Part 395

"The king, yielding to the councils of Biron and other catholics, declined attacking the capital, and preferred waiting the slow, and in his circumstances eminently hazardous, operations of a regular siege. … Whatever may have been the cause of the delay, it is certain that the golden fruit of victory was not plucked, and that although the confederate army had rapidly dissolved, in consequence of their defeat, the king's own forces manifested as little cohesion. And now began that slow and painful siege, the details of which are as terrible, but as universally known, as those of any chapters in the blood-stained history of the century. Henry seized upon the towns guarding the rivers Seine and Marne, twin nurses of Paris. By controlling the course of those streams as well as that of the Yonne and Oise— especially by taking firm possession of Lagny on the Marne, whence a bridge led from the Isle of France to the Brie country—great thoroughfare of wine and corn—and of Corbeil at the junction of the little river Essonne with the Seine—it was easy in that age to stop the vital circulation of the imperial city. By midsummer, Paris, unquestionably the first city of Europe at that day, was in extremities. … Rarely have men at any epoch defended their fatherland against foreign oppression with more heroism than that which was manifested by the Parisians of 1590 in resisting religious toleration, and in obeying a foreign and priestly despotism. Men, women, and children cheerfully laid down their lives by thousands in order that the papal legate and the king of Spain might trample upon that legitimate sovereign of France who was one day to become the idol of Paris and of the whole kingdom. A census taken at the beginning of the siege had showed a population of 200,000 souls, with a sufficiency of provisions, it was thought, to last one month. But before the terrible summer was over—so completely had the city been invested—the bushel of wheat was worth 360 crowns. … The flesh of horses, asses, dogs, cats, rats, had become rare luxuries. There was nothing cheap, said a citizen bitterly, but sermons. And the priests and monks of every order went daily about the streets, preaching fortitude in that great resistance to heresy. … Trustworthy eye-witnesses of those dreadful days have placed the number of the dead during the summer at 30,000. … {1212} The hideous details of the most dreadful sieges recorded in ancient or modern times were now reproduced in Paris. … The priests … persuaded the populace that it was far more righteous to kill their own children, if they had no food to give them, than to obtain food by recognizing a heretic king. It was related, too, and believed, that in some instances mothers had salted the bodies of their dead children and fed upon them, day by day, until the hideous repast would no longer support their own life. … The bones of the dead were taken in considerable quantities from the cemeteries, ground into flour, baked into bread, and consumed. It was called Madame Montpensier's cake, because the duchess earnestly proclaimed its merits to the poor Parisians. 'She was never known to taste it herself, however,' bitterly observed one who lived in Paris through that horrible summer. She was right to abstain, for all who ate of it died. … Lansquenets and other soldiers, mad with hunger and rage, when they could no longer find dogs to feed on, chased children through the streets, and were known in several instances to kill and devour them on the spot. … Such then was the condition of Paris during that memorable summer of tortures. What now were its hopes of deliverance out of this Gehenna? The trust of Frenchmen was in Philip of Spain, whose legions, under command of the great Italian chieftain [Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma, commander of the Spanish forces in the Netherlands], were daily longed for to save them from rendering obedience to their lawful prince. For even the king of straw—the imprisoned cardinal [Cardinal de Bourbon, whom the League had proclaimed king, under the title of Charles X., on the death of Henry III.]—was now dead, and there was not even the effigy of any other sovereign than Henry of Bourbon to claim authority in France. Mayenne, in the course of long interviews with the Duke of Parma at Condé and Brussels, had expressed his desire to see Philip king of France, and had promised his best efforts to bring about such a result." Parma, who was struggling hard with the obstinate revolt in the Netherlands, having few troops and little money to pay them with, received orders from his Spanish master to relieve Paris and conquer France. He obeyed the command to the best of his abilities. He left the Netherlands at the beginning of August, with 12,000 foot and 3,000 horse; effected a junction with Mayenne at Meaux, ten leagues from Paris, on the 22d, and the united armies—5,000 cavalry and 18,000 foot—arrived at Chelles on the last day of summer. "The two great captains of the age had at last met face to face. … The scientific duel which was now to take place was likely to task the genius and to bring into full display the peculiar powers and defects of the two." The winner in the duel was the Duke of Parma, who foiled Henry's attempts to bring him to battle, while he captured Lagny under the king's eyes. "The bridges of Charenton and St. Maur now fell into Farnese's hands without a contest. In an incredibly short space of time provisions and munitions were poured into the starving city, 2,000 boat-loads arriving in a single day. Paris was relieved. Alexander had made his demonstration and solved the problem. … The king was now in worse plight than ever. His army fliers, cheated of their battle, and having neither food nor forage, rode off by hundreds every day." He made one last attempt, by a midnight assault on the city, but it failed. Then he followed the Spaniards—whom Parma led back to the Netherlands early in November—but could not bring about a battle or gain any important advantage. But Paris, without the genius of Alexander Farnese in its defence, was soon reduced to as complete a blockade as before. Lagny was recovered by the besieging royalists, the Seine and the Marne were again fast-locked, and the rebellious capital deprived of supplies.

