68

ACCESSION OF HENRY IV.

Ch. 5. of allegiance. This was, that he should abjure Protestantism. "My kingdom," said he, "is well worth a mass."

A. D. 1589 to

It is justly laid to his reproach, by Protestants, that he renounced his religion for worldly elevation. But there were 1598. palliations for his conduct, which it is not now easy to

appreciate. It is well known that the illustrious Sully, his

prime minister, and, through life, a zealous Protestant, apHenry proved of his course. It was certainly clear that, without abjures Protes becoming a Catholic, he never could peaceably enjoy his tantism. crown, and France would be rent, for another generation, by

Results of this apostacy.

Edict of
Nantes.

those civil wars which none lamented more than Henry himself. It must also be remembered that the King, though professing Protestantism, was never a religious man, being devoted to pleasure, and to schemes of ambition.

From the act itself great calamities resulted to France. The Huguenots were lulled into a deceitful security, and soon became utterly unable to cope with the centralized monarchy, of which Cardinal de Richelieu laid the foundation. Nor did the King's conversion to Catholicism immediately result in the tranquillity of the distracted country. The Catholics would not believe in his sincerity, and many battles had to be fought before he was in peaceable enjoyment of his throne. But civil war is always hateful, especially to the inhabitants of great cities; so the struggle was brief, Paris and the chief places in the kingdom acknowledging his sway. The King of Spain, the great Catholic prelates, and the Pope, finally perceived how hopeless it was to contend against a man of great military experience, with a devoted army and an enthusiastic capital on his side.

The peace of Verviens, in 1598, left the King without foreign or domestic enemies. From that period to his death, his life was devoted to the welfare of his country.

His first act was the celebrated Edict of Nantes, by which the Huguenots had quiet and undisturbed residence, the free exercise of their religion and of public worship, except in the court, the army, and within five leagues of Paris. They were

IMPROVEMENTS DURING HIS REIGN.

69

eligible to all offices, civil and military; and all public prose- Ch. 5. cutions on account of religion were dropped. This edict also A. D. promulgated a general amnesty for political offences, and 1598. restored property and titles, as before the war; but the Pro- to testants were prohibited from printing controversial books, 1610. and were compelled to pay tithes to the established clergy.

The twelve years which succeeded the Edict of Nantes were eminently favorable to civilization in France. The finances were arranged by Sully with so much skill, that the king paid off a debt of 300 millions of livres, and had, on his death, nearly fifty millions in his treasury. The taxes were reduced one-half, the crown lands redeemed, the arsenals stored, the fortifications rebuilt, churches erected, canals dug, and improvements made in every part of the kingdom. Under the direction of this able minister the laws were enforced, robbery and vagrancy were nearly stopped, and agriculture received a great impulse. Economy was the order of the day; the King himself set an illustrious, example, and even dressed in gray cloth, with a doublet of taffeta without embroidery, dispensed with all superfluity at his table, and dismissed all useless servants.

nal im

prove

This management and economy enabled the King to make Intergreat improvements, besides settling deranged finances. He built innumerable churches, bridges, convents, hospitals, for- ments. tresses, and ships. Some of the finest palaces which adorn Paris were erected by him. He was also the patron of learning, the benefits of which he appreciated. He himself was well acquainted with the writings of the ancients. He was particularly fond of the society of the learned, with whom he conversed with freedom and affability. He increased the libraries, opened public schools, invited distinguished foreigners to Paris, and rewarded them with stipends. Lipsius, Scaliger, and De Thou, were the ornaments of his court.

And his tender regard to the happiness and welfare of his subjects was as marked as his generous appreciation of literature and science. It was his ambition to be the father of his

70

A. D.

DEATH OF HENRY IV.

Ch. 5. people; and his memorable saying, "Yes, I will so manage matters that the poorest peasant in my kingdom may eat meat 1610. each day in the week, and, moreover, be enabled to put a fowl in the pot on a Sunday," has alone embalmed his memory in the affections of the French nation, who, of all their monarchs, are most partial to Henry IV.

