Editing Catherine de' Medici (section)

====Catholic League====
[[File:Guise.jpg|left|thumb|upright|[[Henry I, Duke of Guise|Henry, Duke of Guise]], by Pierre Dumoûtier. Disarmed by Catherine's sweetness on meeting her for negotiations at [[Épernay]] in 1585, Guise tearfully insisted that his motives had been misunderstood. Catherine told him it would be better if he took off his boots and ate something, after which they could talk at length.]]

Many leading Roman Catholics were appalled by Catherine's attempts to appease the Huguenots. After the Edict of Beaulieu, they had started forming local leagues to protect their religion.<ref>Knecht, ''Catherine de' Medici'', 185.</ref> The death of the heir to the throne in 1584 prompted the Duke of Guise to assume the leadership of the [[Catholic League (French)|Catholic League]]. He planned to block Henry of Navarre's succession and place Henry's Catholic uncle [[Charles, Cardinal de Bourbon (born 1523)|Cardinal Charles de Bourbon]] on the throne instead. In this cause, he recruited the great Catholic princes, nobles and prelates, signed the [[treaty of Joinville]] with Spain, and prepared to make war on the "heretics".<ref>Pettegree, 164.</ref> By 1585, Henry{{nbsp}}III had no choice but to go to war against the League.<ref>Sutherland, ''Secretaries of State'', 255.</ref> As Catherine put it, "peace is carried on a stick" (''bâton porte paix'').<ref>Knecht, ''Catherine de' Medici'', 249.</ref> "Take care", she wrote to the king, "especially about your person. There is so much treachery about that I die of fear."<ref>Knecht, ''Catherine de' Medici'', 251.</ref>

Henry was unable to fight the Catholics and the Protestants at once, both of whom had stronger armies than his own. In the [[Treaty of Nemours]], signed on 7 July 1585, he was forced to give in to all the League's demands, even that he pay its troops.<ref>Knecht, ''Renaissance France'', 440.</ref> He went into hiding to fast and pray, surrounded by a bodyguard known as "[[The forty-five guards|the Forty-five]]", and left Catherine to sort out the mess.<ref>Knecht, ''Catherine de' Medici'', 253.</ref> The monarchy had lost control of the country, and was in no position to assist England in the face of the coming Spanish attack. The Spanish ambassador told Philip{{nbsp}}II that the abscess was about to burst.<ref>Sutherland, ''Secretaries of State'', 287.</ref>

By 1587, the Catholic backlash against the Protestants had become a campaign across Europe. [[Elizabeth I of England]]'s [[Execution of Mary, Queen of Scots|execution]] of [[Mary, Queen of Scots]], on 8 February 1587 outraged the Catholic world.<ref>Knecht, ''Catherine de' Medici'', 257.</ref> [[Philip II of Spain]] prepared for an invasion of England. The League took control of much of northern France to secure French ports for his [[Spanish Armada|armada]].