History of the Rise of the Huguenots Volume I Part 26

[Footnote 430: "Plusieurs gros personnages, qui secrettement les recelent, supportent et favorisent en leurs fausses doctrines, leur aydans et subvenans de leurs biens, de lieux, et de places secrettes et occultes, esquelles ils retirent leurs sectateurs, pour les instruire esdites erreurs et infections." Ibid., xii. 677.]

[Footnote 431: "Attendu que tels erreurs et fausses doctrines contiennent en soy crime de leze majeste divine et humaine, sedition du peuple, et perturbation de nostre estat et repos public." Ibid., xii.

680.]

[Footnote 432: "Mais tantost et incontinent qu'ils en seront advertis, les reveler a justice, et de tout leur pouvoir aider a les extirper, _comme un chacun doit courir a esteindre le feu public_." Ibid., xii.

680.]

[Footnote 433: President Louis Caillaud to the chancellor (Antoine Du Bourg), Oct. 22, 1538. Musee des archives nationales; Doc.u.ments orig.

exposes dans l'Hotel Soubise (Paris, 1872), 347.]

[Footnote 434: Among others, two "Lutherans," otherwise unknown to us, whose execution a young German student, Eustathius de k.n.o.belsdorf, witnessed on the Place Maubert, and described in a letter to George Ca.s.sander, professor at Bruges, like himself a Roman Catholic. One of the "Lutherans," a beardless youth of scarcely twenty years, the son of a shoemaker, after having his tongue cut out and his head smeared with sulphur, far from showing marks of terror, signified, by a motion to the executioner, his perfect willingness to meet death. "I doubt, my dear Ca.s.sander," writes De k.n.o.belsdorf, "whether those celebrated philosophers, who have written so many books on the contempt of death, would have endured so cruel tortures with such constancy. So far did this youth seem to be raised above what is of man." Letter of July 10, 1542. Translated in Bulletin, vi. (1858), 420-423; and Baum, Theodor Beza, i. 52-55.]

[Footnote 435: "En sorte que la justice, punition, correction, et demonstration en soit faite telle et si griefve, que ce puisse estre perpetuel exemple a tous autres."]

[Footnote 436: Isambert, Recueil des anciennes lois francaises, xii.

785-787.]

[Footnote 437: "Lui a dit qu'il voulait qu'aucun sacramentaire ne fut admis a abjurer, ains fut puni de mort." Reg. secr. du Parl. de Bordeaux, July 7, 1543, Boscheron des Portes, i. 47, 48.]

[Footnote 438: "Conspirateurs occultes contre la prosperite de nostre estat, dependant princ.i.p.alement et en bonne partie de la conservation de l'integrite de la foy catholique en nostredit royaume, rebelles et desobeyssans a nous et a nostre justice." Recueil des anc. lois francaises, xii. 819.]

[Footnote 439: Ibid., xii. 820.]

[Footnote 440: The preamble of the royal letters giving execution to the Twenty-five Articles of the Sorbonne mentions as a moving cause "plusieurs scandales et schismes par cy devant intervenus, et mesmement en cest advent de Noel dernier pa.s.se, par le moyen et a l'occasion de contentions, contradictions et altercations de certain predicateurs preschans et publians divers et contraires doctrines." Recueil des anc.

lois francaises, xii. 820.]

[Footnote 441: Recueil des anc. lois franc., xii. 821-825. Among other recommendations appended to the articles, was the following somewhat interesting one, designed to correct the irreverence of the age: "Quand il vient a propos d'alleguer le nom des saincts apostres et evangelistes ou saincts docteurs, qu'ils _n'ayent a les nommer par leurs norm simplement_, sans aucune preface d'honneur, _comme ont accoustume dire, 'Paul,' 'Jacques,' 'Mathieu,' 'Pierre,' 'Hierosme,' 'Augustin_,' etc. Et ne leur doit estre grief adjouster et preposer le nom de 'sainct,' en disant, 'sainct Pierre,' 'sainct Paul,' etc.!"]

[Footnote 442: Ibid., xii. 820. In answer to these Articles, Calvin wrote his "Antidote aux articles de la faculte Sorbonique de Paris."]