_J. L. Motley, History of the United Netherlands, chapter 23 (volume 3)._

ALSO IN: _M. W. Freer, History of the Reign of Henry IV., book 1._

_C. D. Yonge, History of France under the Bourbons, chapter 2._

FRANCE: A. D. 1591-1593. The siege of Rouen and Parma's second interference. General advancement of Henry's cause. Restiveness of the Catholics. The King's abjuration of Protestantism.

"It seemed as if Henri IV. had undertaken the work of Penelope. After each success, fresh difficulties arose to render it fruitless. … Now it was the Swiss who refused to go on without their pay; or Elizabeth who exacted seaports in return for fresh supplies; or the Catholics who demanded the conversion of the King; or the Protestants who complained of not being protected. Depressed spirits had to be cheered, some to be satisfied, others to be reassured or restrained, allies to be managed, and all to be done with very little money and without any sacrifice of the national interests. Henri was equal to all, both to war and to diplomacy, to great concerns and to small. … His pen was as active as his sword. The collection of his letters is full of the most charming notes. … Public opinion, which was already influential and thirsting for news, was not neglected. Every two or three months a little publication entitled 'A Discourse,' or 'An Authentic Narrative,' or 'Account of all that has occurred in the King's Army,' was circulated widely. … Thus it was that by means of activity, patience, and tact, Henri V. was enabled to retrieve his fortunes and to rally his party; so that by the end of the year 1591, he found himself in a position to undertake an important operation. … The King laid siege to Rouen in December, 1591. He was at the head of the most splendid army he had ever commanded; it numbered upwards of 25,000 men. This was not too great a number; for the fortifications were strong, the garrison numerous, well commanded by Villars, and warmly supported by the townspeople. The siege had lasted for some months when the King learned that Mayenne had at last made the Duke of Parma to understand the necessity of saving Rouen at all hazards. Thirty thousand Spanish and French Leaguers had just arrived on the Somme. Rouen, however, was at the last gasp; Henri could not make up his mind to throw away the fruits of so much toil and trouble; he left all his infantry under the walls, under the command of Biron, and marched off with his splendid cavalry." He attacked the enemy imprudently, near Aumale, February 5, met with a repulse, was wounded and just missed being taken prisoner in a precipitate retreat. But both armies were half paralyzed at this time by dissensions among their chiefs. {1213} That of the Leaguers fell back to the Somme; but in April it approached Rouen again, and Parma was able, despite all Henri's efforts, to enter the town. This last check to the King "was the signal for a general desertion. Henri, left with only a small corps of regular troops and a few gentlemen, was obliged to retire rapidly upon Pont de l'Arche. The Duke of Parma did not follow him. Always vigilant, he wished before everything to establish himself on the Lower Seine, and laid siege to Caudebec, which was not likely to detain him long. But he received during that operation a severe wound, which compelled him to hand over the command to Mayenne." The incompetence of the latter soon lost all the advantages which Parma had gained. Henri's supporters rallied around him again almost as quickly as they had dispersed. "The Leaguers were pushed back upon the Seine and confined in the heart of the Pays de Caux. They were without provisions; Mayenne was at his wits' end; he had to resort for suggestions and for orders to the bed of suffering on which the Duke of Parma was held down by his wound." The great Italian soldier, dying though he was, as the event soon proved, directed operations which baffled the keen watchfulness and penetration of his antagonist, and extricated his army without giving to Henri the chance for battle which he sought. The Spanish army retired to Flemish territory. In the meantime, Henri's cause was being advanced in the northeast of his kingdom by the skill and valor of Turenne, then beginning his great career, and experiencing vicissitudes in the southeast, where Lesdiguières was contending with the mercenaries of the Pope and the Duke of Savoy, as well as with his countrymen of the League. He had defeated them with awful slaughter at Pontcharra, September 19, 1591, and he carried the war next year into the territories of the Duke of Savoy, seeking help from the Italian Waldenses which he does not seem to have obtained. "Nevertheless the king had still some formidable obstacles to overcome. Three years had run their course since he had promised to become instructed in the Catholic religion, and there were no signs as yet that he was preparing to fulfil this undertaking. The position in which he found himself, and the importance and activity of his military operations, had hitherto been a sufficient explanation of his delay. But the war had now changed its character. The King had gained brilliant successes. There was no longer any large army in the field against him. Nothing seemed to be now in the way to hinder him from fulfilling his promise. And yet he always evaded it. He had to keep on good terms with Elizabeth and the Protestants; he wished to make his abjuration the occasion for an agreement with the Court of Rome, which took no steps to smooth over his difficulties; and lastly, he shrank from taking a step which is always painful when it is not the fruit of honest conviction. This indecision doubled the ardour of his enemies, prevented fresh adhesions, discouraged and divided his old followers. … A third party, composed of bishops and Royalist noblemen, drew around the cousins of Henri IV., the Cardinal de Vendôme and the Comte de Soissons. … The avowed object of this third party was to raise one of these two Princes to the throne, if the Head of their House did not forthwith enter the bosom of the Catholic Church. And finally, the deputies of the cities and provinces who had been called to Paris by Mayenne were assembling there for the election of a king. 'The Satire of Ménippée' has handed down the States of the League to immortal ridicule; but however decried that assembly has been, and deserved to be, 'it decided the conversion of Henri IV.: he does not attempt in his despatches to deny this. … In order to take away every excuse for such an election, he entered at once into conference with the Catholic theologians. After some very serious discussion, much deeper than a certain saying which has become a proverb [that 'Paris is certainly worth a Mass'] would seem to imply, he abjured the Protestant religion on the 25th of July, 1593, before the Archbishop of Bourges. The League had received its death-blow."

