Reforming France: The Protestant Political Assemblies during the First War of Religion, 1562–1563

Abstract

The Protestant political assemblies during the First War of Religion in France were a primary forum through which a Protestant society, or reformation, was broadly conceived. These political assemblies offer another way to study reformation in France during the religious wars and raise notable questions about how this process engaged with the existing society. Using the figure of Antoine de Crussol, the Protestant leader in Languedoc and Dauphiné in this conflict, this chapter examines the decrees discussed in these assemblies, to further our understanding of the Protestant desire for reformation in a predominantly Catholic kingdom. Crussol was an important figure for the monarchy and had carried out an extensive royal mission prior to the war, to pacify Languedoc, Dauphiné, and Provence. The Protestants wished for far-reaching changes in society, with the Reformed confession as the cornerstone of this social framework. These decrees gave the Protestants considerable influence, in their attempt to place the ‘true religion’ at the centre of society. While emphasising their Reformed identity, the Protestants nonetheless strove to underline their obedience to their Catholic king, and to highlight the legitimacy of their assemblies. Crussol provided them with legitimacy and authority, due to his previous royal mission in these provinces. This chapter analyses the religious, social, military, and financial decrees implemented by the political assemblies and lower level assiettes, which will further our understanding of the French Protestant reformation, in its overall objective of converting the kingdom of France.