Hatred in Print Catholic Propaganda and Protestant Identity During the French Wars of Religion

Catholic polemical works, and their portrayal of Protestants in print in particular, are the central focus of this work. In contrast with Germany, French Catholics used printing effectively and agressively to promote the Catholic cause. In seeking to explain why France remained a Catholic country, the French Catholic response must be taken into account. Rather than confront the Reformation on its own terms, the Catholic reaction concentrated on discrediting the Protestant cause in the eyes of the Catholic majority. This book aims to contribute to the ongoing debate over the nature of the French Wars of Religion, to explain why they were so violent and why they engaged the loyalities of such a large portion of the population. This study also provides an example of the successful defence of catholicism developed independently and in advance of Tridentine reform which is of wider significance for the history of the Reformation in Europe.

Contents: Introduction; Print, censorship, and the vernacular during the French Wars of Religion; The problem of violence during the French Wars of Religion; Polemic, debate and opinion forming in 16th-century France; The use of the 'blood libel' on the eve of the French Wars of Religion; Accusations of insurrection and Protestant responses; The 'world turned upside down', the femmelettes and the French Wars of Religion; The polemical use of the Albigensian Crusade; The Albigensians as Protestant martyrs; Conclusion; Bibliography; Index.