Description:

King Charles IX of France
unknown, February 25, 1570
Charles IX Boldly Signed Document From Same Year He Co-signed Peace of Saint-Germain-En-Laye, Ending 3rd French War of Religion
MDS

A 1p manuscript document in French signed at its conclusion by French King Charles IX (1550-1574) as "Charles" at center left. The royal signature is impressively large, measuring approximately 2.375" x 1.875" alone. February 25, 1570. Unknown location. Countersigned by an unidentified official ("Duboiss") near the bottom. Inscribed in a beautiful secretarial script on laid paper. Docketed verso. An embossed paper and wax seal is located near the left edge verso. Expected wear including folds, wrinkles, scattered foxing, minor stains, and other weathering. A T-shaped incision along the right edge recto corresponds with the imprint of the seal. Else very good to near fine. 8.5" x 12."

The document remains untranslated, but a summary has been provided by a former collector, which states in part: "The King gives the order to proceed to the sale of the wood taken to the rebels…" This is seemingly confirmed by text on line 2, reading in part: "pour la vente des boyz des Rebelles" ["for the sale of the wood from the rebels."]

Charles IX had assumed full control of the French throne which he had inherited from his dead father, Henri II, and his dead elder brother, François II, in 1563, when the regency of his mother, Catherine de' Medici, ended. Thus when this order was issued, Charles IX was already a 20-year-old veteran monarch. The young king's reign was significantly troubled by the ongoing French Wars of Religion, which had been waged off and on in violent episodic bursts since 1562.

This document dates from the Third French War of Religion (1568-1570). In the Spring 1570 - just a few months after Charles IX sent this command about wood - the Huguenots had enjoyed mixed military success in Poitou and Saintonge, but later retreated to southwestern France. There they raided the ancient city of Toulouse before threateningly cutting upwards towards Paris. Out of funds and anxious to safeguard the capital, Charles IX co-signed the Peace of Saint-Germain-En-Laye with Huguenot leaders Gaspard de Coligny and Jeanne d'Albret, Queen of Navarre, on August 8, 1570. This peace treaty guaranteed French Protestants the governmentally protected right to freedom of worship, and also enabled them to maintain armed garrisons for a limited time. The peace treaty was broken roughly two years later, with the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre (August 24-30, 1570), in which some 30,000 Huguenots died during religious purges in Paris and other major French cities.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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  • Dimensions: 8.5" x 12"
  • Medium: MDS

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