that is briefly to entreat of the horrible and most barba∣rous massaker wroughte in Paris, suche as I suppose, was neuer heard of before in no ciuill dissention amōgest the very heathen. In few wordes to touch the substaunce of the matter.
After long troubles in Fraunce, the Catholique side foreseing no good to be done agaynst the Protestantes by open force, began to deuise how by crafty meanes to en∣trap them. And that by two maner of wayes: The one by pretending a power to be sent into the lower countrey, wherof the Amirall to be the Captayne, not that the king so meant in deed, but onely to vnderstand thereby, what power and force the Amirall hadde vnder him, who they were, and what were theyr names. The second was by a certeine mariage suborned, betwene the Prince of Na∣uare, and the kinges sister. To this pretensed mariage, it was deuised that all the chiefest Protestantes of Fraunce shoulde be inuited, and meete in Paris. Emong whome first they began with the Queene of Nauare, Mother to the Prince, that should mary the kings sister, attempting by all meanes possible to obteine her consent thereunto. She being then at Rochell, and allured by many fayre wordes to repayre vnto the king, consented at length to come, and was receiued at Paris, where she after much a do, at length being wonne to the kinges minde, and pro∣uiding for the mariage, shortly vpon the same fell sicke, & within fiue daies departed: not without suspitiō, as some sayd, of poyson. But her body being opened, no signe of poyson could there be founde, saue onely that a certayne Poticary made his brag that he had killed the Queene, by certayne venemous odours and smelles by hym con∣fected.
After this notwithstanding the mariage still goyng forward, the Amirall, Prince of Nauare, Condee, wyth diuers other chiefe states of the Protestantes, induced by the kinges letters and many fayre promises, at last were brought to Paris. Where with great solēnity they were receiued, but especially the Amirall. To make the matter short. The day of the mariage came, which was the 18. of August. an. 1572. which mariage being celebrate and solē∣nised by the Cardinall of Borbone, vpon an high stage set vp of purpose without the Churche walles, the Prince of Nauare, & Condee, came downe, wayting for the kinges sister being then at Masse. This done, they resorted alto∣gether to the Bishops Palace, to dinner. At euening they were had to a Palace in the middle of Paris to Supper. Not long after this, being the 22. of August, the Amirall comming from the Counsell table, by the way was stro∣ken with a Pistolet charged with iij. pellets, in both hys armes. He being thus wounded and yet still remayning in Paris, although the Uidam gaue him counsell to flye away, it so fell out that certayne souldiors were appoyn∣ted in diuers places of the Citty to be ready at a watch∣word at the commaundemēt of the Prince. Upon which watchword geuē, they burst out to the slaughter of ye pro∣testantes, first beginning with the Amirall himselfe, who being wounded with many sore woundes was cast oute of the window into the street, where his head being first stroken of, and imbalmed with spices to bee sent to the Pope, the sauadge people raging agaynst him, cut of hys armes and priuy members, and so drawing him 3. dayes through the streetes of Paris, they dragged him to ye place of execution, out of the City, and there hanged him vp by his heeles to the greater shew and scorne of him.
After the Martyrdome of this good man, the armed souldiours with rage and violence ranne vpon all other of the same profession, slaying and killing all the Prote∣stantes they knew or coulde finde within the Citty gates inclosed. This bloudye slaughter continued the space of many dayes, but especially the greatest slaughter was in the three first dayes, in which were numbred to be slayne, as the story writeth, aboue x. thousand, men and women, old and young, of all sorts and conditions. The bodies of the dead were caryed in Cartes to be throwne in the Ri∣uer, so that not onely the Riuer was all steined therwith, but also whole streames in certayn places of the City did runne with goare bloud of the slayne bodyes. So greate was the outrage of that Heathenish persecution, that not onely the Protestantes, but also certayne whome they thought indifferent Papists they put to the sword in sted of Protestantes. In the number of them that were slayne of the more learned sort, was Petrus Ramus, also Lambinus an other notorious learned man, Plateanus, Lomenius, Chapesius, with others.
And not onely within the walles of Paris this vp∣rore was conteined but extended farther into other cities and quarters of the Realme, especially Lyons, Orliens, Tholous, and Roane. In which cities it is almost incre∣dible, nor scarse euer heard of in any natiō, what crueltye was shewed, what numbers of good men were destroyed in so much that with in the space of one moneth xxx. thou∣sand at least of religious Protestantes are numbred to be slayne, as is credib••ely reported and storyed in the cōmē∣taryes of them which testify purposely of the matter.
