Medici, ambitious to ride the kingdom, cast her influ- ence with constable Montmorency, who had retired from court, though apparently she coveted the friendship of the Guises (Martin, viii, 362). An alliance was now formed among disaffected courtiers, bourgeoisie, and Protestants against the tJuises, and him who, ruling over the nation, had submitted to their guidance; and though it is not believed tliat Jlontmorency had any part in it, it is certain that st)me of his house — three
mained there until the government of the Directory brothers of the house of Chatillon (Obet, cardinal of m.ide his return possible. He was then nominated i Chatillon, admiral Ci>ligny. and Dandelot, colonel of the grand-vicar of Poitiers ; in 1811 was made canon of the | Cisalpine infantry), sons of Louisa of Jlontmorency, the metropolis, and then grand-vicar of this diocese. He 1 sister of the constable— were more or less intimately was also maile censor of all ecclesiastical pulilications associated with all Protestant movements in France, at Paris, lie died at Paris Feb, 21, 1824, He wrote : I and that possibly two of these three had actually a part
MONTMORENCY
551
MONTORSOLI
in, or at least a knowledge of, the conspiracy of Am- boise (see Huguenots ; and comp. Kanke, Franzos. Gesch. i, 147 ; Mrs. Marsh, The Protest. Ref. in France, i, U-2 ; Brantome, Vie des Hommes illustres, iii, 20). The sudden termination of the reign of Francis II (1560) brought forward the minor, Charles IX, and with him the regency of Catharine. Her object was to effect a fusion of parties, or, rather, to hold the balance evenly between them, and, by allowing neither to preponder- ate, to preserve the paramount authority in her hands. By the advice of the sagacious counsellor L'Hopital (q. v.), the king of Navarre was made lieutenant-gen- eral, and Montmorency was again given the direction of military aifairs, while the Guises kept their places in the council, and duke Francis retained the post of mas- ter of the royal household. The Guises, perceiving the intent of the queen, now denominated " apostate," labored earnestly for an alliance with Montmorency, in order to foil the queen in her designs. The constable finally separated from his nephews, who had reappeared at court, and were enjoying many favors, and allied himself with the duke of Guise and the marshal St. An- dre, composing the famous triumvirate which resisted Catharine de Medici, and proceeded in most stringent measures against the Huguenots (q. v.). The colloquy at Poissy had softened the heart of Catharine, and the Protestants were given many privileges. The trium- virate opposed all such concessions, and finally brought on the massacre at Vassy— " the St. Bartholomew of 15G2" (March). The queen-mother and king were seized, and forced to inaugurate a new policy. INIontmo- rency himself signalized the new departure by various open attacks on the Huguenots. Thus he led a mob to storm a Protestant church in the suburbs of Paris called " the Temple of Jerusalem." " Bursting in the doors of the empty place, they tore up the seats, and, placing them and the Bibles in a pile upon the floor, they set the whole on tire, amid great acclamation." He returned to Paris as if a victor fresh from battle, and, flushed with success, he rested not until other churches had been submitted to a like treatment, and he was given the nickname of "Captain Burnbenches." In 1562 he commanded the royal army against the Huguenots, but at the battle of Dreux was wounded and taken prisoner by the Protestants. Released by the peace of Amboise in 1563, he plotted a massacre of the Protestants; but the court not only refused to approve his proposal, but also caused his retirement finally. In 1567 he again appeared on the stage of public affairs, and again took part in the warfare against the Huguenots; but he did not long remain in the field, for he received a fatal wound at St. Denis, and died at Paris on the following day, Nov. 12, 1567. His death was in many respects a blessing to France. From a neutral, if not a friend of the Huguenots, he had turned to a most deadly enemy, because, after he had espoused the Guises' interest, and had been placed in command of the army, he had never been able to gain a victory over the Huguenot armies. Even the duke of Guise, who had fallen in 1563 (when returning from his outposts he was mortally wounded by a fanatical Huguenot, Poltrot [q. v.] de Mere), had counselled in his dying hour that the queen -regent should make peace with her revolted subjects, but Mont- morency insisted on their destruction, and counselled their massacre in open battle and by private means. His last hours were spent in a most deadly struggle, and yet even then he failed to be the victor ; for, though he sacrificed himself, the contest remained undecided, the Huguenots, if anything, having the vantage-ground, as they had saved their leader. It is generally asserted that Montmorency's death was welcome news to Cath- arine de Medici and the courtiers, whom he had fre- quently offended by his overbearing manners. See Le- scouvel, Anne de Montmorency (1696) ; Davila, Hist, of the Civil Wars of France ; Martin, Hist, of France, vol. ix; Ranke, Franzusische Gesch. vornehmlich im 16 u. 17 Jahrh. (Engl, transl. Hist, of Civil Wars and Monarchy