The Reformation introduced to France
The Reformation did not first appear in France but in Germany. In 1517, a monk, Martin Luther, denounced the abuses of the Roman Catholic Church in 95 theses that caused quite a sensation. Thanks to the development of printing, the proposals for reform circulated all over Europe. They were readily accepted in France amongst scholars who openly criticised the Church and advocated a renewed reading of the Gospel.
Luther’s ideas reached the court of François I. Tolerance and repression followed one another, yet did not stop the spread of Protestantism. But the wars of religion set fire to France and events such as the bloody Saint Bartholomew episode stopped Protestantism from spreading,. King Henri IV restored peace with the Edict of Nantes.
The greatest French Reformer was Jean Calvin. Threatened in France, he was forced to flee to Geneva where he spent most of his life. From there he watched over the destiny of the new French Protestant Church.
The French kingdom in the XVIth century
France in the XVIth century was unlike modern-day France. Many provinces, such as Alsace, Montbéliard county and Savoie, were not, as yet, part of the kingdom. Protestantism spread with ease throughout Alsace and in the Montbéliard County, but not so easily in Savoie.
