Gaspard de Coligny, seigneur de Châtillon (; 16 February 1519 – 24 August 1572), was a French nobleman, Admiral of France, and Huguenot leader during the French Wars of Religion. He served under kings Francis I and Henry II during the Italian Wars, attaining great prominence both due to his military skill and his relationship with his uncle, the king's favourite Anne de Montmorency. During the reign of Francis II he converted to Protestantism, becoming a leading noble advocate for the Reformation during the early reign of Charles IX.
With the outbreak of civil war in 1562, Coligny joined the Huguenots in their fight against the Crown. He served as a lieutenant to Louis I, Prince of Condé throughout the first two civil wars, before becoming the de facto leader of their military efforts after Condé's death during the third civil war. Due to accusations levelled at him by the assassin of the Catholic François, Duke of Guise, in 1563 the powerful Guise family accused him of responsibility for the assassination, and unsuccessfully tried to bring a case against him. Coligny was assassinated at the start of the St Bartholomew's Day massacre, in 1572, on the orders of Henri I, Duke of Guise, son of François.
Family and early life Coligny came of a noble family of Burgundy. His family traced their descent from the 11th century, and in the reign of Louis XI, were in the service of the King of France. Gaspard's father, Gaspard I de Coligny, known as the 'Marshal of Châtillon', served in the Italian Wars from 1494 to 1516, married in 1514, and was created Marshal of France in 1516, and from his wife, Louise de Montmorency, sister of the future constable, he had three sons, all of whom played an important part in the first period of the Wars of Religion: Odet, Gaspard and François.
Born at Châtillon-sur-Loing in 1519, Gaspard was raised by Louise de Montmorency and his uncle Anne after the death of his father in 1522. Louise ensured he received an education at the hands of Nicolas Bérauld. Under Bérauld's guidance he studied the classics, including Cicero and Ptolemy. Both Bérauld and Louise came from a humanist background and had friendships with Protestant figures, such as Louis de Berquin and Michelle de Saubonne, and it was in this milieu that Coligny grew up.
Reign of Francis I Coligny distinguished himself in the campaign of 1543 where he was wounded at the sieges of Montmédy and Bains. In 1544 he served in the Italian campaigns under the Count of Enghien, commanding a regiment, and was knighted on the Field of Ceresole. Returning to France, he took part in different military operations, including Strozzi's expedition to England in 1545.
Reign of Henri II Return of Montmorency Upon the accession of the dauphin Henri II, Montmorency returned to favour from disgrace, and Coligny quickly benefitted, being made colonel-general of the infantry a month into Henri's reign. He exhibited great capacity and intelligence as a military reformer, the regulations he drew up for maintaining infantry discipline being formally sanctioned by the king in 1551. Shortly thereafter he was further elevated with a position as a Knight of the Order of St. Michel. That year he married Charlotte de Laval (d. 1568).
Advancement At this time he was close friends with two of the other leading men at court François, Duke of Guise and Piero Strozzi. Office continued to flow to him due to his uncle's close relationship with the king. In 1549 he was made sous-lieutenant of the Boulonnais, and then Boulogne-sur-Mer a year later. In 1551, he was made Governor of Paris, a much coveted office. A year later he followed this acquisition with that of the title of Admiral, inherited from the recently deceased Claude d'Annebaut. This post had little to do with naval affairs, but was second in prestige behind that held by his uncle Constable Montmorency. With war resumed in 1552 Coligny as Colonel-General of the infantry played a key role under Guise's command in the French victory at Battle of Renty. Dispute between Coligny and Guise over who deserved credit for the victory almost ended in the drawing of swords, before Henri II oversaw the kiss of peace between them. Nevertheless their friendship was jeopardised. In a testament to the extreme favour he was in at court, in 1555 he was awarded a second governorship, that of the important border district of Picardy, replacing the first prince of the blood Antoine of Navarre much to his frustration. In 1555, under the leadership of his friend and navy colleague, Vice-Admiral Nicolas Durand de Villegaignon, he attempted to establish the colony of France Antarctique in Rio de Janeiro. They were afterwards expelled by the Portuguese, in 1567. His combined efforts with those of his uncle, persuaded Henri to attain the 5 year truce, which he would do at Vaucelles in February 1556. During 1556 however, he would lose his governorship of the capital to François de Montmorency, whom Henri had promised Anne would receive it.
