"Eradicating Religious Differences”: Religious Turmoil During the French Wars of Religion

Abstract

This essay looks at the French Wars of Religion, specifically the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre and the relationship that it has to religious conflict. Looking at the religious elements of violence within this massacre attempts to show that both Protestant and Catholic leaders, followers, and significant figure of the time, like the King and Catharine de Medici, used religious upheaval as a way to condone the violence that ensued during the late 1560s and early 1570s. Using both primary and secondary sources, this essay looks at ‘Religious nationalism’ and its role in the blood shed of the Massacre. The tensions between the two sects of religion were growing, St. Bartholomew’s Day is an example of when this tension became too much. Looking closely at the people involved and the events that took place, violence and religion are clearly intertwined.