[Footnote 443: Ory, Oriz, or Oritz, as his name was indifferently written, was a prominent character in subsequent scenes of blood, and was, as we may hereafter see, the agent employed by Henry II. to cajole, or frighten his aunt, Renee, and bring her back into the bosom of the Roman Church. The letters-patent giving this personage, who is styled "doctor of theology and prior of the preaching friars (Dominicans) of Paris," authority to exercise the functions of inquisitor of the faith throughout the kingdom, in place of Valentin Lievin, deceased, are of May 30, 1536, Recueil des anc. lois fr., xii. 503. Similar letters were issued April 10, 1540. His confirmation by Henry II., June 22, 1550, ibid., xiii. 173.]

[Footnote 444: Histoire ecclesiastique, i. 13. It is, in fact, an interesting circ.u.mstance that Rocheli, or Rochetti, the deputy inquisitor referred to in the text, not long after became a convert to Protestantism, and applied himself to preaching the doctrines he had once labored to overturn.]

[Footnote 445: The first, ent.i.tled "Epistolae duae; prima de fugiendis impiorum illicitis sacris et puritate Christianae religionis; secunda de Christiani hominis officio in sacerdotiis papalis ecclesiae vel administrandis vel abjiciendis," 1537. The second, "Contre la secte fantastique et furieuse des Libertins qui se disent spirituels," 1544.

The latter, from its pointed reference to Quintin and Pocquet, two notorious leaders, seems to have given offence to Margaret of Navarre, by whom they had been harbored in ignorance of their true character. A letter written to the queen by Calvin immediately upon learning this, April 28, 1545 (Bonnet, Lettres francaises, i. 111-117), is at once one of the best examples of his nervous French style, and a fine ill.u.s.tration of manly courage tempered with respect for a princess who had deserved well of Protestantism. A single sentence admirably portrays his att.i.tude toward the formidable sect which had so devastated the Low Countries and had now entered France in the persons of two of its worst apostles--a sect regarded by him as more pernicious and execrable than any previously existing: "Un chien abaye, s'il voit qu'on a.s.saille son maistre; je seroys bien lasche, si en voyant la verite de Dieu ainsi a.s.saillie, je faisoys du muet sans sonner mot."]

[Footnote 446: "A exhorte et prie la cour de vouloir faire punir et bruler les vrais heretiques," etc. Reg. du Parl., May 24, 1543, Boscheron des Portes, Hist. du parlement de Bordeaux, i. 63.]

[Footnote 447: "Reclame son privilege de fille de France ecrit dans un livre qui est a Saint Denis, de faire ouvrir les prisons," etc. Ibid., _ubi supra_.]

[Footnote 448: The text of this singular doc.u.ment, dated Rheims, Sept.

8, 1543, is in Gerdes., Hist. Reform., iv. (Monumenta) 107-109. When the "Instructions" fell into the hands of Charles V., he naturally tried to make capital of a paper so little calculated to please Roman Catholics, emanating from a son of the "Most Christian king." And Francis thought himself compelled to clear himself from the charge of lukewarmness in the faith, if not of actual heretical bias, by exercising fresh severities upon the devoted Protestants of his own dominions.]

CHAPTER VII.

CAMPAIGN AGAINST THE VAUDOIS OF MeRINDOL AND CABRIeRES, AND LAST DAYS OF FRANCIS THE FIRST.

[Sidenote: The Vaudois of Provence.]

[Sidenote: Their industry and thrift.]

[Sidenote: Vaudois settlements even in the Comtat Venaissin.]

That part of Provence, the ancient Roman Provincia, which skirts the northern bank of the Durance, formerly contained, at a distance of between twenty and fifty miles above the confluence of the river with the Rhone near Avignon, more than a score of small towns and villages inhabited by peasants of Waldensian origin. The entire district had been desolated by war about a couple of centuries before the time of which we are now treating. Extensive tracts of land were nearly depopulated, and the few remaining tillers of the soil obtained a precarious subsistence, at the mercy of banditti that infested the mountains and forests, and plundered unfortunate travellers. Under these circ.u.mstances, the landed gentry, impoverished through the loss of the greater part of their revenues, gladly welcomed the advent of new-comers, who were induced to cross the Alps from the valleys of Piedmont and occupy the abandoned farms.[449] By the industrious culture of the Vaudois, or Waldenses, the face of the country was soon transformed. Villages sprang up where there had scarcely been a single house. Brigandage disappeared. Grain, wine, olives, and almonds were obtained in abundance from what had been a barren waste. On lands less favorable for cultivation numerous flocks and herds pastured.[450] A tract formerly returning the scanty income of four crowns a year now contained a thriving village of eighty substantial houses, and brought its owners nearly a hundredfold the former rental.[451] On one occasion at least, discouraged by the annoyance to which their religious opinions subjected them, a part of the Vaudois sought refuge in their ancient homes, on the Italian side of the mountains. But their services were too valuable to be dispensed with, and they soon returned to Provence, in answer to the urgent summons of their Roman Catholic landlords.[452] In fact, a very striking proof both of their industry and of their success is furnished by the circ.u.mstance that Cabrieres, one of the largest Vaudois villages, was situated within the bounds of the _Comtat Venaissin_, governed, about the time of their arrival, by the Pope in person, and subsequently, as we have seen, by a papal legate residing in Avignon.[453]

