ABSTRACT
The Treaty of Saint-Germain in 1570 had brought to a temporary conclusion the wars of religion in France. Liberal terms had been allowed to Protestants in this treaty, who were permitted to exercise their cult within certain limits, and this attempt at toleration aroused a hope amongst ‘politiques’ and moderates that a new age might be dawning in which war in the name of religion might become a thing of the past. The hope of religious peace had been further aroused by the recent marriage of Charles IX to Elizabeth of Austria, daughter of the Emperor Maximilian II and granddaughter of the Emperor Charles V. The Emperor Maximilian II, like his father, took seriously the imperial rôle in religious matters. Influenced by Melanchthon, he was interested in ideas of reform. The French king's marriage to the daughter of this tolerant emperor seemed like another step in the direction taken by the Treaty of Saint-Germain, a step towards an increase of tolerance and the establishment of religious peace.
