Massacres of the South (1551-1815): Celebrated CrimesDumas, Alexandre
History
Massacres of the South (1551-1815): Celebrated Crimes
Dumas, Alexandre
Crime
Cavalier and his travelling-companion went direct to the garden of the
Recollets, and hardly had they got there than MM. de Villars and de
Baville, accompanied by Lalande and Sandricourt, came out to meet them:
the conference lasted three hours, but all that could be learned of the
result was that Salomon had declared that his brethren would never lay
down their arms till full liberty of conscience had been secured to
them. In consequence of this declaration, it was decided that Cavalier
and his regiment should be despatched to Spain without delay, in order
to weaken the Calvinist forces to that extent; meantime Salomon was sent
back to Roland with a positive promise that if he would surrender, as
Cavalier had done, he would be granted the same conditions—that is to
say, receive a commission as colonel, have the right to name the
officers of his regiment, and receive a pension of 1200 livres. On
quitting the garden of the Recollets, Cavalier found as great a crowd as
ever waiting for him, and so closely did they press on him that two of
his men were obliged to ride before him with drawn sabres to clear a way
for him till the Montpellier road was reached. He lay that night at
Langlade, in order to rejoin his troops early next morning.
But during his absence things had happened among these men, who had
hitherto obeyed him blindly, which he little expected. He had left, as
usual, Ravanel in command; but hardly had he ridden away when Ravanel
began to take all kinds of precautions, ordering the men not to lay
aside their arms. The negotiations with M. de Villars had made him most
anxious; he looked upon all the promises given as snares, and he
regarded the compromise favoured by his chief as a defection on
Cavalier’s part. He therefore called all the officers and men together,
told them of his fears, and ended by imbuing them with his suspicions.
This was all the more easily done, as it was very well known that
Cavalier had joined the Huguenots less from devotion to the cause than
to avenge a private wrong, and on many occasions had given rise to the
remark that he had more genius than religion.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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