rishes where nothing else can grow, and the reformation diffused itself more and more in this reign. The exiles at Geneva filled France with a new translation of the bible, with books, letters, catechisms, hymns, and preachers, and the people, contrasting the religion of Christ with the religion of Rome, entertained a most serious aversion for the latter.

In the last king ended the family of Valois, and the next heir was Henry IV. of the house of Bourbon, King of Navarre. His majesty had been educated a protestant, and had been the protector of the party, and the protestants had reason to expect much from him on his ascending the throne of France: but he had many difficulties to surmount, for could the men, who would not bear a hugonot subject, bear a hugonot king? Some of the old faction disputed his title, and all insisted on a christian king. Henry had for him on the one side, almost all the nobility, the whole court of the late king, all protestant states and princes, and the old hugonot troops: on the other he had against him, the common people, most of the great cities, all the parliaments except two, the greatest part of the clergy, the Pope, the King of Spain, and most catholic states. Four years his majesty deliberated, negociated, and fought, but could not gain Paris. At length, the league set up a king of the house of Guise, and Henry found that the throne was inaccessable to all but papists, he therefore renounced heresy before Dr. Benoit, a moderate papist, and professed his conversion to popery. Paris opened its gates, 1594, the pope sent an absolution, and Henry became a most christian king. Every man may rejoice that his virtue is not put to the trial of refusing a crown!

When his majesty got to his palace in Paris, he thought proper to conciliate his new friends by shewing them particular esteem, and played at cards the first evening with a lady of the house of Guise, the most violent leaguer in all the party. His old servants who had shed rivers of Llood to bring the house of Bourbon to the throne, thought themselves neglected. While the protestants were slighted, and while those, who had followed the league, were disengaging them selves from it on advantageous conditions, one of the king's old friends said; "We do not envy your killing the fatted calf for the prodigal son, provided you do not sacrifice the obedient son to make the better entertainment for the prodigal. I dread those bargains, in which things are given up,

and

and nothing got but mere words, the words of those who hitherto have had no words at all."

By ascending the throne of France, Henry had risen to the highest degree of wretchedness. He had offered violence to his conscience by embracing popery, and he had stirred up å general discontent among the French protestants. The queen of England, and the protestant states, reproached him bitterly, the league refused to acknowledge him till the pope had absolved him in form, the king of 8pain caballed for the crown, several cities held out against him, many of the clergy thought him an hypocrite, and refused to insert his name in the public prayers of the church, the lawyers published li bels against him, the jesuits threatened to assassinate him, and actually attempted to do it. In this delicate and difficult situation, though his majesty manifested the frailty of humanity by renouncing protestantism, yet he extricated himself and his subjects from the fatal labyrinths in which they were all involved, so that he deservedly acquired even from his enemies the epithet Great, though his friends durst not give him that of Good.

The king had been so well acquainted with the protestants, that he perfectly knew their principles, and, could he have acted as he would, he would have instantly granted them all they wanted. Their enemies had falsely said, that they were enemies to government: but the king knew better, and he also knew that the claims of his family would have been long ago buried in oblivion, had not the protestants supported them. Marshal Biron had been one chief instrument of bringing him to the throne. The marshal was not a good hugonot, nor did he profess to be a papist: but he espoused the protestant party, for he was a man of great sense, and he hated violence in religion; and there were many more of the same cast. Parties, however, ran so high that precipitance would have lost all, and Henry was obliged to proceed by slow and cautious steps.

The deputies of the reformed churches soon waited on his majesty to congratulate him, and to pray for liberty. The king allowed them to hold a general assembly, and offered them some slight satisfaction: but the hardy veteran Hugonots, who had spent their days in the field, and who knew also that persons, who were of approved fidelity, might venture to give the king their advice without angering him,. took the liberty of reminding him that they would not be paid in compliments for so many signal services. Their an

cestors,

cestors, and they had supported his right to the crown along with their own right to liberty of conscience, and as Providence had granted the one, they expected that the other would not be denied. The king felt the force of these remonstrances, and ventured to allow them to hold provincial assemblies; after a while, to convene a national synod, and, as soon as he could, he granted them the famous EDICT OF NANTZ.

The Edict of Nantz, which was called perpetual and irrevocable, and which contained ninety-two articles, beside fifty-six secret articles, granted to the protestants liberty of conscience, and the free exercise of religion; many churches in all parts of France, and judges of their own persuasion; a free access to all places of honour and dignity, great sums of money to pay off their troops; an hundred places as pledges of their future security, and certain funds to maintain both their preachers and their garrisons. The king did not send this edict to be registered in parliament till the pope's legate was gone out of the kingdom, so that it did not get there till the next year. Some of the old party in the house boggled at it very much, and particularly be cause the hugonots were hereby qualified for offices, and places of trust: but his majesty sent for some of the chiefs to his closet, made them a most pathetic speech on the occasion, and with some difficulty brought them to a compliance. It is easy to conceive that the king might be very pathetic on this occasion, for he had seen and suffered enough to make any man so: The meanest hugonot soldier could not avoid the pathos, if he related his campaigns. But it is very credible, that it was not the pathos of his majesty's language, but the power in his hand, that affected these intolerant souls.