Resumption of hostilities With war resumed in late 1556, Coligny made an abortive surprise attack on Douai on 6 January, timed to coincide with the feast of Epiphany. With this a failure, he changed course, sacking Lens, Pas-de-Calais, ravaging the frontier and returning with plunder. Henri, frustrated at the timing of the attack, ordered Coligny to return prisoners and goods taken in the raid on 17 January, much to the Admiral's anger. In 1557 he was entrusted with the defence of Saint-Quentin which was besieged by a Spanish army that had come down from Flanders. With the crushing defeat of the relief army under Montmorency at the battle of Saint-Quentin Coligny assured the king he had supplies to hold the town for eight weeks. However 9 days later on 29 August, the Spanish would break the town's defences, and he was imprisoned in the stronghold of L'Ecluse. His brother Francois de Coligny d'Andelot had also been among the town's defenders. However, he managed to escape. The king harshly criticised Coligny for failing to hold the town for longer. The condition of his imprisonment was harsh, the dampness and cold leaving him ill. On payment of a ransom of 50,000 crowns he recovered his liberty.
Coligny and Calvinism
Throughout this period, Protestantism was beginning to find converts in the upper echelons of the French aristocracy. Coligny's brother Andelot was an early convert, bringing the faith back with him from his captivity in Milan in 1556. He would not however be open in his newfound faith until attending services in 1558. In 1558, while imprisoned in Flanders, Andelot sent a Protestant devotional book, as a way to console his brother during his time in captivity. The timing of Coligny's conversion to Calvinism is unclear, but by September 1558 he had received a letter about his salvation from Calvin. The priest Viret spoke highly of Coligny, praising him as a man of Christian virtue. Coligny's religious allegiance was suspect at court by 1559, the English ambassador noting his absence at Mass. For the moment though Coligny maintained public silence on the matter.
Reign of Francis II Amboise Following the sudden death of Henri, at a joust to commemorate the Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis, he participated in the conference between the House of Bourbon and House of Montmorency at Vendôme, to negotiate their respective places in the new order. The conference would achieve little, except for ending a Montmorency feud with the House of Bourbon-Montpensier and both families would be outmanoeuvred by the Guise. Frustrated at the loss of his pre-eminence, Montmorency withdrew from court. When he was approached to partake in the Conspiracy of Amboise Coligny rebuffed the advances, being on good terms with Guise, even staying at his palace in Nanteuil during the Autumn of 1559. In January 1560 he resigned his governorship of Picardy, frustrated his request for funding of fortifications for several towns had been denied. Coligny visited court in February to gain details about a possible operation in support of Mary of Guise in Scotland against Elizabeth I. It was this endeavour that consumed Coligny and Andelot during the period of the conspiracy. In the wake of the conspiracy, Coligny wrote to Catherine, lending his support to the Edict of Amboise (1560).
Assembly of Notables
In April, Coligny was sent to Normandy to continue preparations for the Scottish campaign. Conscious of the failure of prior religious policy, and seeking a new direction for the country, Coligny was among those who pressured for the calling of an Assembly of Notables in late 1560. When the assembly met at Fontainebleau, hostility emerged between Coligny and François de Guise after Coligny derailed the Guise plans for the summit by proposing coexistence between Protestantism and Catholicism, presenting the assembly with 50,000 signatures. Coligny argued there could not be tranquillity and order in the realm, unless such a step was taken, on at least a temporary basis, until a religious council could sort out matters. Guise snapped back that it was best to leave such church matters to more learned men. Lorraine retorted he could find one million signatures for a counter-petition. Lorraine however went on to strike a softer tone, arguing that the faiths should be brought back together through reform and the summit ended with an agreement to call a council. Coligny was among those in the assembly who argued in favour of an estates general, decrying the seclusion of the king from his people. While Coligny had failed to win over the assembly, he had marked himself out as the most eloquent leader of the reform party.
Condé crisis and the death of Francis II In September, the Châtillons and Montmorency, troubled by the disturbances that still plagued France in the wake of Amboise, withdrew to their estates. On 4 October he was appointed governor of Honfleur and Le Havre. His family would play no part in the arrest of Condé for his involvement in the Lyon conspiracy. In November, Francis II became sick, troubled by an ear infection, which gradually worsened until the king died on 5 December. With the death of Francis, the Guise's hold on government collapsed. Coligny celebrated their misfortune.
Several days after the king's death, Coligny and the duke of Guise got into a fierce argument. News of an uprising in Brittany had arrived at court. Coligny proposed understanding the rising's motives before acting, enraging Guise, who felt motive was irrelevant when they were violating the king's edicts. Guise lashed out at Coligny, saying to those present, were it not for the dignity of the court, he would have stabbed Coligny.
Reign of Charles IX Early reign Estates General The estates began their deliberations on the packages proposed by the government in December. Coligny, in attendance, faced criticism for his recent proposals at the Assembly of Notables, with one delegate rising to say that the king ought to punish those who had presented the petition to him about Protestant rights to worship. Coligny, outraged at this attack protested to the king and Catherine, and shortly thereafter the speaker apologised, asserting he had of course, not meant the Admiral. The situation at court was much changed from the Guise regime, with Montmorency returning to the centre, and the Guise influence on the wane. Despite this decline in Guise fortunes, Catherine was not inclined to elevate the Montmorency or Châtillon to the place that they had filled, preferring to balance the various noble houses.
Growth in influence