[Sidenote: They send delegates to the Swiss and German reformers.]

The news of an attempted reformation of the church in Switzerland and Germany awakened a lively interest in this community of simple-minded Christians. At length a convocation of their ministers[454] at Merindol, in 1530, determined to send two of their number to compare the tenets they had long held with those of the reformers, and to obtain, if possible, additional light upon some points of doctrine and of practice respecting which they entertained doubt. The delegates were George Morel, of Freissinieres, and Pierre Ma.s.son, of Burgundy. They visited colampadius at Basle, Bucer and Capito at Strasbourg, Farel at Neufchatel, and Haller at Berne. From the first-named they received the most important aid, in the way of suggestions respecting the errors[455]

into which the isolated position they had long occupied had insensibly led them. Grateful for the kindness manifested to them, and delighted with what they had witnessed of the progress of the faith they had received from their fathers, the two envoys started on their return. But Morel alone succeeded in reaching Provence; his companion was arrested at Dijon and condemned to death. Upon the report of Morel, however, the Waldenses at once began to investigate the new questions that had been raised, and, in their eagerness to purify their church, sent word to their brethren in Apulia and Calabria, inviting them to a conference respecting the interests of religion.[456]

[Sidenote: They furnish means for publis.h.i.+ng the Scriptures.]

A few years later (1535) the Waldenses by their liberal contributions furnished the means necessary for publis.h.i.+ng the translation of the Holy Scriptures made by Pierre Robert Oliveta.n.u.s, and corrected by Calvin, which, unless exception be made in favor of the translation by Lefevre d'etaples, is ent.i.tled to rank as the earliest French Protestant Bible.[457] It was a n.o.ble undertaking, by which the poor and humble inhabitants of Provence, Piedmont, and Calabria conferred on France a signal benefit, scarcely appreciated in its full extent even by those who pride themselves upon their acquaintance with the rich literature of that country. For, while Oliveta.n.u.s in his admirable version laid the foundation upon which all the later and more accurate translations have been reared, by the excellence of his modes of expression he exerted an influence upon the French language perhaps not inferior to that of Calvin or Montaigne.[458]

[Sidenote: Preliminary persecutions.]

Intelligence of the new activity manifested by the Waldenses reaching the ears of their enemies, among whom the Archbishop of Aix was prominent, stirred them up to more virulent hostility. The accusation was subsequently made by unfriendly writers, in order to furnish some slight justification for the atrocities of the ma.s.sacre, that the Waldenses, emboldened by the encouragement of the reformers, began to show a disposition to offer forcible resistance to the arbitrary arrests ordered by the civil and religious authorities of Aix. But the a.s.sertion, which is unsupported by evidence, contradicts the well-known disposition and practice of a patient people, more p.r.o.ne to submit to oppression than to take up arms even in defence of a righteous cause.[459]

[Sidenote: The Dominican De Roma foremost in the work.]

[Sidenote: Iniquitous order of the Parliament of Aix.]

