The regency of Marie de Médicis : a study of French history from 1610 to 1616

Front matter

.The Regency ot M A R ! P TiY MFD I C IS

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Preface

The withdrawal of the Due de Sully from affairs some months after the death of Henry IV. has always seemed to me a subject inviting more attention and research than has been given it in these days. It was a momentous step for him to take, and fraught with the most farreaching results for France.

I have considered his position for a long time, and have tried, by the aid of all the side-lights possible, chiefly the works of the late Professor Berthold Zeller, under whose eye I laboured, to bring before my readers what the real situation was ; why and how the all-powerful Sully became gradually stripped of his power until he was compelled to resign early in the year 1611.

I have tried to point out the consummate skill for intrigue which Marie de Medicis possessed, and how she turned to account quarrels which seemed of no significance. I have tried to deal succinctly with such characters as the Prince de

IV

Preface

Conde, the Due de Bouillon, the Marechal d'Ancre, the Comte de Soissons, and the minister de Villeroy. It has been my object to place them as nearly as possible in the relations which they seem to have occupied towards the Regent. I have tried to show how the struggle between the Queen and Conde resulted in the shifting of the power into the hands of a ministry appointed by the Florentine Concino Concini. Finally, I have attempted to give a clear account of the death of the Marechal d'Ancre.

If my task has been successful, and if this book has any degree of merit, it is, in a large measure, owing to the advice and counsel of such scholars as Professor Berthold Zeller of the University of Paris, and Professors George B. Adams, Oliver H. Richardson, and William L} r on Phelps of Yale, to each and all of whom I wish to return thanks. Arthur Power Lord.

New Haven, June 23, 1903.

Chapter I

May to October, 1610— Preparations for war against Spain— Secrecy of the King's plans— His reasons for appointing a Regent— The cabinet—The Due de Sully— Murder of Henry IV. —Its consequences— Eise of the Catholic party —Antagonism between it and Sully— The secret council— Plan for Sully's removal— Arrival of the Prince de Conde— Plot of the Feudal party against the Regency— The Queen's Spanish policy— Agreement for the double marriage—Disavowal of the Feudal party by Philip III.— Arrival of the Due de Feria,

Chapter II

October, 1610, to March, 1611— The coronation —Disposition of Conde towards the Regency — Understanding between the Bourbon Princes —Favour of the House of Guise— The Queen's need of their support— Isolation of Sully— Quarrel between Bellegarde and Concini— Agreement between Soissons and the ministers— Quarrel between the Bourbons and the Guises— Sully's vi Contents mistake in siding against the Princes — Probability that his dismissal was the pivot upon which the settlement of the dispute turned — Bribes offered to Conde — Sully's impressions— His resolution to make a supreme test — His quarrel with Villeroy — His dismissal— Success of the- Queen's schemes— Satisfaction at Madrid, . 16

Chapter III

March, 1611, to November, 1612— Henry IV. 's treatment of the Huguenots— Their distrust of the Eegent— Demand for an assembly — Strained relations between the parties — Sully's influence — Scheme of the ministers to divide the Huguenots — Influence of the Due de Bouillon — Election of Duplessis-Mornay — Assembly of Saumur — Act of Union — Championship of Sully's cause — Demands of the Protestants — The Queen's policy — The dissolution of the Assembly — Disillusionment of the Due de Bouillon — His influence on Conde — Story of La Descomans — Coolness between the Queen and the Guises — Rise of Concini's influence — The proposal of marriage between his family and that of Soissons — Influence of the cabinet—Its antagonism to Concini — Alliance between Cond6 and Soissons at Fontainebleau — Publication of the Spanish marriages — Anger of the Princes— Negotiations— Plot of the Feudal party against the ministers — Quarrel between the Queen and the Guises — The Moisset case —Anger of the Guises, 34

Contents vii

Chapter IV

November, 1612, to November, 1613— Death of the Comte de Soissons— Murder of the Baron de Luz— Eeasons for this act— Anger of the Queen — Preponderant influence of Conde— His exactions—Revulsion of the Regent's sentiments- Rehabilitation of the Guises— Reinstatement of the ministers— Surprise of Conde— He leaves the court— The Villeroy-Concini marriage— Coldness between Villeroy and Sillery— Villeroy's disposition in regard to the marriage — His influence against Concini— The Maignat case— Its settlement—Disillusionment of Villeroy— The signature of the marriage contract — Surprise of the Feudal party— Resolution to try force, . . • .53

