Editing House of Guise (section)

==French Wars of Religion==
In 1558, the [[Dauphin of France|Dauphin]] [[Francis II of France|Francis]] married [[Mary, Queen of Scots]]. When the young man became king after his father's death in 1559, the queen's uncles, the Duke of Guise and his brother the Cardinal of Lorraine, controlled French politics during his short reign.

In March 1560, opposition to the Guise government coalesced into a [[Amboise conspiracy|conspiracy]], led by La Renaudie with support from the [[House of Bourbon|Bourbon]] [[Princes of Condé|Prince de Condé]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Sutherland |first=Nicola |date=1962 |title=Calvinism and the Conspiracy of Amboise |journal=History |volume=47 160 |pages=127}}</ref> Having been made aware of it, the Guise family were able to crush the conspiracy before the king could be seized.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Carroll |first=Stuart |title=Martyrs and Murderers: The Guise Family and the Making of Europe |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2009 |isbn=9780199596799 |pages=115}}</ref> The Guise would take the opportunity of the conspiracy to reorient the Crown's religious policy by scaling down the persecution of the last 10 years for a new policy of no toleration and no persecution with the eventual hope the two sects would reunify.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Thompson |first=James |title=The Wars of Religion in France, 1559-1576: The Huguenots, Catherine de Medici and Philip II |publisher=Chicago University Press |year=1909 |pages=44}}</ref> Still incensed at his involvement in Amboise, the Guise called the Prince of Condé to them and oversaw a quick trial to establish his guilt, only for the death of Francis II and the succession of Charles IX to sever their links to the government.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Carroll |first=Stuart |title=Martyrs and Murderers: The Guise Family and the Making of Europe |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2009 |isbn=9780199596799 |pages=125–6}}</ref> With Catherine assuming the regency for her young son, the Guise departed court and set themselves up in opposition to her toleration policy in alliance with their rival the Montmorency.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Salmon |first=J.H.M |title=Society in Crisis: France in the Sixteenth Century |publisher=University Paperback |year=1975 |isbn=0416730507 |pages=140}}</ref> In 1562, Catherine would promulgate the [[Edict of Saint-Germain]]. Francis returned to court so that he might oppose it, on his way, his retinue massacred a Protestant congregation at Wassy. In response, Condé went into open rebellion and thus started the French Wars of Religion.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Carroll |first=Stuart |title=Martyrs and Murderers: The Guise Family and the Making of Europe |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2009 |isbn=978-0199229079 |pages=13–8}}</ref>

Duke Francis helped to defeat the Huguenots at the [[Battle of Dreux]] (19 December 1562), but he was [[Assassination of the Duke of Guise (1563)|assassinated]] at the [[Siege of Orleans (1563)|Siege of Orleans]] on 24 February 1563 while he was seeking a final victory.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Holt |first=Mack |title=The French Wars of Religion 1562-1629 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2005 |isbn=9780521547505 |pages=55}}</ref> His son, [[Henry of Guise|Henry]], inherited his titles; and under the direction of his uncle Charles began a campaign to accuse Admiral Coligny of orchestrating his fathers assassination.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Carroll |first=Stuart |title=Martyrs and Murderers: the Guise Family and the Making of Europe |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2009 |isbn=978-0199229079 |pages=168–170}}</ref> Charles meanwhile led the French delegation at the Council of Trent, converting to the Papal line in 1563.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Carroll |first=Stuart |title=Martyrs and Murderers: the Guise Family and the Making of Europe |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2009 |isbn=978-0199229079 |pages=157–8}}</ref> In 1564, no longer permitted to continue his feud with Coligny through legal channels, he and his uncle [[Charles, Cardinal of Lorraine]] would attempt to make a show of force by entering Paris, but their entry ended with both besieged in their residence and forced to concede.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Carroll |first=Stuart |title=Martyrs and Murderers: the Guise Family and the Making of Europe |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2009 |isbn=978-0199229079 |pages=173}}</ref>

In 1566, the crown forced Charles at Moulins to make the kiss of peace with Coligny to end their feud, but Henry refused to attend. He would also challenge Coligny and [[Anne de Montmorency]] to duels, but they rebuffed his attempts. No longer welcome at court, he and his brother [[Charles, Duke of Mayenne]] decided to crusade against the [[Ottoman Empire]] in [[Hungary]]. In September 1568, he reached his majority, just as Charles returned to the centre of French politics with his readmission to the Privy Council.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Carroll |first=Stuart |title=Martyrs and Murderers: the Guise Family and the Making of Europe. |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2009 |isbn=978-0199229079 |pages=183}}</ref> No sooner had he returned to the council than he began leading the war party to break off the [[Peace of Longjumeau]], which would be annulled shortly thereafter and started the Third French War of religion.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Holt |first=Mack |title=The French Wars of Religion 1562-1629 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2005 |isbn=9780521547505 |pages=66}}</ref> He would fight at [[Battle of Jarnac|Jarnac]], [[Battle of Moncontour|Moncontour]] and defend [[Siege of Poitiers (1569)|Poitiers]] from a siege by Coligny.<ref name=":0" /> By the termination of the third war, the Guise would once more find themselves in disgrace from court due both to their hawkish policy and Henry's affair with [[Margaret de Valois]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Carroll |first=Stuart |title=Martyrs and Murderers: the Guise Family and the Making of Europe |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2009 |isbn=978-0199229079 |pages=189}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Sutherland |first=Nicola |title=The Huguenot Struggle for Recognition |publisher=Yale University Press |year=1980 |isbn=0300023286 |pages=175}}</ref>

Having returned to favour, Henry helped plan the assassination of [[Gaspard II de Coligny|Coligny]], the final culmination of his feud that would spiral into the [[St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre]] of the Huguenots in 1572. In 1576, frustrated with the [[Politiques]]' direction of the government of [[Henry III of France|Henri III]], Guise would be instrumental in the formation of the [[Catholic League (French)|Catholic League]]. The death of the royal heir presumptive, [[Francis, Duke of Anjou]], in 1584, which made the Protestant King [[Henry IV of France|Henry of Navarre]] the heir to the French throne, led to a new civil war, the [[War of the Three Henries]], with King [[Henry III of France]], Henry of Navarre and Henry of Guise fighting for control of France. Guise began the war by declaring the unacceptability of Navarre as King of France and controlled the powerful Catholic League, which soon forced the French king to follow in his wake. In 1588 Guise, with Spanish support, instigated a revolt against the king, [[Day of the Barricades|took control]] of the city of [[Paris]] and became the de facto ruler of France.

After an apparent reconciliation between the French king and the Duke, King Henry III had both the Duke of Guise and his brother, [[Louis II, Cardinal of Guise|Louis of Lorraine, Cardinal of Guise]] (1555&ndash;1588), murdered in December 1588 during a meeting in the [[Chateau de Blois|Royal Chateau at Blois]]. The leadership of the Catholic League fell to their brother, [[Charles of Lorraine, Duke of Mayenne]], the commander of the armed forces of the Catholic League.

The Duke of Mayenne's nephew, the young Duke of Guise, Charles, was proposed by the Catholic League as a candidate for the throne, possibly through a marriage to [[Philip II of Spain]]'s daughter [[Isabella Clara Eugenia|Isabella]], the granddaughter of [[Henry II of France]]. The Catholic League was eventually defeated, but for the sake of the country, [[Henry IV of France|King Henry IV]] became a Catholic and bought peace with Mayenne, and in January 1596, a treaty was signed that put an end to the League.