War of the Three Henrys (1584–1598)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The War of the Three Henrys (1584-1589) was the last of a series of civil wars in France known as the Wars of Religion. The War of the Three Henrys was the eighth and final war, commencing in 1584. Henry of Guise led the Catholic League. Henry of Navarre led the Huguenots. During its course, Henry III invited Henry of Guise and Henry of Guise's brother to his palace and in December, 1588, they were both executed. Henry III blamed the Politiques, but he was still forced to flee Paris by Guise's supporters and was assassinated in 1589. Henry of Navarre thus won by default. However, he encountered major resistance to his rule until his conversion to Catholicism in 1593. The following year he was formally crowned Henry IV. Tradition holds that Henry exclaimed "Paris vaut bien une messe" ("Paris is worth a Mass").

The three Henrys were:

• Henry III of France (Catholic)
• Henry of Navarre, eventually Henry IV of France (Protestant)
• Henry of Guise (Catholic)

[edit] Sources

This article does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (October 2006)