The History of the Church through 100 Masterpieces

“Paris Is Worth a Mass”

The History of the Church 190 “Paris Is Worth a Mass” There was a long period of hesitation before Henry IV came to a decision . Not until four years after the death of his predecessor did he ask, at Saint-Denis, to be received into the Catholic Church. In the meantime, he had several times defeated the Holy League’s army, but he had also understood that this war of religion would not come to an end until he was recognized as the legitimate monarch by the Catholic majority. And since the city of Rheims was under control of the League, it was at Chartres that he had himself consecrated as king of France, on February 27, 1594. This abjuration of Protestantism must not have cost him much. He had already ostensibly joined the Catholic faith at the time of the Saint Bartholomew massacre, when he was threatened with: “The Mass or your head!” But converting too early would not have served him well. First, he had to dilute the military power of the de Guise family and the League. Once this had been accomplished, his conversion came as a good gesture toward the city of Paris, which, knowing it could not bear the siege for much longer, welcomed the pretext for finally opening its doors to the king. The enthronement of this monarch who had one foot in each camp put an end to the civil war. In 1598, the Edict of Nantes reinforced the peace. However, for Henry IV, guaranteeing religious liberty to the Huguenots was not enough; he also granted them 60 safe havens with Protestant garrisons, “for the space of eight years.” François Gérard (1770–1837) The Entrance of Henry IV into Paris Musée National du Château, Versailles ...