Aulica No 16 - Sortir des guerres de Religion. Henri IV, les nobles et la cour
Fanny Giraudier, Sortir des guerres de Religion. Henri IV, les nobles et la cour, preface of Nicolas Le Roux, joint publication Centre de recherche du château de Versailles / Presses universitaires de Rennes (“Histoire” collection, “Aulica. L’Univers de la cour” series), January 2025, 16,5 × 24 cm, 276 pages, index, €25 (ISBN : 978-2-7535-9663-4).
Abstract
The early years of the reign of Henri IV were marked by a policy of religious pacification which involved military conquests, negotiations, peace treaties and an edict that guaranteed freedom of worship throughout the kingdom, the consequences of which are already well documented. In this specific context, re-establishing the court was not something that the first Bourbon had considered as part of his political approach. Understanding how this courtier society was formed after years of war and contestation against the legitimacy of Henri IV is however not as simple as it may seem, and is worthy of special scrutiny. It was not set up solely by the king, as he was obliged to make compromises with the nobility, which was gradually returning to this powerful place, armed with certain expectations. The relationship between the sovereign and the nobility is therefore at the heart of this work, which looks at, amongst other things, the people closest to the king when he first came to the throne, the composition of the royal households, and the faithful allies who shared the pleasures of his court. The latter became the king’s instrument, with daily life organised according to his wishes, and his own perception of ceremony imposed on it. It was also, however, a place where conflicts grew and plots were sometimes fomented, signalling both the fragility of the monarchical edifice and the objections that were sometimes directed towards the power of the Bourbons.
Fanny Giraudier, has a PhD in modern history from université Lumière Lyon 2, and is a teaching fellow and research associate in history at the Laboratoire de recherche historique Rhône-Alpes.
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