Henry IV of France
Henry IV ended the French wars of religion by changing his own faith, and was assassinated by a Catholic fanatic. Born in Pau in 1553 and raised a Protestant by his mother Jeanne d'Albret, Queen of Navarre, he became leader of the Huguenot cause while still young. His marriage to Marguerite de Valois in August 1572 drew Protestant nobles to Paris, and days later the St Bartholomew's Day massacre killed thousands of them. Henry survived by abjuring his religion at swordpoint, was held at court for four years, escaped, and returned to Protestantism. He became heir to the throne in 1584, and the Catholic League refused to accept a Protestant king. He won at Arques and Ivry but could not take Paris, whose population endured a siege rather than admit him. In July 1593 he converted to Catholicism, a decision usually summarised by the remark that Paris is worth a mass, which he probably never made. He entered the city the following year, and the war wound down. The Edict of Nantes in 1598 granted Protestants freedom of conscience, the right to worship in specified places, civil equality and about two hundred fortified towns — the first substantial legal toleration in a major European state. With his minister Sully he restored the finances, repaired roads and canals, drained marshes, promoted silk manufacture, and lowered the taille on the peasantry, wishing every labourer a chicken in the pot on Sundays. He was popular, informal and a persistent womaniser. He survived numerous attempts and was stabbed in his carriage in a Paris traffic jam by François Ravaillac in May 1610.
- Lived: 1553 CE – 1610 CE
- Nationality: French
- Roles: king, head_of_state
