Valois

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From its accession to the French throne in 1328 through its end in 1589, the Valois dynasty included thirteen kings: Philip VI (ruled 1328–1350); John the Good (1350–1364); Charles V (1364–1380); Charles VI (1380–1422); Charles VII (1422–1461); Louis XI (1461–1483); Charles VIII (1483–1498); Louis XII (1498–1515); Francis I (1515–1547); Henry II (1547–1559); Francis II (1559–1560); Charles IX (1560–1574); Henry III (1574–1589).

Over this period, the dynasty presided over some of the most violent years in French history. Its reign included the Hundred Years' War (1337–1453) and the Wars of Religion (1562–1598), two periods in which it seemed that France itself might break apart; and from 1495 through 1557 there were a series of wars with the kings of Spain, with each side seeking hegemony in Italy. The sixteenth-century Valois also confronted the advent of Protestantism, and their response to it continued to influence French society well into the nineteenth century. Despite the advantages that converting to Protestantism might have offered, Francis I and Henry II vigorously prosecuted all forms of heresy; and Charles IX endorsed the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre of Protestants in 1572. As a result, to the end of the Old Regime the French monarchy would remain closely allied with Catholic ritual and belief.

The Valois included colorful characters to match the dramatic times in which they ruled. A patron of the arts and ambitious warrior, Francis I was a Renaissance monarch well suited to compete with his contemporaries Henry VIII of England (ruled 1509–1547) and the Emperor Charles V (ruled 1519–1556). But several other members of the dynasty showed signs of mental instability, and in both the fifteenth and the sixteenth centuries these had dire political consequences.

Bibliography

Baumgartner, Frederic J. Henry II, King of France, 1547– 1559. Durham, N.C., 1988.

Knecht, R. J. Francis I. New York, 1982.

——. The French Civil Wars, 1562–1598. New York, 2000.

—JONATHAN DEWALD