Editing Henry III of France (section)

===Wars of Religion===
[[File:Le Siege de La Rochelle par le Duc d Anjou en 1573.jpg|thumb|The [[Siege of La Rochelle (1572–1573)|Siege of La Rochelle]] by the Duke of Anjou in 1573 ("History of Henry III" tapestry, completed in 1623)]]

In November 1567, upon the death of [[Anne de Montmorency]], Henry assumed the role of [[Lieutenant-General (France)|Lieutenant-General]] of France, placing him in nominal control of France's military.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Holt |first=Mack |title=The French Wars of Religion 1562–1628 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |date=1995 |isbn=978-0-5213-5873-6 |page=66}}</ref>{{Sfn|Sutherland|1973|page=54}} Henry served as a leader of the royal army, taking part in the victories over the [[Huguenots]] at the [[Battle of Jarnac]] (March 1569){{Sfn|Knecht|1989|p=41}} and at the [[Battle of Moncontour]] (October 1569).{{Sfn|Knecht|1998|p=130}} At this time he was a rallying point for the ultra-Catholics at court, who saw him as an opposition figure to the tolerant line being taken by the King, with [[Charles, Cardinal of Lorraine]] guiding his council.<ref name=":1"/> Lorraine offered him 200,000 Francs of Church revenue to become a protector of Catholicism, and tried to arrange his marriage to [[Mary, Queen of Scots]]; however neither project took off.{{Sfn|Sutherland|1973|page=69}}

While still Duke of Anjou, he helped plot the [[St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre]] of 1572. Though Henry did not participate directly, historian [[:fr:Thierry Wanegffelen|Thierry Wanegffelen]] sees him as the royal most responsible for the massacre, which involved the targeted killing of many Huguenot leaders. Henry III's reign as King of France, like those of his elder brothers Francis and Charles, would see France in constant turmoil over religion.

Henry continued to take an active role in the Wars of Religion, and in 1572/1573 led the [[Siege of La Rochelle (1572–1573)|siege of La Rochelle]], a massive military assault on the Huguenot-held city.{{Sfn|Knecht|1989|p=54}} At the end of May 1573, Henry learned that the [[Royal elections in Poland|Polish ''szlachta'']] had elected him King of Poland (a country with a large Protestant minority at the time) and political considerations forced him to negotiate an end to the siege. Negotiators reached an agreement on 24 June 1573, and Catholic troops ended the siege on 6 July 1573.