"Very late in the evening"--it must have been after dark, for the King
went to lie down at eight, and did not rise until ten--the provost was
sent for. At the Louvre he found Charles, the Queen-mother, and the Duke
of Anjou, with other princes and nobles, among whom we may safely
include Guise, De Retz, and Tavannes. The King now repeated to him the
story of the Huguenot plot which had already been whispered abroad by
Guise of Anjou, and bade him shut the gates of the city, so that no one
could pass in or out, and take possession of the keys. He was also to
draw up all the boats on the river bank and chain them together, to
remove the ferry, to muster under arms the able-bodied men of each ward
under their proper officers, and hold them in readiness at the usual
mustering-places to receive the orders of his majesty. The city
artillery, which does not appear to have been as formidable as the word
would imply, was to be stationed at the Greve to protect the Hotel de
Ville or for any other duty required of it. With these instructions the
provost returned to the Hotel de Ville, where he spent great part of the
night in preparing the necessary orders, which were issued "very early
the next morning." There is reason for believing that these measures
were simply precautions in case the Huguenots should resist and a bloody
struggle should have to be fought in the streets of their capital.
Pages:
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224
225
226
227
228
229
230
231
232