Furthermore here is to be noted, that when the Pope first heard of this bloudy styrre, he with his Cardinalles made such ioy at Rome, with theyr procession, with their gunshot and singing Te Deum, that in honor of that festi∣uall acte, a iubile•• was commaunded by the Pope wyth great indulgence, and much solemnity, wherby thou hast here to discerne, and iudge, with what spirite and charity these Catholiques are moued to mainteine their religion withall, which otherwise would fall to the ground with out all hope of recouery. Likewise in Fraunce no lesse re∣ioysing there was vpon the xxviij. day of the sayd Mo∣neth, the king commaunding publique processions tho∣row the whole City to be made, with bonefires, ringing and singing, where the king himselfe, with the Queene his mother, and his whole Court resorting together to the Church, gaue thankes and land to GOD, for that so worthy victory atchieued vpon S. Bartholomews day agaynst the Protestantes, whome they thought to be vt∣terly ouerthrowne and vanquished in all that Realme for euer.
And in very deede to mans thinking might appeare no lesse after such a great destruction of the Protestantes hauing lost so many worthy and noble captaynes as thē were cutte of, whereupon many for feare reuoking their religion, returned to the pope, diuers fled out of ye realme such as would not turn, keeping themselues secret, durst not be knowne nor seene, so that it was past all hope of man, that the Gospell shoulde euer haue any more place in Fraunce: but suche is the admirable working of the Lord, where mans helpe and hope most▪ fayleth there hee most sheweth his strength and helpeth, as here is to bee seene and noted. For where as the litle small remnant of the Gospell side, being now brought to vtter desperati∣on were now ready to geue ouer vnto the king, and ma∣ny were gone already agaynst cōscience, yelding to time, yet the Lord of his goodnes so wrought, that many were stayed and reclaymed agayne through the occasion first of them in Rochell: Who hearing of the cruell massaker in Paris, and slaughter at Tholous, most constantly with valiaunt hartes (the Lord so working) thought to stand to theyr defence agaynst the kinges power, by whose ex∣ample certayne other Cities, hearing therof tooke no litle courage to do the like, as namely Montalbane, the Citty called Nemansium, Sansere in Occitamia, Milialdum, Mirebellum, Fuduzia, with other townes and Citties moe: who being confederate together, exhorted one an o∣ther to be circumspect and take good heede of the false dis∣sembling practises not to be trusted of the mercilesse pa∣pistes, entending nothing but bloud and destruction.
These thinges thus passing at Rochell, the king hea∣ring thereof, geueth in commaundement to Capteyne Strozzius, & Guardius to see to Rochell. After thys he sendeth a noble man one Biromus, requiring of the Ro∣chell men to receiue him for theyr Gouernour vnder the king. Of this great consultation being had, at length the Rochell men began to condescend vpon certayne condi∣tions, which being not easily graunted vnto, and especi∣ally they hearing in the mean time what was done to o∣thers of theyr felowes, which had submitted themselues, thought it so better to stand to the defence of theyr liues & consciences and to aduenture the worst. Whereupon be∣gan great siege and battery to be layde agaynste Rochell both by land and sea, which was an, 1572. about the 4. day of December, it woulde require an other volume, to de∣scribe all thinges, during the time of this siege, yt passed on either side, betwene the kinges part, and the towne of Rochell, briefly to runne ouer some parts of the matter. In the beginning of the next yeare folowing, which was an. 1573. in the moneth of Ianuary cōmaundement was geuen out by the king to all and sondry nobles and piers of Fraunce, vpon great punishment, to addresse themsel∣ues in moste forceable wise to the assaulting of Rochell. Wherupon a great concourse of all the nobility, with the whole power of Fraunce, was there assembled, amongst whom was also the Prince of Aniow, the kinges Bro∣ther (who there not long after was proclaymed kyng of Polonie) accompanied with his other Brother Duke A∣lanson, Nauare, Condie, & other a great nūber of states besides. Thus the whole power of Fraūce being gathe∣red agaynst one poore Towne, had not the mighty hande of the Lord stood on theyr side, it had bene vnpossible for thē to escape. Duryng the time of this siege, which lasted