Chapter V

November, 1613, to October, 1614— Reckless behaviour of the Queen— Death of de Fervaques — Appointment of Concini to his office — The Marshal d'Ancre— Anger of Cond6— Further extravagance of Marie de Medicis— The revolt— Negotiations— Seizure of Mezieres —Conde's manifesto — Struggle between Villeroy and Sillery— The Due de Rohan— Negotiations— Death of Montmorency— Influence on the Due de Bouillon- Treaty of St. Menehould— Conde's attempt on Poictiers— His Failure— Louis XIII.'s expedition viii Contents to Poictiers — His popularity — Eesults of the journey — Surrender of Conde — The election — Influence of Concini — His party — Influence of Barbin and Eichelieu — Resolve to change the ministry, 67

Chapter VI

October, 1614, to February, 1615— Diplomatic victory for the Queen over Conde — Proclamation of the Estates General — The King's majority — The Prince de Conde — Opening ceremonies of the Assembly — Jealousy of the Nobles for the Third Estate — La Paulette— Quarrel between the privileged orders of the lower house — Conde's new role — The Gallican party — Its quarrel with the Clergy— Influence of Conde against the Nobles — Settlement of the dispute — Insults to the Parliament — The financial system — Quarrel between the deputies and the court — The Queen appears to yield — Appointment of commissioners — Comedy of auditing the accounts — Desire of the ministers to finish the Assembly — Orders from the King — Effect of the Estates upon the deputies — Closing Scenes, 83

Chapter VII

March, 1615, to June, 1616— Popularity of Conde— Ee-establishment of "la Paulette "—The Queen and the Parliament— Its alliance with Conde—

Contents ix

Declaration of its position — Conde leaves for St. Maur — Quarrel between the Queen and the Gallicans — Approaching realisation of the King's marriage — Villeroy's change of attitude — Ultimatum to the Prince, and his reply — Arrest of le Jay and departure of the court for Bordeaux — Rupture between the Marquis d'Ancre and the Chancellor — Agreement between the Assembly of Nimes and Conde — Arrival of the King at Bordeaux — The marriages — Peace negotiations — Conde aspires to the Eegency — His demands — Interviews between the Queen and Villeroy — Signature of the Treaty of Loudun — Fall of the old ministers 105

Chapter VIII

June to September, 1616 — Delay of the Prince in returning to Paris — The Queen's desire to have him come back — Richelieu's mission — Conde's decision — His interview with Sully — His arrival — Arrogance of Concini — Barbin and the Prince — Plot against the Marshal d'Ancre — Arrival of the English Ambassador — Conde's power — Desire of the Princes to kill Concini — Conde advises him to leave Paris — Seizure of Peronne — Anger of the Queen — Influence of Richelieu — Interview between the Regent and Sully — Resolution to arrest Conde— The coup d'etat, . . . .128

Chapter IX

September, 1616, to April, 1617— The Feudal party leave the Court — Negotiations — Revolt of Nevers x Contents

— Resignation of Du Vair — Appointment of Richelieu—Energetic measures of the Cabinet — Albert de Luynes— His influence on the King — Arrogance of Concini — His imprudence — His presentiment of death — His recklessness — Luynes' duplicity — Concini's ambition to become Constable — He raises troops — His letter to the King — Louis' anger — He is persuaded that a plot exists against his life — His resolve to kill Concini — The plot — The murder — The end of the Regency, . . .141

ILLUSTRATIONS

PAGE

Marie de Medecis, . . . Frontispiece

Maximilien de Bethune, Due de Sully, . . 34

Louis de Bourbon, Comte de Soissons, . . 54

Hector d'Orleans, Due de Longueville, . . 80

Concino Concini, Marechal d'Ancre, . . 142

THE REGENCY

OF

MARIE DE MEDICIS

Chapter I

May to October, 1610— Preparations for war against Spain— Secrecy of the King's plans— His reasons for appointing a Regent— The cabinet— The Due de Sully —Murder of Henry IV.— Its consequences— Rise of the Catholic party— Antagonism between it and Sully —The secret council— Plan for Sully's removal- Arrival of the Prince de Conde— Plot of the Feudal party against the Regency— The Queen's Spanish policy — Agreement for the double marriage— Disavowal of the Feudal party by Philip HI.— Arrival of the Due de Feria.

