1515-1559
the Economy 		1589-1610
the Economy






The Economy under Francis II., Charles IX., Henri III., 1559-1589



Although France saw a total of 8 religious wars between 1562 and 1589, the damage inflicted on the country was limited. Only a few battles were fought, no long sieges of cities undertaken, the events most costly in terms of human lives were the massacres of Vassy (1562) and of St. Bartholomew's Day (1572).
King mother and regent CATHERINE DE MEDICI could afford to have the TUILERIES built, and had her son HENRI elected King of Poland (1573), an election which required considerable sums in bribes.

On the other hand, continuing distrust between Huguenots and Catholics, netween 1585 and 1588 open rivalry of three hostile camps, did not help in developing the national economy; the 1580es saw a deterioration of the situation.
The Huguenot coastal towns (LA ROCHELLE, SAINT MALO etc.) profitteed to a certain degree of the piracy committed by French captains in the Caribbean, where they preyed on Spanish ships.
The difficult situation in France caused a number of French Huguenots to emigrate to England, where a glass industry was founded by Huguenot immigrants.



EXTERNAL
FILES 		Huguenot and Protestant Reformed Chronology, from Pierre Chastain Family Association
DOCUMENTS Coins minted under Francis II., Charles IX., Henry III., from Numismatique - Monnaie
Les Monnaies de 1515 a 1789, Francois II., Charles IX., Henri III., from Association Francaise de Genealogie
REFERENCE



This page is part of World History at KMLA
First posted in 2001, last revised on November 9th 2004

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