THE NEW SCHAFF-HERZOG
that war was unavoidable, they hastily marshaled their forces. Louis d'Andelot gathered an army in Breton and Normandy; Jeanne d'Albret with her young son, Henry (b. Dec. 13, 1553), rode at the front of the troops of Gascony and Provence. Notwithstanding a crushing defeat at Moncontour, Jeanne and Coligny refused to submit, and by Aug., 1570, they had gained such advantages as to be able to secure in the Edict of St. Germain freedom of conscience throughout France, freedom of worship wherever it had been enjoyed before the war, the holding of La Rochelle, Montauban, Cognac, and La Charite (strongly fortified towns) as pledges of the good faith of the government, and withdrawal of the king from alliance with Spain. Catherine had set her heart on the marriage of one of her sons with Elizabeth of England, and of her daughter with Henry of Navarre. Charles IX. now began to assert his kingship, and was anxious to assist the Dutch Evangelicals in their struggle with Spain. Coligny became his favorite adviser, and was the recipient of large gifts; and Henry of Navarre married (Aug. 18, 1572) the king's sister, Margaret of Valois. The ascendency of Coligny over the young king imperiled Catherine's influence and the continuance of peace with Spain. The Guises (a new generation) were intensely hostile to Coligny. Catherine resolved on the death of Coligny, and planned the massacre of St. Bartholomew's Day (Aug. 24, 1572; see Coligny, Gaspard). Henry of Navarre and Henry of Condd were spared, but compelled to bow before the altar. While most of the leaders had been destroyed, the great mass of the Huguenot membership remained. A fourth war resulted from efforts of the government to capture Sancerre and La Rochelle, still in the hands of the Huguenots. The former town, after enduring the horrors of a long siege, was obliged to surrender; the latter suffered much, but succeeded in driving away the besiegers. The Peace of Boulogne (July, 1573) restricted Evangelical worship to La Rochelle, Nimes, Montauban, and the houses of the nobles. The Huguenots went on with their preparations for war. Councils at Nimes and Montauban demanded freedom of worship throughout France, maintenance of Huguenot garrisons by the government, two cities of refuge in each province, condemnation of the massacre and punishment of its perpetrators, and a guaranty of their rights by the Protestant states of Europe. The massacre had called forth a vigorous national party (Les Politiques) that was ready to join with the Huguenots in the struggle against the tyranny of the foreigners, Catherine, and the Guises in alliance with Spain and the pope.
Charles IX. (d. May 30, 1574) was succeeded by
his brother, then king of Poland, as Henry III. His
younger brother, the duke of Anjou,
8. Further escaped from the court Sept. 15, 1575,
Struggles, and joined Henry of Cond6, who was
1574-89. gathering an army of Huguenots and Politiques (fifth war); Henry of Navarre escaped Feb. 3, 1576. In the following May the king issued the Edict of Beaulieu, which granted freedom of worship in all towns except Paris and places of royal residence, gave lo the Huguenots
eight fortified cities, disowned all share in the massacre of St. Bartholomew's Day and gave the Huguenots representation in the parliaments. Henry III. soon repudiated the peace on the ground that it had been extorted from him, and with the duke of Guise and Catherine, promoted the formation throughout the country of Catholic leagues. The States General (Dec, 1576) adopted a policy of drastic repression and brought on the sixth war. The Huguenots failed to receive the aid they had hoped for from England and Germany, and suffered heavy losses. The Edict of Poitiers (Sept. 15, 1577) ended the war and materially reduced the privileges of the Huguenots. The conference at Nerac between Catherine and Henry of Navarre, in which the former tried in vain to persuade the latter to give up the cities held by the Huguenots and to take back her daughter, from whom he had been separated for three years, resulted favorably to the Huguenots. Henry III. took Geneva under his protection to prevent its falling into the hands of the duke of Savoy. The conditions of the peace were repeatedly violated by the Huguenots as well as by the government. Henry of Navarre and Henry of Conde arranged for a general uprising of the Huguenots (Apr. 15, 1580). Only a minority of the Huguenots participated in the seventh war. The Peace of Fleix (Dec, 1580) did little more than confirm that which had just been broken. For nearly five years France enjoyed a profound peace. The duke of Anjou, Catherine's youngest son, who had been cooperating with the Huguenots, died June 10, 1584. As Henry III. had no son, Henry of Navarre now became the heirapparent. Urged to renounce Protestantism and to come to court, he resolutely refused. The League, made up of Catholic nobles supported by the pope and Philip of Spain, and led by Henry of Guise, weary of the dilatory measures of Henry III., and fearful of the succession of Henry of Navarre, published a manifesto (Mar. 30, 1585) in which the government was reprimanded for the toleration of heresy. The king sought to make peace with the League by promising to revoke all edicts of toleration and to banish all who would not embrace the Catholic faith (July, 1585). The pope declared Henry of Navarre incapable of succession.
An eighth war, the " war of the three Henrys " (king, Guise, Navarre), broke out before the close of the year. The Leaguers gave the king only a conditional and partial support, and aimed to put Cardinal de Bourbon on the throne. After some early reverses Henry of Navarre steadily gained ground, and at Coutras (Oct. 20, 1587) he almost annihilated the main army of his opponents. An army of 8,000 German cavalry and 20,000 Swiss infantry, to whose equipment England had contributed, was marching to join Henry of Navarre, but was intercepted and driven out of the country. The Guises, as leaders of the League, now insisted that the king should publish the decrees of the Council of Trent (q.v.), admit the Inquisition, execute Huguenot prisoners, and remove all army officers whose loyalty to Catholicism was doubtful. A secret government for Paris was formed, and a plot to seize the king came near succeeding. The