_Duc d'Aumale, History of the Princes de Condé, book 2, chapter 2 (volume 2)._

"The news of the abjuration produced in the minds of honest men, far and near, the most painful impression. Politicians might applaud an act intended to conciliate the favor of the great majority of the nation, and extol the astuteness of the king in choosing the most opportune moment for his change of religion—the moment when he would secure the support of the Roman Catholics, fatigued by the length of the war and too eager for peace to question very closely the sincerity of the king's motives, without forfeiting the support of the Huguenots. But men of conscience, judging Henry's conduct by a standard of morality immutable and eternal, passed a severe sentence of condemnation upon the most flagrant instance of a betrayal of moral convictions which the age had known."

_H. M. Baird, The Huguenots and Henry of Navarre, chapter 13 (volume 2)._

"What the future history of France would have been if Henry had clung to his integrity, is known only to the Omniscient; but, with the annals of France in our hands, we have no difficulty in perceiving that the day of his impious, because pretended conversion, was among the 'dies nefasti' of his country. It restored peace indeed to that bleeding land, and it gave to himself an undisputed reign of seventeen years; but he found them years replete with cares and terrors, and disgraced by many shameful vices, and at last abruptly terminated by the dagger of an assassin. It rescued France, indeed, from the evils of a disputed succession, but it consigned her to two centuries of despotism and misgovernment. It transmitted the crown, indeed, to seven in succession of the posterity of Henry; but of them one died on the scaffold, three were deposed by insurrections of their subjects, one has left a name pursued by unmitigated and undying infamy, and another lived and died in a monastic melancholy, the feeble slave of his own minister."

_Sir J. Stephen, Lectures on the History of France, lecture 16._

ALSO IN: _P. F. Willert, Henry of Navarre and the Huguenots of France, chapters 5-6._

{1214}

FRANCE: A. D. 1593-1598. Henry's winning of Paris. The first attempt upon his life. Expulsion of Jesuits from Paris. War with Spain. The Peace of Vervins.