France: The Reformation and its Aftermath

Beginning in the reign of Francis I, the Reformation gained many adherents in France (see Huguenots). In 1560 religious conflict flared up in the first of the ferocious civil wars (see Religion, Wars of) that tore France asunder during the reigns (1560–89) of the last Valois kings, Charles IX and Henry III. The Catholics, led by the ambitious Guise family, eventually formed the Catholic League and obtained Spanish support against the Protestant Henry of Navarre, the legal heir of Henry III. Navarre was supported by some moderate Catholics as well as by the Protestants. He defeated the League but had to accept Catholicism before being allowed to enter (1594) Paris. Ruling as Henry IV, he became the first Bourbon king of France. With his great minister, Sully, he made France prosperous once again and encouraged French explorers in Canada.

Religious freedom and political security for Protestants were promulgated in the Edict of Nantes (1598; see Nantes, Edict of), but after Henry's assassination (1610) by a Catholic fanatic the rights of the Huguenots were steadily reduced. Under his successor, Louis XIII (1610–43), and in the minority of Louis XIV, two great statesmen successively shaped the destiny of the kingdom—Cardinal Richelieu and Cardinal Mazarin. They led France to victory in the Thirty Years War (1618–48), which France entered openly in 1635, joining the Protestant allies against the Hapsburg powers, Austria and Spain. Austria was defeated in 1648 (see Westphalia, Peace of), Spain in 1659 (see Pyrenees, Peace of the). At home, Richelieu destroyed the political power of the Huguenots, and Mazarin overcame the nobles in the wars of the Fronde.

Louis XIV (1643–1715), aided by the genius of Jean Baptiste Colbert (d. 1683) and François Louvois, completed Richelieu's and Mazarin's work of centralization. Raising the position of the king to a dignity and prestige hitherto unknown in France, Louis XIV made France the first power in Europe and his court at Versailles the cynosure of Europe. But his many wars undermined French finances, and his persecution of the Huguenots (the Edict of Nantes was revoked in 1685) caused serious harm to the economy as thousands of merchants and skilled workers left France. His successes in the War of Devolution (1667–68) against Spain and the Dutch War (see Dutch Wars) of 1672–78 inspired all Europe with fear of French hegemony and resulted in the diplomatic isolation of France. The War of the Grand Alliance (1688–97) against Louis XIV began to turn the tide; the War of the Spanish Succession (1701–14), although it did not end with a clear victory over France, marked the end of French expansion in Europe. The reign of Louis XIV saw the height of French power in America. France, at the end of Louis's reign, was exhausted from its attempt at primacy; yet its latent strength and wealth were so great that it recovered prosperity within a few years.

Sections in this article:

• Introduction
• The Contemporary Era
• Gaullist France
• The Fourth Republic and Postwar France
• The World Wars
• Royalism, Reform, and the Birth of Modern France
• The Revolution and Napoleon I
• The Ancien Régime and Attempts at Reform
• The Reformation and its Aftermath
• The Making of a Nation
• The Birth of France
• Ancient Gaul to Feudalismthe Birth of France
• Government
• Economy
• People
• Land
• Bibliography

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