chapter 4 Pacifying the Kingdom of France at the Beginning of the Wars of Religion: Historiography, Sources, and Examples
Jérémie Foa
1 Introduction
Contrary to popular perceptions, the Wars of Religion that disrupted French society from the 1560s to the early 1600s did not constitute an uninterrupted stretch of violence or a relentless parade of battles. Rather, beginning with the reign of Charles ix (1560–1574), the crown thought of itself as an agent of har mony and peace.1 It tried by every means possible to contain the religious hos tilities by devising ambitious programs, often from start to finish, aimed at reducing conflict and enabling its Catholic and Protestant subjects to coexist in the same city, the same street, and sometimes the same house.2 The task was not easy, since memories were bitter and cried out for vengeance. People were repulsed by the idea of having to live with heretics, enemies but yesterday and a likely future threat to the salvation of all. For the crown, making peace required distinguishing between faithful Chris tians and loyal subjects, desacralizing the political community, and detaching, at least partially, the terrestrial and celestial spheres. Although still thought to be mired in religious error, the Huguenots, by virtue of the edicts of pacifica tion (the Edict of Amboise in March 1563, the Peace of Longjumeau in March 1568, and the Edict of Saint-Germain in August 1570),3 received for the first time the inalienable rights held by all the king’s subjects, regardless of their religious position. It meant the guarantee of their persons and property, eligi bility for public offices, and freedom of conscience as well as a limited right to
1 Denis Crouzet, Le haut cœur de Catherine de Médicis, une raison politique aux temps de la Saint-Barthélemy (Paris: 2005). 2 Olivier Christin, L’autonomisation de la raison politique au XVIe siècle (Paris:1997); idem, “Citoyenneté ou parité? Deux modèles de coexistence confessionnelle au XVIe siècle,” in La tolérance. Colloque international de Nantes, (ed.) Guy Saupin (Rennes: 1999), 133–40. 3 The best edition of the edicts of pacification, established under the direction of Bernard Barbiche, can be found online: “L’Edit de Nantes et ses antécédents” (http://elec.enc .sorbonne.fr/editsdepacification/).
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4 Jérémie Foa, Le tombeau de la paix: Une histoire des édits de pacification, 1560–1572 (Limoges: 2015); idem, “Making Peace: The Commissions for Enforcing the Pacification Edicts in the Reign of Charles ix (1560–1574),” French History 18 (2004), 256–74. 5 Commission expédiée par le Roy pour envoyer par les provinces de ce royaume certains commis- saires pour faire entretenir l’edict et traicté sur la pacification des troubles advenuz en iceluy (Paris: 1563).