The sentences imposed
on Protestants
The Edict of Fontainebleau (1685) and various decrees of 1686 imposed penalties on Protestants.
Galley-rowing, imprisonment, death penalty
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Marc Dautry : In memory of the convicts on the galleys - Aigues-Mortes © O. d'Haussonville
« A life sentenced to rowing in the galleys, or imprisonment for women : for Protestants who attempted to leave the country, for those who provided help to pastors in hiding or for any public expression of the Reformed faith ». The members of the Reformed Church could be convicted, whether they be fugitives arrested at the country’s borders, people suspected of helping the fugitives or worshippers caught while attending an illegal meeting. Similar sentences could be imposed on the new converts also suspected of practising in secret.
The death penalty was reserved for pastors, preachers or smugglers who helped the fugitives.
There were also post mortem sentences : if it turned out that a “newly converted” dead person had actually remained Protestant deep down, his body was exhumed, dragged on a hurdle and then thrown away. His bequests were confiscated.
Associated tours
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The revocation of the Edict of Nantes and its consequences (1685-1700)
In October 1685 Louis XIV signed the Edict of Fontainebleau revoking the Edict of Nantes. It forbade exercising the Protestant faith and any migrating of Protestants. Pastors were granted a... -
Royal repression against the Protestants
The revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685 made any Protestant worship illegal, for instance temples were demolished and pastors expelled. As for the Protestants, they were forbidden to... -
Religion in the “Desert” period
After the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685, French Protestants went into exile or abjured their religious faith. However, among those who abjured, some continued to practice in...
Associated notes
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The Edict of Fontainebleau or the Revocation (1685)
In October 1685, Louis XIV signed the Edict of Fontainebleau which repealed the Edict of Nantes. It banned Protestant worship and the emigration of Protestants. Pastors were banished. -
Sentenced to the galleys
Roughly 550 galley-rowers spent up to thirty years of their life in galleys for refusing to renounce their faith. -
The prison sentence
Women and children that were too young to serve as galley-rowers were sent to prison. However, many men were kept in prison for long periods of time, some before they... -
Death penalty
The death penalty was likely for pastors that came back to France, smugglers that had helped them leave the country, the faithful caught at an “underground” meeting.