. A history of mediaeval and modern Europe for secondary schools. is costwas Henry of Navarre, destined to becomeHenry IV of France (1589-1610). The storyof France in the sixteenth century is the storyof inefficient kings, first dragging her into un-successful campaigns against Spain for thepossession of Italy, next allowing their tur-bulent nobles to get out of hand and involvethe country in a series of desolating, fratri-cidal civil wars. This interval gave Philip hisgreat opportunity. The last three kings ofthe old Valois dynasty (Francis II, CharlesIX, and Henry III) were little better tha
. A history of mediaeval and modern Europe for secondary schools. is costwas Henry of Navarre, destined to becomeHenry IV of France (1589-1610). The storyof France in the sixteenth century is the storyof inefficient kings, first dragging her into un-successful campaigns against Spain for thepossession of Italy, next allowing their tur-bulent nobles to get out of hand and involvethe country in a series of desolating, fratri-cidal civil wars. This interval gave Philip hisgreat opportunity. The last three kings ofthe old Valois dynasty (Francis II, CharlesIX, and Henry III) were little better thanvicious nonentities. Far more important asa ruler was their mother, Catherine deMedici (d. 1589); but her power was almostovershadowed at times by the mighty Dukesof Guise, who, under the color of leading theattack on Protestantism, threatened to be-come more powerful than the Crown itself. Protestantism never gained a firm hold upon the com-mon folk of France, although a large fraction of the nobilityturned Calvinist. Moreover, although the French Protestants. A FRENCH PROT-ESTANT MUSK-ETEERTime of Henry IV. (From a restoration inthe M usee dArtilleric) THE AGE OF PHILIP AND ELIZABETH 269 ( Huguenots )l produced many men of noble virtue and lofty-aims, the whole movement took too much the character of anattack on the royal authority, and a fresh assertion by thenobles of their jealousy of the Crown. For this cause the oldChurch was destined to an ultimate triumph. The story of the Wars of Religion in France forms a dreary chapter of bloodand mutual intolerance. These contests began in 1560, andcontinued, interrupted by deceitful truces, until 1598. Theyreduced France to extreme misery, and completely preventedher for a while from checking her great rival of Spain. In 1572came the infamous Massacre of St. Bartholomews Day,when, during a time of seemingly secure peace, over one thou-sand Protestants, including their leader, Coligny, were mas-sacred in cold blood at Paris, and t
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