For a time the persecution was individual, and therefore limited. But in the aggregate the number of victims was by no means inconsiderable, and the flames burned many a steadfast Waldensee.[460] The Dominican De Roma enjoyed an unenviable notoriety for his ferocity in dealing with the "heretics," whose feet he was in the habit of plunging in boots full of melted fat and boiling over a slow fire. The device did, indeed, seem to the king, when he heard of it, less ingenious than cruel, and De Roma found it necessary to avoid arrest by a hasty flight to Avignon, where, upon papal soil, as foul a sink of iniquity existed as anywhere within the bounds of Christendom.[461] But other agents, scarcely more merciful than De Roma, prosecuted the work. Some of the Waldenses were put to death, others were branded upon the forehead. Even the ordinary rights of the accused were denied them; for, in order to leave no room for justice, the Parliament of Aix had framed an iniquitous order, prohibiting all clerks and notaries from either furnis.h.i.+ng the accused copies of legal instruments, or receiving at their hands any pet.i.tion or paper whatsoever.[462] Such were the measures by which the newly-created Parliament of Provence signalized its zeal for the faith, and attested its worthiness to be a sovereign court of the kingdom.[463] From its severe sentences, however, appeals had once and again been taken by the Waldenses to Francis, who had granted them his royal pardon on condition of their abjuration of their errors within six months.[464]

[Sidenote: Inhabitants of Merindol cited.]

The slow methods heretofore pursued having proved abortive, in 1540 the parliament summoned to its bar, as suspected of heresy, fifteen or twenty[465] of the inhabitants of the village of Merindol. On the appointed day the accused made their way to Aix, but, on stopping to obtain legal advice of a lawyer more candid than others to whom they had first applied, and who had declined to give counsel to reputed Lutherans, they were warned by no means to appear, as their death was already resolved upon. They acted on the friendly injunction, and fled while it was still time.

[Sidenote: The atrocious Arret de Merindol, Nov. 18, 1540.]

Finding itself balked for the time of its expected prey, the parliament resolved to avenge the slight put upon its authority, by compa.s.sing the ruin of a larger number of victims. On the eighteenth of November, 1540, the order was given which has since become infamous under the designation of the "_Arret de Merindol_." The persons who had failed to obey the summons were sentenced to be burned alive, as heretics and guilty of treason against G.o.d and the King. If not apprehended in person, they were to be burned in effigy, their wives and children proscribed, and their possessions confiscated. As if this were not enough to satisfy the most inordinate greed of vengeance, parliament ordered _that all the houses of Merindol be burned and razed to the ground, and the trees cut down for a distance of two hundred paces on every side, in order that the spot which had been the receptacle of heresy might be forever uninhabited_! Finally, with an affectation which would seem puerile were it not the conclusion of so sanguinary a doc.u.ment, the owners of lands were forbidden to lease any part of Merindol to a tenant bearing the same name, or belonging to the same family, as the miscreants against whom the decree was fulminated.[466]

[Sidenote: It is condemned by public opinion.]

A more atrocious sentence was, perhaps, never rendered by a court of justice than the _Arret de Merindol_, which condemned the accused without a hearing, confounded the innocent with the guilty, and consigned the entire population of a peaceful village, by a single stroke of the pen, to a cruel death, or a scarcely less terrible exile.

For ten righteous persons G.o.d would have spared guilty Sodom; but neither the virtues of the inoffensive inhabitants, nor the presence of many Roman Catholics among them, could insure the safety of the ill-fated Merindol at the hands of merciless judges.[467] The publication of the _Arret_ occasioned, even within the bounds of the province, the most severe animadversion; nor were there wanting men of learning and high social position, who, while commenting freely upon the scandalous morals of the clergy, expressed their conviction that the public welfare would be promoted rather by restraining and reforming the profligacy of the ecclesiastics, than by issuing b.l.o.o.d.y edicts against the most exemplary part of the community.[468]

[Sidenote: Preparations to carry it into effect.]

Meantime, however, the archbishops of Arles and of Aix urged the prompt execution of the sentence, and the convocations of clergy offered to defray the expense of the levy of troops needed to carry it into effect.

The Archbishop of Aix used his personal influence with Cha.s.sanee, the First President of the Parliament, who, with the more moderate judges, had only consented to the enactment as a threat which he never intended to execute.[469] And the wily prelate so far succeeded by his arguments, and by the a.s.surance he gave of the protection of the Cardinal of Tournon, in case the matter should reach the king's ears, that the definite order was actually promulgated for the destruction of Merindol. Troops were accordingly raised, and, in fact, the vanguard of a formidable army had reached a spot within three miles of the devoted village, when the command was suddenly received to retreat, the soldiers were disbanded, and the astonished Waldenses beheld the dreaded outburst of the storm strangely delayed.[470]

[Sidenote: It is delayed by friendly interposition.]