Huguenots and French Catholics: The St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre

Beginning on August 24, 1572 and continuing for nearly two months, tens of thousands of men, women and children were massacred across France as part of an ongoing war to decide who would be Jesus is right.

The Wars of Religion in France

Although years in the making, on Halloween night in 1517, Martin Luther nailed a long list of questions on the door of the castle church in Wittenberg, Saxony. Catholics complained, and all hell broke loose in Europe. There is nothing unusual for pastors to do this, and clergy often present their own arguments for discussion in person at a later date. What makes this example different from other documents nailed to church doors is that someone translated the Latin into German. Most ordinary people couldn't read Latin, but some could read German. Once translated, the content of the paper spread like wildfire.

Often called the spark of the Protestant Reformation, this act set off a series of religious wars between and within nations.

The rise of the Huguenots

The persecution of Protestantism had made great progress in France by the mid-16th century, and many followed The teachings of Martin Luther and John Calvin.

Calvin was a native Frenchman who had fled persecution but found a home in Switzerland and published a number of religious treatises such as Institutes of Christ and Ecclesiastical Ordinances. Calvinism was popular in France, especially among the nobility, and quickly became popular in France thanks to the help of Kant, Prince of Bourbon, and Henry of Navarre. Despite this, France's monarchy remained staunchly Roman Catholic.

The French monarchy intensified persecution as Protestants took increasingly bold actions, such as placards at events and the printing and distribution of Calvin's and other Protestant treatises.

In 1545, the Waldens were massacred at Merindore and in 1551, King Henry II issued the Edict of Chatubriant, which, among other things, allowed the king to confiscate the property of Protestants. property. Around this time, several members of post-Reformation Protestantism began to be known together as Huguenots. (Why they were called this is unclear.)

The fighting began in 1560.

The Huguenots increased in number and some aristocratic Protestants plotted a rebellion from the Catholic Church. The failed plot to seize power in unarmed hands became known as the Amboise Conspiracy. At the same time, the practice of destroying Catholic icons in churches (idolatry) increased significantly. Furthermore, by the end of the year, the child Charles IX became King of France, but under the control of his mother Catherine de' Medici,

Three wars followed this ascension - the first (1562 -1563), the second (1567-`568) and the third (1568-1570) - each accompanied by skirmishes, battles, massacres, assassinations and general unrest. For Catholics, notable participants include the Dukes of Guise (Francis and Henry), Antoine de Navarre (not to be confused with Henry), and Henry III, Duke of Anjou .

On the Protestant side, important figures included Henry of Navarre, Prince Conde, Admiral Coligny, William of Orange, and the Duke of Zweibrücken.

Temporary Peace

The Third War ended with the Peace of Saint-Germain in August 1570, although tensions remained high, with occasional massacres of Huguenots in It continues to happen across France.

To resolve the turmoil, Catherine de' Medici arranged a Catholic wedding on August 18, 1572, between her daughter Margaret de Valois and the Protestant Henri Navarre. Wedding in Paris. The elite of the Protestant movement

all gathered in Paris for the wedding, believing they were safe, in compliance with the Treaty of Saint-Germain. Experts disagree who ordered it, but tensions escalated dramatically shortly after Henry and Margaret's marriage.

Assassination attempt

The most powerful Protestant leader was the admirer Gaspard de Collini, on 22 August 1572, while he was staying in Paris to celebrate At the royal wedding, he attempted suicide.

According to some, this was part of a conspiracy by Catherine and others to "no more five or six heads" and thus end the "civil discord" that had divided France for the past 10 years. However,

failed, according to one version:

[Catherine] learned. The Huguenots decided. Marching on Paris to avenge the attempted murder of Colini; she knew that the Catholics were preparing to defend themselves, and she foresaw that between the two parties the king would be left alone. The threat from the Huguenots and her son's consternation prompted Catherine to try to avert this civil war by organizing an immediate massacre of the Protestants. On August 24, 1572, the massacre began. Some people put the blame on the Duke of Guise, but Orthers said it was Catherine's idea:

It was because the attack on Corinne failed on August 22 that Catherine came up with a plan for a total massacre. idea. This thought came to Catherine's mind under some frenzied pressure; she saw in this decision a means of preserving her influence over the king and of preventing the revenge of the Protestants, who were outraged at Corinne's attacks. ..."

Those who believe Catherine was involved in the conspiracy say that she and another son, Duke d'Ancourt, persuaded Charles IX to approve the plot, who is said to have said:

Yes God! Since you think it would be a good thing to kill the Admiral, I agree, but the Huguenots in France must also perish so that no one can blame me in the future.

In any case, the massacre was planned and led by the Duke of Guise:

who had full command of the enterprise [and] summoned several captains during the night and told them that it was the king's. It was decreed that, by the will of God, they should take revenge. The signal for the commencement of the slaughter should be given by the bells of the palace, and their emblem of recognizing each other in the darkness was a piece of white linen tied to the left arm, and a white cross on the hat. .

The attack began when Admiral Collini was forced into his quarters:

Be***e [one of the Duke of Guise's men] thrust his sword through his head. body, pulled out the knife, and stabbed him in the mouth again, disfiguring his face. They made an investigation and threw Colini's body from the window into the courtyard. After this insult, [they] finally beheaded him, and they sent his head to Rome.

After that, the city erupted and the Catholics massacred thousands in Paris and other cities. The Huguenots reported:

[Many] were struck on the doors of the Huguenot houses [and] the next morning blood ran in streams; the houses of the rich. were plundered, regardless of the religious views of their masters

Despite instructions from Charles IX to his prefects to quell the violence:

[In] 12 did experience it. The city had once had a significant Protestant minority, which in some cases had actually been captured by Huguenot forces in previous wars. The Catholic majority felt strongly about the religious contamination. Threat.

To escape death, both Henry of Navarre and the Prince of Conte briefly converted to Catholicism before fleeing Paris, where it is estimated that at the end of the massacre in October 1572, the number of Protestants killed was high. The number ranges from 2,000 to 70,000 people.

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