Divided memories? Historical calendars, commemorative processions and the recollection of the Wars of Religion during the ancien regime

Abstract

In the centuries that followed the Edict of Nantes, a number of texts and rituals preserved partisan historical recollections of episodes from the Wars of Religion. One important Huguenot ‘site of memory’ was the historical calendar. The calendars published between 1590 and 1685 displayed a particular concern with the Wars of Religion, recalling events that illustrated Protestant victimization and Catholic sedition. One important Catholic site of memory was the commemorative procession. Ten or more cities staged annual processions throughout the ancien regime thanking God for delivering them from the violent, sacrilegious Huguenots during the civil wars.