Edict of Nantes

Historical Context Note

Litencyc Editors (Independent Scholar - Europe)
Download PDF Add to Bookshelf Report an Error

Resources

By the Edict of Nantes (April 13, 1598) Henry IV of France sought to bring to an end the Wars of Religion (1562-98) in France. He gave full civil rights to Protestants and permitted them freedom conscience and of worship, except in Paris. The Protestants (usually called Huguenots) agreed in return to permit Catholic worship in areas controlled by them.

Whilst the Edict bought nominal peace after thirty years of war, the tolerance it granted was resented by Pope Clement VIII and by the Roman Catholic clergy. Cardinal de Richelieu (1585-1642; first minister of Louis XIII) viewed Huguenot wealth and control of major cities as a Trojan horse within the French state. Factional fighting in the 1620s enabled him to lay siege to their stronghold at La Rochelle, which he reduced after a year, and

252 words

Citation: Editors, Litencyc. "Edict of Nantes". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 02 April 2004 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=309, accessed 19 March 2024.]

309 Edict of Nantes 2 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

Save this article

If you need to create a new bookshelf to save this article in, please make sure that you are logged in, then go to your 'Account' here

Leave Feedback

The Literary Encyclopedia is a living community of scholars. We welcome comments which will help us improve.