The siege of Montpellier was a siege of the

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...

city of

Montpellier Montpellier (; ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of France, department of ...

by the

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

forces of

Louis XIII Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crown. ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, from August to October 1622. It was part of the

Huguenot rebellions The Huguenot rebellions, sometimes called the Rohan Wars after the Huguenot leader Henri, Duke of Rohan, Henri de Rohan, were a series of rebellions of the 1620s in which French people, French Calvinist Protestants (Huguenots), mainly located in ...

Background

Louis XIII stationed his troops around Montpellier in July 1622. p. 103''ff'' A treaty was agreed upon between Henri, Duke of Rohan, and Louis XIII, through his officer, Marshal Lesdiguières; it was signed by Rohan on 22 August 1622. The inhabitants of Montpellier, however, refused to open their gate to royal troops, fearing depredation by Henri, Prince of Condé and demanded humiliating conditions if the King wished to enter the city.

Siege

Outraged, Louis XIII revoked Lesdiguières' command, and ordered his troops to set up a siege of the city. The besieging army was placed under the command of Condé. Etienne d'Americ led the defense of Montpellier in an energetic manner. Operations proved to be difficult for the troops of Louis XIII. Royal troops captured the bastion of Saint-Denis on 2 September, which had a commanding position over the city, but the stronghold was recaptured by the Huguenots the following day, leaving 200 dead in the royal army. Also on 2 September, 400 Huguenots under Galonges, the Commander of the Montpellier garrison, made a sortie and defeated 1000 royal troops. On 2 October the Huguenots were able to repel three assaults by royal troops numbering 5,000. The assault left from 300 to 400 dead in the royal camps, and many more wounded. At the same time, the royal army was plagued with sickness and was running short of supplies.

Aftermath

Finally, Louis XIII authorized negotiations to be resumed, asking Lesdiguières to lead the army once more, and to secretly negotiate at the same time. On 8 October Rohan arrived in front of Montpellier with a relief army of 4,000 veterans. He might have fought victoriously, but he desired to negotiate, as he was running short of international support. The inhabitants agreed to make amends, and the King granted his pardon, leading to the signature of the

Treaty of Montpellier The Treaty of Montpellier (or the Peace of Montpellier) was signed in Montpellier on 18 October 1622 between King Louis XIII of France and Duke Henry II of Rohan. The treaty followed the siege of Montpellier and ended hostilities between French ...

on 19 October, in which the King fully confirmed the observation of the

Edict of Nantes The Edict of Nantes () was an edict signed in April 1598 by Henry IV of France, King Henry IV and granted the minority Calvinism, Calvinist Protestants of France, also known as Huguenots, substantial rights in the nation, which was predominantl ...

, but the Huguenots agreed to the dismantlement of the fortifications of Montpellier, Nîmes, and Uzès. p. 187 Louis XIII finally entered Montpellier on 20 October 1622, bareheaded and unarmed. p. 107 Royal troops entered the city, effectively occupied it, and started to dismantle its fortifications. p. 112] The

Citadel of Montpellier The Citadel of Montpellier is an Early Modern fortification in the city of Montpellier, in the Hérault département of southern France. It was built between 1624 and 1627, after several rebellions under the orders of Louis XIII in order to ...

was built soon after by Louis XIII in order to better control the city.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Siege Of Montpellier 1622 in France Montpellier, Siege of Conflicts in 1622 Huguenot rebellions Montpellier

History of Hérault Louis XIII