France had rested since 1595. The Paris of the League had become the city of Henry IV. Art and commerce prospered, and there seemed to be no cloud in the serene political atmosphere.

Suddenly,in the spring of 1610, soldiers began to pour into the town in ever-increasing numbers. Tents began to whiten the green hills; the clink of the armourers' hammers became incessant ; the forges glowed by day and by night, the lights helping to throw into relief strange figures of men, bearded and bronzed, who brought helmets and breastplates to the anvils. Long lines of creaking vans crawled slowly through the streets escorted by troops of horsemen, toiling slowly along towards the south. The Parisians stared open-mouthed. Gradually the army marched away, but when the last squadron had disappeared the burghers turned to each other. " What does it all mean ? Whither are the soldiers going, and for how long? Who is to be attacked? " they asked, but no one could give an exact answer to these queries, for Henry IV. had confided in only one person, his favourite minister, the Due de Sully.

What eager looks followed the figure of the great Huguenot as he moved between the palace and the arsenal ! What questions were put to him by the courtiers who strove to pierce his

Henry Chooses a Regent 3

reserve ! But he was impenetrable, and his very reticence seemed to give a new impulse to the wild rumours of which the town was full.

The excitement was intensified when the King announced his intention of appointing the Queen Marie de Medicis Regent, and of crowning her at St. Denis before his departure. This precaution made one thing unmistakable; France was about to begin a struggle to the death with some great power.

From the modern standpoint the wisdom of the King's choice is open to discussion, but Henry could not hesitate; the Dauphin was a baby of six; disaffection reigned among the Princes of the Blood. One had fled from Paris and lived in exile; another was so infirm in his speech and so deaf that he passed for an imbecile. The third, Louis de Bourbon, Comte de Soissons, had retired to his estates in a rage because his wife was forbidden to wear the lilies of France on her cloak at the Queen's coronation. The King was obliged to place the sceptre in a hand sufficiently strong to hold it, and he hoped that his wife would overcome her Italian slothfulness, calm her temper, and apply herself to mastering the science of government.

He surrounded her with his ablest ministers. Villeroy, and his colleague, Brulart de Sillery, men broken to diplomacy by the experience of two reigns ; the president, Pierre Jeannin, one of the ablest councillors of the robe, whose parliamentary career fitted him exceptionally well for the position he was to hold, and the Due de Sully composed the cabinet. Undoubtedly the latter was the man upon whom the King relied most. He was Henry's other self. His great mind had raised France from the state of anaemia resulting from the religious wars to an enviable position in riches and power. He had devised the system of finance which had enabled the monarch to interfere in continental politics ; he had gained such an influence over the King that often his single word was a bulwark against his master's extravagance, and Henry could not see how it was possible for affairs to go wrong in his absence, so long as his counterpart remained in Paris. Yet no one knew how close the monarch stood to the brink of the grave, nor how soon

The Murder those plans which he had formed for the good of his kingdom would be annihilated by the rapacity of his subjects. On the 10th of May, 1610, the blow fell. Towards the middle of the afternoon the King called his coach with the intention of driving to the arsenal; on the way the carriage halted in the rue de la Ferronnerie, and a fanatic, who had been watching Henry for days, seized the opportunity to spring upon the wheel and stab him to the heart.

Much may be seen in this act of regicide. It was not merely a murder committed by a private individual, it was not an act of revenge or personal malice, but the expression of a feeling which lay like a weight upon the hearts of the common people. The King's policy was ahead of his time, and he had made no calculation for the fanaticism of the men who but yesterday marched under the banners of the League. The treaty of Brussol shows us that Henry's object was to attack Spain,* but in 1610 his intentions were almost unknown, and the populace was pro-

* See Du Mont., Corps Uhiversel Diplomatique du Droit des Gens, I. p. 85.

foundly agitated. Rumours were rife that war was to be declared upon the Pope, and Ravaillac confessed that he had been impelled to kill the King owing to this very idea.* His act marks the -end of a period as distinctly as if the stroke of the knife had been a point of punctuation which closed a chapter in France's history, and its consequences reached farther than the keenest mind could foresee.

