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Conversion of Henry IV to Catholicism
On 25 July 1593 Henry, King of Navarre and Huguenot leader (later Henry IV), publicly converted to Catholicism at the Basilica of Saint-Denis near Pa…
Timeline
- 1590–1593Paris · Île-de-FranceAfter the assassination of Henry III, Henry of Navarre, as the lawful heir, was resisted by the Catholic League and the defenders of Paris; the prolonged siege failed to take the capital, and royal unity was blocked by religious division.
- 1593Basilica of Saint-Denis · Saint-DenisHenry received Catholic rites at Saint-Denis and publicly renounced his Calvinist faith, trading a political decision for the recognition of his rule's legitimacy by Paris and the ecclesiastical elite; history records it as "Paris is worth a mass."
- 1594–1596Paris · Île-de-FranceAfter converting, Henry entered Paris in 1594 and was crowned at Chartres; the Catholic League lost its pretext for resistance and gradually dissolved, and the rebuilding of royal power entered a new phase.
Sources
- Henry IV, King of France — Roland Mousnier (1973)
- The French Wars of Religion, 1562-1629 — Mack P. Holt (2005)