On August 24, 1572, the St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre occurred in France. It was a two pronged approach of targeted assassinations and a wave of Roman Catholic mob violence, both directed against the Huguenots (French Calvinist Protestants) during the French Wars of Religion. It is believed the massacre was instigated by Catherine de’Medici, the mother of King Charles IX. The killings began on the eve of August 23 and then the slaughter spread throughout Paris. The massacre lasted several weeks, spreading throughout the countryside. Estimates of the dead range from 5,000 to 30,000.
Posted on: Sat, 24 Aug 2013 13:41:14 +0000
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