The Queen was to be a ruler, not a puppet, and henceforth her personal equation became the prime factor of the situation. France ceased to be a united power. The rule of the strong man gave way to the weak administration of a woman whose support lay in a party. Two factions, based upon religious prejudices, immediately sprang into activity. Sully and the Regent became antagonists instead of allies.

Two men of action, the Due d'Epernon and the Due de Guise, whose father Henry III. murdered at Blois, seized the opportunity to become the Queen's advisers. They posted guards

* Mercure Frangois ou suite de l'kistoire de la Paix, I. pp. 442-443.

Sully's Mistake about Paris, harangued the Parliament, and took all the measures necessary for establishing the Regency.* Sully in his arsenal heard the rumour of what was going on, but at the time when he should have been all firmness and decision he was torn with doubts and fears; when he finally mounted his horse to go to the Louvre the golden opportunity had gone. In the rue St. Antoine he met Bassompierre, who was posting the guard; checking his tears as best he could, he begged the Count to swear fealty to Louis XIII. , out of his love for the child's father, if not for the lad's own sake. " Sir," answered Bassompierre coldly, " we are administering that oath to others and will do our duty without being urged." f

" We are administering that oath to others."

* A little less than three hours after the King's death Parliament made the Queen Regent by a solemn decree, but the act had no precedent, so the next day Louis XIII. held a Lit de Justice to confirm the title which the court had given his mother. The Lit de Justice was the most solemn function which a monarch could perform. The King sitting in the midst of his Parliament, surrounded by all the dignitaries of France, registered his will as a law.

f Bassompierre, Journal de ma vie, T. I. p. 277, ed. Chanterac. Paris, 1870.

The words fell with an ominous sound on the Huguenot's ear, for they meant that the power had passed into other hands. The person whose presence had united all Frenchmen, and had obliterated party distinctions, was gone, and men had once more become Catholics and Protestants, Guisards and Bourbons. Turning his horse he retreated to the Bastille, which he proceeded to provision for a siege. All the bread in the quarter was seized and a courier went galloping off to the Due de Rohan with an order to bring his regiment of Swiss mercenaries to the capital.*

If Sully expected the Catholic party to attack him by force he had mistaken the character of the Regent. Marie de Medicis preferred intrigue to strength, and the Duke might have spared himself several nights of anxiety as he watched from the battlements of his fortress. The assault was to be delivered in the cabinet, not in the field. What could have been more logical than for the Catholics to rid themselves of Sully, the one discordant element in their midst ? They left him his seat at the council for * BassompUrre, pp. 277-278.

Catholic Influence a time, but gradually affairs were discussed more and more in a third or inner council from which the Comptroller of the Currency was excluded.*

This the historian L'Estoile calls " le conseil du petit escritoire," and comprised the Papal Nuncio, the Spanish Ambassador, the Due d'Epernon, Villeroy, the Chevalier Sillery and his brother the Chancellor, the President Jeannin, Arnault and Dole, members of the financial administration, Duret the Queen's physician, the confessor Cotton, and last, but most important, Concino Concini, and his wife Leonora Galigai'.

Leonora was the Regent's foster-sister, and had come from Florence with her. Concino had also made his appearance in the train of the new Queen. This handsome and unscrupulous Florentine paid court to Leonora, who, small and deformed, was flattered and finally won by Concini. Owing to the influence which his wife possessed, his advancement was rapid. The Concinis had often been the witnesses of the furious quarrels which the late King had had with his wife about

* Rohan Memoires, ed. Michaud et Poujoulat, 2me seiie, V. p. 493.

io Regency of Marie de Me"dicis

his mistresses. When Henry wished to make peace he approached Leonora, and she, whose one desire in life was money, would often precipitate these scenes, hoping that the negotiations for reconciliation might bring her rich rewards.

The King saw their influence upon his wife, and hated the couple intensely. He threatened to send the Queen and her confidants back to Florence, and no one knows what the result might have been had not Ravaillac settled it. After the catastrophe Concino's fortune increased by leaps and bounds. Leonora held the Queen's attention at all times, and there seemed to be no limit to Marie de Medicis' liberality.

