The French Wars of Religion, 1562–1629 (New Approaches to European History, Series Number 8)

This book is an accessible and comprehensive study of the French wars of religion, designed specifically for undergraduate students. Drawing on the latest scholarship of a generation of social historians of the Reformation, the author presents a new analysis which goes beyond the partisan politics of noble factions and socio-economic tensions of early modern society. He argues that this long conflict was fomented by religious tensions among the population at large. While politics and socio-economic tensions were doubtlessly important, this book focuses on the social history of religion. By analysing the conflict as a cultural clash between two communities bent on defining the boundaries between the sacred and the profane in explicitly different ways, the author attempts to explain why the wars lasted for so long and why they ended in the way that they did. This Book Is The First Accessible And Comprehensive Study Of The French Religious Wars Of The Sixteenth And Seventeenth Centuries To Appear For More Than Twenty Years. Designed Specifically For Undergraduate Students And General Readers, It Assumes No Background Knowledge Of Either French History Or The Reformation, And Includes Features To Aid The Student Reader Such As Maps, A Chronology, Brief Biographies, And Suggestions For Further Reading. 1. Prologue: Gallicanism And Reform In The Sixteenth Century -- 2. 'the Beginning Of A Tragedy': The Early Wars Of Religion, 1562-1570 -- 3. Popular Disorder And Religious Tensions: The Making Of A Massacre, 1570-1574 -- 4. The Rhetoric Of Resistance: The Unmaking Of The Body Politic, 1574-1584 -- 5. 'godly Warriors': The Crisis Of The League, 1584-1593 -- 6. Henry Iv And The Edict Of Nantes: The Remaking Of Gallicanism, 1593-1610 -- 7. Epilogue: The Last War Of Religion, 1610-1629 -- 8. Conclusions: Economic Impact, Social Change, And Absolutism. Mack P. Holt. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 226-232) And Index. This book is a new edition of Mack P. Holt's classic study of the French religious wars of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Drawing on the scholarship of social and cultural historians of the Reformation, it shows how religion infused both politics and the socio-economic tensions of the period to produce a long extended civil war. Professor Holt integrates court politics and the political theory of the elites with the religious experiences of the popular classes, offering a fresh perspective on the wars and on why the French were willing to kill their neighbors in the name of religion. The book has been created specifically for undergraduates and general readers with no background knowledge of either French history or the Reformation. This new edition updates the text in the light of new work published in the last decade and the 'Suggestions for further reading' has been completely re-written. Frontmatter List of maps and figures (page x) Chronological table of events (page xi) Introduction (page 1) 1 Prologue: Gallicanism and reform in the sixteenth century (page 8) 2 'The beginning of a tragedy': the early wars of religion, 1562-1570 (page 50) 3 Popular disorder and religious tensions: the making of a massacre, 1570-1574 (page 76) 4 The rhetoric of resistance: the unmaking of the body politic, 1574-1584 (page 98) 5 'Godly warriors': the crisis of the League, 1584-1593 (page 121) 6 Henry IV and the Edict of Nantes: the remaking of Gallicanism, 1593-1610 (page 153) 7 Epilogue: the last war of religion, 1610-1629 (page 173) 8 Conclusions: economic impact, social change, and absolutism (page 190) Genealogical charts (page 217) Brief biographies (page 221) Suggestions for further reading (page 226) Index (page 233) This book is the first accessible and comprehensive study of the French religious wars of the sixteenth years and seventeenth centuries to appear for more than twenty years. Designed specifically for undergraduate students and general readers, it assumes no background knowledge of either French history or the Reformation, and includes features to aid the student reader such as maps, a chronology, brief biographies, and suggestions for further reading.