Hero Or Tyrant? Henry III, King of France, 1574-89
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HERO OR TYRANT? HENRY III, KING OF FRANCE, 1574–89 To Maureen Hero or Tyrant? Henry III, King of France, 1574–89 ROBERT J. KNECht University of Birmingham, UK © Robert J. Knecht 2014 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher. Robert J. Knecht has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, to be identified as the author of this work. Published by Ashgate Publishing Limited Ashgate Publishing Company Wey Court East 110 Cherry Street Union Road Suite 3-1 Farnham Burlington, VT 05401-3818 Surrey, GU9 7PT USA England www.ashgate.com British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library The Library of Congress has cataloged the printed edition as follows: Knecht, R. J. (Robert Jean) Hero or tyrant? : Henry III, King of France, 1574-89 / by Robert J. Knecht. pages cm Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-4724-2930-8 (hardcover : alk. paper) -- ISBN 978-1-4724-2931-5 (ebook) -- ISBN978-1-4724-2932-2 (epub) 1. Henry III, King of France, 1551-1589. 2. France--History- -Henry III, 1574-1589. 3. France--Kings and rulers--Biography. I. Title. II. Title: Henry III, King of France, 1574-89. DC119.K58 2014 944’.029092--dc23 [B] 2013037802 ISBN (hbk): 978-1-4724-2930-8 ISBN (ebk – PDF): 978-1-4724-2931-5 ISBN (ebk – ePUB): 978-1-4724-2932-2 III Printed in the United Kingdom by Henry Ling Limited, at the Dorset Press, Dorchester, DT1 1HD Contents List of Illustrations vii Preface xi 1 Childhood 1 2 Years of Apprenticeship 17 3 Catholic Hero 39 4 The Siege of La Rochelle 59 5 King of Poland 73 6 Homeward Bound 87 7 King of France 99 8 Henry III, the Man 119 9 The King’s Peace 145 10 A Tiresome Brother 163 11 The Court of Henry III 185 12 The Archimignons 205 13 The Catholic League 225 14 Annus Horribilis: 1588 251 vi Hero or Tyrant? Henry III, King of France, 1574–89 15 Paris in Revolt 275 16 Nemesis 295 Conclusion 315 Bibliography 319 Glossary 335 Index 339 List of Illustrations 2.1 Drawing of Henry III as a child by François Clouet. 21 4.1 Portrait of Henry duc d’Anjou about 1571 (Oil on panel) French school, sixteenth century. Musée Condé, Chantilly. 67 4.2 Court fête in Paris in 1573 to honour the Polish ambassadors in the presence of Catherine de’ Medici and Henry III (tapestry) after Francois Quesnel (1543–1619). Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence. 69 6.1 Arrival of Henry III of France at the Lido of Venice, 18 July 1574. Etching; Italian school, sixteenth century. Bibliothèque nationale de France. 89 6.2 The Ca’ Foscari on the Grand Canal where Henry III resided during his stay in Venice. 90 6.3 Frontispiece of Coronatio di Polonia et di Francia by Pietro Buccio (Padua, 1576). Dedicated to Catherine de’ Medici, the work celebrates Henry III’s visit to North Italy. Engraving by Domenico Zenoni. 97 7.1 Portrait of Henry III of France (1551–89) by François Quesnel (1543–1616), oil on canvas. Paris: musée du Louvre. 105 8.1 Drawing of Henry III by Jean Decourt or Étienne Dumonstier (c.1576). More portraits exist of Henry III than of any of his predecessors. He kept a close watch on how he was portrayed. Note the Polish-style bonnet. 120 8.2 Autograph letter of Henry, duc d’Anjou, to the duchesse de Nevers (December 1572). Bibliothèque nationale de France. 140 viii Hero or Tyrant? Henry III, King of France, 1574–89 8.3 The Phare de Cordouan in the estuary of the Gironde. One of the few secular buildings commissioned by Henry III. Unfinished at his death, it was completed by his successor. Engraving after a drawing by Claude Chastillon (1559–1616). 143 9.1 Portrait of Catherine de’ Medici (pierre noire and red chalk on paper) by François Clouet (c.1510–72). Bibliothèque nationale de France, Paris. 147 10.1 Medal with profile of François, duc d’Anjou, Henry III’s younger brother and heir presumptive. The inscription reads FRANCOYS.DUC.DANJOU.ET.DALANCON. FILZ. DE.FRANCE. 164 10.2 One of the monuments erected in the church of Saint Paul by Henry III in honour of his deceased ‘mignons’ which were destroyed by a Parisian mob in 1589. Woodcut. 