The only logical aim of the inner council was to commit the Queen to a policy so ultra-Catholic that Sully should be forced to retire from the court. Their first move was to stop recruiting for the army, which lay at the foot of the Alps waiting the signal to burst into Italy. Then the Papal Nuncio filed a protest against sending help to the Protestant Princes who were besieging Juliers, but it was a little too soon

Condi's Opportunity n

after Henry's death to knock the foundations out from under his political structure, and the attempt failed.* Neither the Queen nor Villeroy, who had assumed all authority in the council, was ready to break absolutely with the traditions of the last reign, for the Prince de Conde had not yet returned to court.

This Prince, who had gone into voluntary exile in order to remove his wife from the attentions of Henry IV., was a factor in the situation which could not be overlooked. If he came back well disposed towards the Regency, all might be well. If, on the other hand, he should return with the idea of opposing the government he might either become the chief of the Huguenots or assume the leadership of the Princes, who, already dissatisfied, were only kept in subjection by immense sacrifices.! Villeroy preferred that Conde should return and find nothing irrevocably decided, that Sully should

* Mercure Francois, T. I. p. 523.

f Conti and Soissons had applied for the government of Normandy. Their request was refused, though the province was finally given to Soissons ; he also received immense sums of money.

still appear to be in office, and that he — Villeroy — should have a chance to win the Prince by bribes and fair words.

Conde arrived in Paris on the 16th of July. He was well received, but the Queen's kindness seems to have inspired him with contempt. He judged that the Regent needed his friendship, and was willing to buy it rather than have him for an enemy. He accepted the gifts which were showered upon him, and became the chief of her opponents.

A league was formed which comprised most of the great nobles of the Kingdom. This party resolved not to endure the Regency, and intended to insist upon summoning the Estates General ; they hoped to gain the people and the clergy by putting forward the reduction of taxes, and the immunities of the Church. In the interest of this coalition Conde interviewed the Comte de Bucquoy at Saint Maur, one of his country seats, asking him to sound Spinola and ascertain what he might expect in case of a rupture.* * Bucquoy, July 27, 1610. Archives of Brussels, cited by

The Double Marriage 13

It is reasonable to infer that the King of Spain warned the French cabinet about the proposed rebellion, for the policy of the government, which had as yet assumed no definite shape, suddenly became entirely Spanish. The Regent listened to the propositions which had been made to her husband by Matteo Botti, the Florentine Ambassador, concerning a double marriage between the heirs of France and Spain. Henry had spurned the proposal, but the Queen had no antipathy against the house from which she was descended on her mother's side, and she rejoiced because the glorious task of assuring the peace of Europe by a marriage between the two crowns had fallen to her.* The Convention of Brussol, which the dead King had made with the Due de Savoie, was absolutely disregarded. France offered Charles Emmanuel an empty mediation, proposing at the same time, with

Rarike, Fransosiche Geschichte : French trans, by J. J. Porchat, III. pp. 5-6. Don Inigo de Cardenas to the Council of State, August 10, 1610, cited by F. T. Perrens in Les Mariages Espagnols sous Henri IV. et la Regence de Marie de Medicis, p. 306. * Ranke, Fransosiche Geschichte, T. III. p. 15.

monumental assurance, that the Prince Victor Amadeus, who was to have married Elisabeth of France, should wed a Florentine princess.* To remove the last shadow of suspicion from Madrid,' the army of Lesdiguieres, which had remained inactive since May, was disbanded.

Philip III. could now afford to declare his policy with regard to the Feudal party and to reassure the French Queen; so, shortly before Louis XIII.'s coronation, which was fixed for October, Feria, the Spanish envoy, arrived in Paris. His very first act was to disavow Conde and his partisans.

Freed from the fear that the Princes might receive help from Spain, Marie de Medicis gave full sway to her policy. The inner council had already suggested that, if she cared for the good will of the Pope, she could not maintain a Huguenot in the first office of the Kingdom.f Sully's removal was decided upon, but this was no easy task, for in his capacity of chief of the Hugue-

* La Minorite de Louis XIII. , Marie de Medicis et Bully. B. Zeller, pp. 245-256. f Eohan Memoires, p. 493, ed. Michaud et Poujoulat.

