Legends -- Pyrenees; Pyrenees -- Description and travel; Pyrenees -- History
One of the most important pages in the life of the Queen of Navarre
in the Château of Pau was the part she played in receiving refugee
Huguenot preachers. But she never herself became a convert to
Calvinism; she entertained great pity for the innovators who were
driven from place to place, and subjected to cruel persecution. She
offered them an asylum, and listened to their harangues without the
impatience shown by her husband, who, when they began to preach,
retired to his bottle and his cards.
“The Queen of Navarre,” says Florimond de Rémond, “gave ear
to them, received their books at first by the hand of her
ladies, has had the Latin prayers of the church translated into
French ... out of kindness of heart she throws open her house
to the proscribed and banished, and bids them regard it as a
retreat and refuge. She exercises marvellous care in protecting
those who are in danger on account of their religion, and in
succouring the refugees from Strassburg and Geneva.
“Roussel was received by this good princess into Béarn and
given a state lodging in her house. She takes pleasure in
listening to him as he discourses on religion. He persuaded
her to read the Bible, then very uncouthly translated into
French; and this so pleased her that she composed a tragi-comic
translation of nearly the whole of the New Testament, and
had it acted in the great hall before the King, her husband.
For the purpose she secured the best comedians that could be
procured from Italy; and as these buffoons are born only to
afford amusement, and, monkey-like, to mimic what may meet the
humours of their masters, so these people, recognizing the
inclination of the Queen, interlarded the text of these plays
with roundelays and virolais on the theme of the clergy. Always
some poor monk or _religieuse_ was made the butt in one of
these comedies or farces.”
Florimond de Rémond goes on to say that some of the preachers harboured
by Marguerite were not of high character. Among them was Solon, a
runaway Carmelite, a “brave et courageux moine,” who embraced the
doctrines of Calvin, and to make up for wasted opportunities in the
past married and buried five wives in succession.
Some of the sacred pieces enacted before the King and Queen were the
Nativity, the Adoration of the Magi, the Flight into Egypt; and into
these plays scurrilous and indecent songs were introduced, without a
word of protest from the preachers.
Marguerite took as her valet Clement Marot, who had not the best of
characters, and scandal said that she liked him a little too well.
Unsuspectingly Marot did a great work for Calvinism in France.
He had translated the Psalms of David into popular rhythm. His metrical
version became the rallying songs of the Huguenots, and formed the
basis of their liturgy. They were set to popular folk-airs.
The French ladies, as he said himself, placed
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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