167 10.3 The entry into Antwerp of Francois, duc d’Alencon et Anjou, from ‘La ioyeuse [et] magnifique entrée de monseigneur Francoys, fils de France, et frere unicque du roy, par la grace de dieu, duc de Brabant, d’Anjou, Alencon, Berri, [et]c. en sa tres-renomée ville d’Anvers’ (Antwerp, 1582) 176 11.1 The manor of Ollainville (Essonne) as it was in the eighteenth century. Henry III acquired it in 1576 and went there from time to time with a few friends. It was destroyed in 1831. 187 11.2 Henry III behind his barrier. Engraving from Vie et faits notables de Henry de Valois. Disliking crowds, Henry tried to gain more privacy by having a barrier erected around his table at meal times; this proved so unpopular with courtiers that it had to be removed only to be restored later. 196 11.3 Henry III presiding over the first chapter of the Order of the Holy Spirit (w/c on paper) French school (sixteenth century) Musée Condé, Chantilly. 198 11.4 Henry III dining ‘en public’. Drawing in Richard Cook’s account of his stay in France in 1584. ‘La premiere partie du compte de Richarde Cooke de Kent pour son voiage et temps employé en France’. Henry III at table, foldout between f.62 and f.62b [V.a.146]. The king is seated, his back to the fire, flanked by two List of Illustrations ix halbardiers. Sharing his table are an ecclesiastic and a nobleman, possibly one of the archimignons. A procession of servants is bringing food to the table as choristers sing and courtiers, wearing huge ruffs, stand and talk. 202 12.1 Portrait of Jean Louis de la Valette (1554–1642), duc d’Épernon (oil on canvas) French school (sixteenth century) Château of Beauregard, France. 206 12.2 Portrait of Anne de Batarnay, baron d’Arques, then duc de Joyeuse 1561–87) (oil on canvas) French school (seventeenth century) Château de Beauregard, France. 207 12.3 Ball at the court of Henry III on the occasion of the marriage of Anne duc de Joyeuse to Marguerite de Vaudémont, 14 September 1581 (oil on panel) French school sixteenth century. The Louvre, Paris. 213 12.4 The Balet comique de la royne in the Salle Bourbon on 15 October 1581. Engraving by R. de Beaujoyeux, 1582. In the foreground sits Henry III flanked by his mother and a nobleman. The god, Pan, sits in a wood on the right, and opposite, concealed by clouds, is a ‘golden vault’ containing singers and players. Circe, the enchantress, sits in an artificial garden at the far end. In the centre, a gentleman calls on the king to free the world from her baneful rule. 214 13.1 Portrait of Henri de Lorraine (1549–88), third duc de Guise, known as ‘le balafré’ (tempra on panel) French school sixteenth century. Musée Carnavalet, Paris. 229 14.1 Meeting of the Estates-General at Blois in 1588. Engraving by Nicolas Le Roy and François Gence, Paris. On the left, Henry III is sitting in state flanked by the Guise brothers. In the centre, Henry and the duc de Guise are taking communion from the cardinal. On the right, the murder of the Guise brothers and Henry is dining with the duke before his murder. 258 14.2 The murder of the duc de Guise. Wood engraving. Henry is on the right directing the assassination from within his cabinet. On the left, he shows the duke’s body to his brother, the cardinal. In the centre, the duke’s assassination. 264 x Hero or Tyrant? Henry III, King of France, 1574–89 14.3 The murder of Henri, third duc de Guise in Henry III’s apartment at the château of Blois on 23 December 1588. Painting by Charles-Barthélemy Jean Durupt (1804–38) Château de Blois. 267 15.1 Henry standing over the bodies of the Guise brothers. Engraving from a contemporary Parisian pamphlet. Henry III is shown ignoring the pleas of their mother, the duchesse de Nemours. On the left, a fire is being prepared to burn the bodies and, on the right, Leaguer princes are being taken to prison. 276 15.2 L’Hermitage prepare pour Henry de Valois. Two religious figures with clawed feet are trying to persuade Henry to enter the mouth of Hell. Woodcut. 286 16.1 The assassination of Henry III by the Jacobin friar, Jacques Clément. Contemporary engraving by Roland Guérard and Nicolas Prévost. On the left, Clément arrives at Saint-Cloud bearing a message for the king. On the right, he stabs Henry as he reads the letter above, the regicide’s execution. 300 16.2 Henry III on his deathbed appoints Henry of Navarre as his successor on the throne of France. Tapestry. Musée de la Renaissance, chateau of Ecouen. 305 Preface The purpose of this book is to bring to the notice of English-speaking readers a French monarch who is fascinating for several reasons.