Villeroy's Plan 15

nots, and of captain of the Bastille, he might have made a great deal of trouble for the government. In order to ruin him it became necessary to isolate him. This was Villeroy's idea, and the Regent, relying implicitly upon his ability, gave her consent. The old diplomat had set himself to solve a difficult problem; his enemy had made firm friends of the Due de Guise and the Prince de Conde.* Nothing daunted, to quote the energetic language of Cardinal de Richelieu, " he put the irons in the fire to bring about the removal of the Due de Sully."

* Sully had paid the Duke an advance on his pension and had settled Conde's claim to the arrears due him since his flight.

Chapter II

October, 1610, to March, 1611 — The coronation — Disposition of Conde" towards the Eegency — Understanding between the Bourbon Princes — Favour of the House of Guise — The Queen's need of their support — Isolation of Sully — Quarrel between Bellegarde and Ooncini — Agreement between Soissons and the ministers — Quarrel between the Bourbons and the Guises — Sully's mistake in siding against the Princes — Probability that his dismissal was the pivot upon which the settlement of the dispute turned — Bribes offered to Conde — Sully's impressions — His resolution to make a supreme test — His quarrel with Villeroy — His dismissal — Success of the Queen's schemes — Satisfaction at Madrid.

The early days of October found the Regent and the court at Monceau, whither they had gone by easy stages from Paris. All the King's journeys were made to savour as much as possible of the chase, and he arrived at the old residence with his falcon on his wrist. A week later, on October 16, 1610, Louis entered Reims, in whose venerable cathedral he was to receive the crown of his ancestors. Nothing of especial note marked the coronation, except that the jeal- 16

Guise and Bourbon 17

ousy of the Guises for the Bourbons found an opportunity of showing itself when the Order of the Holy Ghost was conferred upon the Prince de Conde. The Cardinal de Joyeuse, the patriarch of his family, was likewise offered this decoration, but he excused himself, saying that in his quality of Prince of the Church he could not be second to a layman.*

With this exception all parties appeared to have laid aside their differences to do honour to their young monarch. The Prince de Conde figured in the ceremony as the Due de Bourgogne, the Prince de Conti took the part of the Due de Normandie, and the Comte de Soissons represented the Due d'Aquitaine. But as soon as the coronation was over it became evident that Conde was not likely to submit quietly to the rule of Marie de Medicis.

Foiled by Philip III.'s categorical refusal to aid the Feudal party, he turned his attention to centralising the resistance of the nobles. The court had given him permission to visit his wife

* Journal de Jean Heroard sur 1'enfance et la jeunesse de Louis XIII., ed. Soulie et Bartkelemy, II. 36-32.

at Valery, and under cover of this specious excuse he went to see the Due de Bouillon.*

A visit to this personage was sufficient to arouse the viligance of the ministers; for his ability in the field rendered him a valuable addition to the party ; his wisdom in council was recognised even by his foes ; his capacity for intrigue was unsurpassed; while his influence with the Huguenots was greatly dreaded. Richelieu calls him " the genius of rebellion," and it is certain that Henry IV. feared him as much as any of his great nobles. Holding in his control one of the frontier cities of France, Bouillon felt that he might summon aid from outside at any time ; he had the opportunity of becoming a great leader, but was too frivolous and too grasping to care to lead; he preferred advantages, money, offices, or governments. When there was nothing to gain by being against the party in power he was its most humble servant.

The Duke showed the Prince that a united party had more chance of making head against

* Histoire des Princes de Conde pendant le XVI. et le XVII. Siecle, Due d'Aumale, III, 11, Paris, 1885.

Conference at Chantilly 19

the Regent than he, single-handed. He advised him to come to an understanding with the Comte de Soissons, whom Conde had just beaten in a law suit. The Prince de Conti was not approached. He was on bad terms with his brother owing to a dispute about the government of Normandy, of which we shall speak later, and his wife, who belonged to the Guise faction, did all in her power to animate his resentment.

The conference took place at Chantilly under the auspices of the Constable de Montmorency, whose son-in-law, the Comte d'Auvergne, was languishing in the Bastille for complicity in Biron's conspiracy, and in spite of Montmorency's efforts the Regent refused to release him. The old warrior's irritable temper was not improved by this treatment, and he was glad to do all he could to unite the Princes against the Queen.