Editing French Wars of Religion (section)

== Edict of Nantes (1598) ==
{{Main|Edict of Nantes}}
[[File:Edit de Nantes Avril 1598.jpg|thumb|The [[Edict of Nantes]], April&nbsp;1598]]
[[Henry IV of France|Henry IV]] was faced with the task of rebuilding a shattered and impoverished kingdom and uniting it under a single authority. [[Henry IV of France|Henry]] and his advisor, the [[Maximilien de Béthune, duc de Sully|Duke of Sully]] saw that the essential first step in this was the negotiation of the [[Edict of Nantes]], which  to promote civil unity granted the Huguenots substantial rights{{snd}}but rather than being a sign of genuine [[Religious toleration|toleration]], was in fact a kind of grudging truce between the religions, with guarantees for both sides.<ref>Philip Benedict, ‘Un roi, une loi, deux fois: Parameters for the History of Catholic–Protestant Co-existence in France, 1555–1685’, in O. Grell & B. Scribner (eds), Tolerance and Intolerance in the European Reformation (1996), pp.&nbsp;65–93.</ref> The Edict can be said to mark the end of the Wars of Religion, though its apparent success was not assured at the time of its publication. Indeed, in January&nbsp;1599, Henry had to visit the ''[[parlement]]'' in person to have the Edict passed. Religious tensions continued to affect politics for many years to come, though never to the same degree, and Henry&nbsp;IV faced many attempts on his life; the last succeeding in May&nbsp;1610.{{sfn|Pitts|2012|p=329}}{{sfn|Knecht|2010|p=97}}