Assas

sina

tion of

But Henry was not permitted by Providence to prosecute his benevolent designs. He was assassinated by a man whom Henry. he had never injured-by the most unscrupulous of all misguided men—a religious bigot. The Jesuit Ravaillac, in a mood, as it is to be hoped, bordering on madness, perpetrated the foul deed. But Henry only suffered the fate of nearly all the distinguished actors in those civil and religious contentions which desolated France for forty years. He died in 1610, at the age of fifty-seven, having reigned twenty-one years, nine of which were spent in uninterrupted warfare.

Effects of his death.

By his death the kingdom was thrown into deep and undissembled mourning. Many fell speechless in the streets when the intelligence of his assassination was known; others died from excess of grief. All felt that they had lost more than a father, and nothing was anticipated but storms and commotions.

By Margaret, who proved inconstant, and from whom he was separated, he had no children. By his second wife, Marie de Medici, he had three children, the oldest of whom was a child, who now became King, under the title of Louis XIII.

REFERENCES.-Sismondi has written the best French History on this period, but reference may be made to the "Mémoires de Sully, Mézeray, De Thou, Péréfixe, D’Aubigné, and Matthieu." Browning's "History of the Huguenots" is the best in English; the Histories of Rankin and Crowe may also be consulted.

ACCESSION OF ELIZABETH.

71

CHAPTER VI.

ENGLISH HISTORY UNDER ELIZABETH.

A. D.

1559.

WITH the reign of Elizabeth commences a new era in Ch. 6. English history-the triumph of Protestant principles, the revival of learning, the diffusion of knowledge among the people, the spirit of commercial enterprise, and the general improvement of society. It was a brilliant period, full of enthusiasm, hope, and life. Illustrious poets, philosophers, and statesmen adorned the age, and raised England to a height of glory not before attained.

sion of

Elizabeth, daughter of Henry VIII., by Anne Boleyn, was Accestwenty-five years of age when she ascended the throne, and Elizawas crowned the 15th of January, 1559. She soon assembled beth. parliament, selected her ministers, and devoted herself to the settlement of the affairs of the realm, which were in an embarrassed state, both in a religious and civil point of view.

As soon as the Protestant religion was established, the Queen turned her attention towards Scotland, from which much trouble was expected, and which was then governed by Mary, daughter of James V., who had succeeded her father while a mere infant.

According to the canonical laws of the Roman church, the Claims

of

claim of Mary Stuart to the English throne was preferable Mary to that of her cousin Elizabeth. Her uncles, the Guises, Stuart. represented that Anne Boleyn's marriage had never been lawful, and that Elizabeth was therefore illegitimate. In an evil hour, Mary and her husband (Francis II., of France) quartered the arms of England with their own, and assumed

72

A. D.

to

MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS.

Ch. 6. the titles of King and Queen of Scotland and England. This excited the indignation of Elizabeth, who was further enraged 1560 by the insult which the Pope had inflicted, in declaring her birth illegitimate. She therefore resolved to gratify at once 1567. both her ambition and her vengeance; and encouraged by her ministers, who wished to advance the Protestant interest in the kingdom, she managed with consummate art to undermine the authority of Mary in Scotland, now distracted by religious as well as civil commotions.

ers.

Scottish The Scotch reformers had been animated with a zeal Reform- unknown to Cranmer and his associates. The leaders had been trained at Geneva, under the guidance of Calvin, and had imbibed his opinions, and were, therefore, resolved to carry on the work of reform after the model of the Genevan church. Accordingly pictures, statues, ornaments, painted glass, and cathedrals, all of which Cranmer spared, were furiously destroyed by the Scotch reformers, who considered them as parts of an idolatrous worship. The antipathy to bishops and clerical vestments was equally strong, and a sweeping reform was carried on under the dictatorship of Knox.

Mar

But his measures had been resisted, and a civil war was the result. This war was at its height when the Queen Regent died, and Mary, who was now a widow, returned to her distracted kingdom. The Protestant party was in the ascendant, and she was compelled to support both Knox and the great Protestant nobles.

Then followed her marriage with her cousin Lord Darnley riage of (1565), who was incapable of retaining her affections, being Mary disgraced by low tastes and profligate habits. This marriage was soon succeeded by disgust and coldness, by mutual jealousies, by the assassination of Rizzio, and finally by the murder of Darnley himself. Mary was then rash enough to marry the man who was probably the murderer of her second husband, the infamous Bothwell, an act which gave great scandal and renewed the flames of civil war.