nobility became Protestant
Like Germany, these
nobles wanted the right
to choose the religion
of their area (Peace of
Augsburg)
Many towns converted
to Protestantism
The Kings of France opposed Calvinism
This includes Francis I
And Henry III
Lutherans in Germany and
Anglicans in England also
opposed the spread of Calvinism—
they believed there wasn’t enough
room for another religion.
Besides, Calvinism was troubling
because of its independence
Remember, Calvinism did not respect state
authority over religious independence.
One’s allegiance was to God
In France, persecution of the Huguenots
begins
Many are burned at Stake
Henry II dies in a joust—Catherine Medici,
his widow, is left with three young sons.
The next three kings—Francis—1560, Charles IX
1574, and Henry III, 1589 never have a firm hand
on the monarchy
There were two sides:
The Huguenots, led by the King of Navarre
and Admiral Coligny
Vs.
The Catholic Guise family
During this time, France slid into civil war
The Huguenots fought for religious
liberty
The Guises fought to eliminate Calvinism,
but they also fought for control of France.
Henry III ordered the assassination of the
Duke of Guise
Catherine de Medici, the queen mother,
played both sides against each other.
Matters came to a head when Henry, King
of Navarre came to Paris to marry Margot,
daughter of Catherine de Medici, and sister
to the King (1572)
Thousands of Huguenots flooded
Paris to see the marriage of their King
Catherine de
Medici orders that
the Huguenot
leaders are to be
killed. Henry of
Navarre escapes—
but Coligny is
murdered.
This occurred on
St.
Bartholomew’s
Day. Mob
violence broke
out as both sides
killed each other
Thousands of Huguenots were murdered across
France. Hell broke lose as mercenaries were
hired to participate in the killing
In Rome, the pope was delighted with the
murder of the Huguenots. He ordered a
celebration mass. Medals were struck to
remember this Catholic victory.
The
Protestants
appealed to
Elizabeth of
England to
invade France.
Elizabeth looked at the events in France with
horror. She became even more determined
to prevent this happening in her country.
The French royal family
also tried to lure
Elizabeth into marriage
with one of their
members, the younger
son of Catherine, the
Duke of Anjou
Wisely,
Elizabeth kept
out of the
French mess—
she focused her
aide on the
Netherlands
revolt—an area
where she
could have the
most impact
This religious fighting in France was
chaotic, with armed bands roaming the
countryside and many mini-truces
among different areas.
Gradually, there developed the
belief that nothing justified this
everlasting chaos and war.
This belief was that of
a politique
The idea that civil order can
accommodate more than one
religion
France looked toward Henry of Navarre
to provide the leadership needed.
If we remember, Henry had barely escaped
from the St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre
He and Princess Margot never grew close, but she was loyal and supportive.
The final son, Henry III, of Catherine
de Medici was assassinated in 1589.
Now the throne went to the next
legal heir, Henry of Navarre—He
would now be Henry IV.
Henry had the choice to convert to
Catholicism before the Guise
family would accept him—he
converted in order to gain the
throne.
He entered Paris, supposedly saying “Paris is
worth a Mass”
The Catholics
were delighted
The Huguenots
were horrified
But Henry took
the steps
necessary to
provide state
order and end
the French
religious wars.
Henry did not forget the Huguenots.
He issued the Edict of Nantes in 1598
This Edict guaranteed civil rights for Huguenots. Paris was off limit to
Protestants
The Huguenots became less
rebellious after the Edict of Nantes
And Henry IV FORCED toleration on
his country
Henry IV
became
one of
France’s
greatest
Kings
He amicably divorced Margot, and married
Marie de Medici. They had several children.
He helped
France to
rebuild after
the wars and
promised a
“Chicken in
Every Pot.”
He brought peace and prosperity for 21 years
of his rule.
He never consulted the French
Parliament, the Estates General---Taxes
(the taille) were administered directly.
Parliament was not consulted.
Sadly, Henry was assassinated in
1610 by a crazed Catholic fanatic
Ravellic was the assassin. He was
“punished” for his deed.
Marie ruled alone as
a regent for her son,
Louis XIII.
Over time, Cardinal
Richelieu of France
gained great influence
during the childhood
and adulthood of
Louis XIII—only dying
a year before Louis
did. (1642)
Richelieu tried to maintain the
order of Henry IV—he was the de
facto ruler for 32 years
List of Kings during this time
period in France
Valois Dynasty
1515 - 1547 Francis I
1547 - 1559 Henry II
1559 - 1560 Francis II
1560 - 1574 Charles IX
1574 - 1589 Henry III
Bourbon Dynasty
1589 - 1610 Henry IV
1610 - 1643 Louis XIII
The way was paved for France’s greatest
absolute monarch, Louis XIV