Paris was abuzz with excitement. Thousands of people came from all over France to celebrate the royal wedding between Henry of Navarre (1553-1610) and Margaret of Valois (1553-1615). It was supposed to be a week of jubilation for the country, but it turned into a nightmare of historic proportions..
Six days after Henry and Margaret were pronounced man and wife in Notre Dame Cathedral on 18 August 1572, the capital, which was still teeming with visitors, became a stage for religious violence between Catholics and Protestants. On Saint Bartholomew's Day (24 August), a massacre occurred. Unspeakable crimes took place between men who were once brothers. A countless number of Protestants were killed - along with more than a few Catholics. As such it became one of the most horrific days of the ongoing war between supporters of the Church and the followers of John Calvin (1509-1564) - Protestants known as Huguenots in France. They rejected Church authority and subscribed to theological views deemed heretical by the Vatican. Consequently, France became ideologically divided and thrown into a bitter civil war.
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Henry of Navarre (Navarre is a Spanish province that borders France) not only fought Catholic armies for the Protestant cause as a Protestant but he was also in line to become the next King of France. Hence, power in the form of the right of succession was at the heart of the struggle.
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After nearly a dozen years in the field, Henry of Navarre found himself besieged by two other Henrys. While Henry III (1551-1589), the young French Catholic King, conducted a Royalist campaign against Protestant armies, the Catholic League, led by Henry I, Duke of Guise (1550-1588), undertook the far more ambitious and sinister mission of expunging Protestantism and all Protestants from France altogether. Notably, Henry I received support from the Pope and Philip II of Spain (1527-1598). Although the 'War of Three Henrys,' which lasted from 1587 to 1589, ended with the death of King Henry III on 2 August, it took five long, hard years for Henry of Navarre to accede to the throne.
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They would prove to be among his finest years.
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As Margaret had saved her husband from the anti-Protestant mobs of Paris, Henry was surely appreciative, but she was a stranger to him. Their marriage just before the Saint Bartholomew's Day massacre had been arranged for political reasons. During his trying time between the 'War of Three Henrys' (1587-1589) and his coronation as King on 27 February 1594, Henry continued to command his Protestant army at great odds. Where did he find the courage to press on?
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His inspiration came from Gabrielle d' Estrees (1573-1599) - the love of Henry's life. They adored each other. Rather than sit idly by hoping Henry would emerge victorious, Gabrielle joined him on his campaigns - even while pregnant - as she would bear him four children in quick succession. Yet, she did far more than just take care of Henry by feeding and clothing him. Gabrielle was his confidant, best friend and first adviser in all matters. It was a matter of true love and complete trust.
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By the early 1590s, it became clear to Gabrielle that the war was not winnable. Neither Catholic Paris nor predominantly Catholic France were going to allow Henry to become ruler as a Protestant. Hence, she advised Henry to convert to Catholicism to end the vicious religious wars. He agreed, and reportedly stated, "Paris vaut bien une messe" ('Paris is well worth a Mass'). In short, Henry decided to sacrifice his rigid ideas for the good of the country, and he became a Catholic on 25 July 1593.
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Was his conversion a cynical ploy to gain power? Four years after becoming Henry IV, King of France, Henry answered those critics who made this very assertion by issuing the Edict of Nantes (1598) - a proclamation that granted religious tolerance to Protestants - allowing each citizen to decide his or her religion as a matter of conscience. It was a watershed moment of history and the beginning of the modern conception of human rights.
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For sixteen years, Henry ruled with compassion and justice toward all of his subjects. Perhaps his reign of can best be summed up in his most famous utterance, "Si Dieu me prete vie, je ferai qu'il n'y aura point de laboureur en mon royaume qui n'ait les moyens d'avoir le dimanche une poule dans son pot!" ('If God keeps me, I will make sure that there is no working man in my kingdom who does not have the means to have a chicken in the pot every Sunday') By comparison to many regimes in the early twenty-first century, Henry was a supremely enlightened ruler due to his endorsement of both religious freedom and a significant degree of economic equality. For his good nature and devotion to France, he earned the nickname le bon roi Henry ('Good King Henry').
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Unfortunately, his personal story does not have a happy ending. Gabrielle unexpectedly died in April 1599 at age twenty-six or twenty-seven (her date of birth is unknown). Henry was devastated but served his country honorably for eleven more years. On 14 May 1610, Henry was stabbed to death by a Catholic religious fanatic who likely had taken umbrage at his grant of religious tolerance to Protestants. Despite his tragic last years, however, Henry IV died triumphantly. He had brought war to an end and succeeded in ushering in a new age of liberty.
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The Lessons of Henry IV for The Twenty-First Century
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Beyond these historical facts, what can a person, who lives in the globalized twenty-first century, learn from Henry of Navarre (Henry IV)? Actually, there are many universal truths in his tale.
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Arranged Marriages: Many people, particularly in parts of South Asia, still practice arranged marriage. On countless numbers of websites in India, for example, teenagers post their thoughts on its validity. Some believe it to be practical. Others consider spontaneous romantic love the only option. Whatever the case, parents who force their children into arranged marriages are likely to cause significant harm to both the young man and the young woman. Henry probably liked Margaret, but he could not love her. As a result, his heart, which sought true love, belonged to Gabrielle.
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Religious/Ideological Tolerance: There are far too many states in the twenty-first century that do not allow their citizens the right to worship or not worship as a matter of individual choice. This tyranny of the mind must come to an end. No state has the right to prevent people from exercising their religious preferences or expressing their religious views in public. From Henry's precedent in the Edict of Nantes, Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), the author of the American Declaration of Independence, once rightly quipped, "But it does me no injury for my neighbor to say there are twenty gods or no god. It neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg." That is the view the entire world must adopt.
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Women: A Force in History: If Margaret (Henry's first wife) had not saved him from religious mobs and Henry had failed to listen to Gabrielle's advice on becoming a Catholic, how much success would Henry have had in attaining the throne, uniting France and bringing peace to the country? Not much. Henry respected women as equal human beings. That was not only his strength but the strength of his reign and the strength of his kingdom. Henry was biologically made, socially made and intellectually made by women. As such, he retained a profound sense of indebtedness to womankind throughout his life. The twenty-first century male ought to follow his example.
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Love: What do the following words have in common: girlfriend, boyfriend, husband, wife, spouse, fiancee? They are all words that connote possessive love relationships. When Henry fell in love and began his relationship with Gabrielle, it might be said that he was 'cheating' on his wife. As his marriage to Margaret was arranged out of politics, however, was Henry actually 'cheating'? Perhaps Henry was cheated out of the opportunity to find true love, and his marriage was more a form of cheating than his relationship with Gabrielle. Humankind has attempted to bottle love since the beginning of time, and the attempt to capture romantic love will likely never cease. Yet, the world may be moving to a new definition of love without possession. As much as Henry adored Gabrielle, he loved many other women quite genuinely. Hence, Henry may one day be considered a social pioneer of sorts if possessive love declines and falls over the next century.
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While there may not be any such thing as a 'Great Man or Great Woman' in history, some men and some women are greater than others. They are exceptional, and these exceptional figures of history all have the same character traits: intelligence, tolerance, empathy, fairness and a vision of hope.
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That is the leadership the world needs in 2012 and beyond.
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(Image: A Portrait of Henry IV. To view images of Henry's wife Margaret and his mistress, Gabrielle, please click onto KleosTimes at the right and check the postings for 29 December)
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J Roquen