It was during this period, that the religious disputes commenced, which afterwards agitated France so gene rally, and gave rise to such long and bitter civil wars. Cal vin was a native of Noyon in Picardy, and was protected by Margaret of Navarre, sister of Francis : these circum stances had some influence in causing his tenets to take root and spread in France. But those who embraced them soon became the objects of persecution. Francis at one period (as has been already mentioned) was desirous of uniting himself with the Protestant Princes of Germany, against the Emperor Charles ; but fearful of awakening the indignation of the Roman pontiff, and the prejudices of his people, by his negotiations with avowed heretics, he seized the first opportunity to prove the soundness of his faith, by ordering six of his subjects, who had embraced the Protestant religion, to be publicly burnt ; he himself being present at the execution, and declaring, with his usual and characteristic vehemence, that if one of his hands were infected with heresy he would cut it off with the other, and would not spare even his own children if found guilty of that crime. Even before the time of Cal vin, it appears that the French had imbibed the reformed religion; for the inhabitants of Cabrieres and Merindol, small towns in Provence, followed the opinions of the Waldenses ; and on this account the Parliament of Pro vence issued against them a decree, so barbarous and cruel, that the execution of it was suspended by orders from the court. But some years afterwards, in 1545, from what cause is not known, it was carried into execution by the Cardinal de Tournon, a man of a most cruel and bigotted disposition. At this period, part of the French army was returning from Italy ; and these were employed against the defenceless inhabitants of Cabricres and Merindol, 3000 of whom, without distinction of age or sex, are said to have been massacred. Nor was this barbarous work confined to these places ; twenty-two other villages or towns were reduced to ashes, in the vain hope of utterly extirpating the heresy.
When Henry II. son of Francis I. mounted the throne, he was 29 years of age. One of the last and most urgent commands or requests of the dying Francis to his son was, that he should never recal the Constable Montmo rency, and that he should, by all means in his power, re press the ambition of the family of Guise. Henry, how ever, was inattentive to the injunctions of his dying father. The Constable Montmorency was recalled and loaded with Honours ; and the house of Guise were entrusted with his confidence. Henry did not long remain faithful to his wife Catherine of Medicis ; indeed it would appear, that at this period she either did not possess, or exercise, those qua lities and seducing arts for which she afterwards became so famous; since her husband deserted her, and gave him self up, a blind and willing slave, to Diana de Poitiers, whom he created Duchess de Valentinois, though she was 20 years older than himself.
Before Henry had ascended the throne, his Queen had brought him a son, who was named Francis. In 1548, on the death of James V. of Scotland, Mary his daughter, then an infant, succeeded to the throne of that kingdom. Taking advantage of this circumstance, the ministers of England endeavoured, by force of arms, to obtain for Ed ward VI. the hand of the infant Queen of Scotland. This the ministers of Mary resisted, and the King of France sent a powerful army to the support of his ancient allies. In return for this assistance, the Scotch entrusted their Queen to the French admiral, on his return to France; and soon after her arrival in Paris, she was betrothed to the Dauphin.
In a dangerous rebellion broke out in the province of Guienne ; and, as Montmorency and the Duke of Guite were the most confidential ministers of the King, they were dispatched to quell it. Their conduct on this occasion was diametrically opposite : the constable endeavoured to repress the rebellion by the most violent and cruel mea sures; while, on the contrary, the Duke of Guise reclaim ed the insurgents by his conciliating address, and lenient measures. To this line of conduct he was probably led, by that ambition which afterwards so decidedly marked the character of his family. To obtain the objects of this ambition, it was necessary that they should become po pular; and the Duke, by his measures in Guienne, un doubtedly acquired great popularity. The reformed re
ligion at this time was making certain, though not very rapid progress in some parts of France. The King was naturally of a mild temper, and a humane disposition ; but these qualities were not sufficiently strong or enlightened, to withstand the blind and intemperate zeal of the age; and Henry commanded a number of proselytes to the new doc trines to be burnt in his presence.
• The following year, Henry, by the advice of his minis ters, directed his attention to the recovery of Boulogne from the English. It is not improbable, that if he had gone to war with this object, he might have been success ful, as the English councils, during the short reign of Ed ward VI. were weak and distracted ; but this very circum stance induced him to hope, that, by means of negotiation, he should succeed with even more certainty, and with much less expence and trouble. Ile accordingly opened a negotiation with the ministers of Edward for the resto ration of Boulogne ; and on his offering 400,000 crowns, they immediately accepted it, and surrendered this im portant place. A formal peace was soon afterwards con cluded between France and England, in which Scotland was included.
It was scarcely to be imagined, that the long and ar duous struggles in which Francis I. had been engaged with the Emperor Charles V. should not have made an impression on the mind of Henry, and led him to regard that monarch almost as his hereditary and natural enemy. Ilis personal feeling was strengthened and confirmed by political motives and views. The treaty of Crespv could not be regarded as advantageous or honourable to France. The only provision in it, which in the smallest degree bore this appearance, related to the Duke of Orleans ; and even had he survived, and had Charles fulfilled this provision respecting him, the crown of France could only have been indirectly benefited : but there was too much reason to suspect, that Charles never intended to fulfil this part of the treaty, and at any rate, by the death of the Duke of Orleans, he publicly declared, that he was no longer bound by it. Henry, therefore, considering the treaty of Crespy as injurious to his interest, was not sorry that Charles, by refusing on the plea of the Duke of Orleans, to fulfil his part of it, had afforded hint a very fair pretext openly to protest against it. This he accordingly did, and imme diately afterward prepared for war. His great object was the reconquest of the possessions which the French for merly held in Italy ; and the state of that country filled him with the hope, that lie should attain that object. The duchy of Parma had been given to Octavio Farnese, the grandson of Pope Paul III. ; and Julius Ill. on his acces sion to the apostolical throne, had at first confirmed him in the possession of it. But he withdrew his support, and revoked his grant, as soon as Gonzaga, governor of Milan, a sworn enemy of the house of Farnese, prepared, by per mission of the Emperor, to make himself master of Par ma. In this critical emergency, Octavio applied to Henry, as the only prince powerful enough to protect him against Charles, and at the same time disposed, both from his antipathy to Charles, and his anxiety to re-establish him self in Italy, to afford him support. Henry, having not only settled his own domestic concerns, hut brought his transactions with the two British kingdoms to such an issue as he desired, was at complete leisure to pursue the measures, which his hereditary jealousy of the Emperor's power naturally suggested. Ile accordingly listened to the overtures of Octavio; and, glad of an opportunity of gaining a footing in Italy, furnished him with what assis tance lie desired. The army which Henry sent into Italy, was commanded by the Marshal Brissac. The imperial troops were under Gonzaga. Still, however, the two monarchs issued no declaration of war, but, on the con trary, affected to maintain inviolably the treaty of Crespy. The war of Parma, as it is called, was distinguished by no memorable event. The army of France ravaged part of the ecclesiastical territories, while the Imperialists pene trated to the gates of Parma ; but they were obliged to relinquish the siege of that city with disgrace.