No nation ever made a more noble struggle for recovering liberty of conscience out of the rapacious hands of the papal priesthood than the French. And one may venture to defy the most sanguine friend to intolerance to prove, that a free toleration hath, in any country, at any period, produced such calamities in society as those, which persecution produced in France. After a million of brave men had been destroyed, after nine civil wars, after four pitched battles, after the besieging of several hundred places, after more than three hundred engagements, after poisoning, burning, assassinating, massacreing, murdering in every form, France is forced to submit to what her wise chancellor de L'Hos

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pital had at first proposed, A FREE TOLERATION. of the zealous leaguers voted for it, because they had found by experience they said, that violent procecdings in matters of religion prove more destructive than edifying. A noble testimony from enemies mouths!

France now began to taste the sweets of peace, the king employed himself in making his subjects happy, and the far greater part of his subjects endeavoured to render him So. The protestants applied themselves to the care of their churches, and as they had at this time a great many able ministers, they flourished, and increased the remaining part of this reign. The doctrine of their churches was calvinism, and their discipline was presbyterian, after the Genevan plan. Their churches were supplied by able pastors; their universities were adorned with learned and pious professors, such as Casaubon, Daille, and others, whose praises are in all the reformed churches; their provincial, and national synods were regularly convened, and their people were well governed. Much pains were taken with the king to alienate his mind from his protestant subjects; but no motives could influence him. He knew the worth of the men, and he protected them till his death. This great prince was hated by the popish clergy for his lenity, and was stabbed in his coach by the execrable Ravillac, May 14, 1610, whose name inspires one with horror and pain.

Lewis XIII. was not quite nine years of age, when he succeeded his father. Henry. The first act of the queenmother, who had the regency during the king's minority, was the confirmation of the edict of Nantz. Lewis confirmed it again, in 1614, at his majority, promising to observe it inviolably. The protestants deserved a confirmation of their privileges at his hands; for they had taken no part in the civil wars and disturbances, which had troubled his minority. They had been earnestly solicited to intermeddle with government: but they had wisely avoided it.

Lewis was a weak ambitious man, he was jealous of his power to excess, though he did not know wherein it consisted. He was so void of prudence, that he could not help exalting his flatterers into favourites, and his favourites into excessive power. He was so timorous that his favourites became the objects of his hatred, the moment after he had clevated them to authority; and he was so callous that he never lamented a favourite's death or downfall. By a solemn act of devotion, attended with all the farce of pictures,

masses

masses, processions, and festivals, he consecrated his per son, his dominions, his crown and his subjects to the Vir gin Mary, in 1638, desiring her to defend his kingdom, and to inspire him with grace to lead a holy life. The popish clergy adored him for thus sanctifying their superstitions by his example, and he, in return, lent them his power to punish his protestant subjects, whom he hated. His panegyrists call him Lewis the just: but they ought to acknowledge that his majesty did nothing to merit the title till he found himself a dying.

Lewis's prime minister was an artful, enterprizing clergyman, who, before his elevation, was a country bishop, and, after it, was known by the title of Cardinal de Richlieu but the most proper title for his eminence is that, which some historians give him, of the Jupiter Ma&ator of France. He was a man of great ability: but of no merit. Had his virtue been as great as his capacity, he ought not to have been intrusted with government, because all cardinals take an oath to the pope, and although an oath does not bind a bad man, yet as the taking of it gives him credit, so the breach of it ruins all his prospects among those, with whom he hath taken it.

The jesuits, who had been banished, in 1594 from France for attempting the life of Henry IV. had been recalled, in 1604, and restored to their houses, and one of their society, under pretence of being responsible as an hostage for the whole fraternity, was allowed to attend the king. The jesuits, by this mean, gained the greatest honour and power, and, as they excelled in learning, address, and intrigue, they knew how to obtain the king's ear, and how to improve his credulity to their own advantage.

This dangerous society was first formed in 1534 by Ignatius Loyola, a Spanish deserter, who, being frighted out of the army by a wound, took it into his head to go on pilgri mage, and to form a religious society for the support of the catholic faith. The popes, who knew how to avail themselves of enthusiasm in church government. directed this grand spring of human action to secular purposes, and, by canonizing the founder, and arranging the order, elevated the society in a few years to a height that astonished all Europe. It was one opinion of this society, that the authority of kings is inferior to that of the people, and that they may be punished by the people in certain cases. was another maxim with them, that sovereign princes have

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received