daughter of Henri III. had the best claim to the throne;
the Guises, though their head was gone, still hoping
for the crown, proclaimed their sham-king, the Cardinal
de Bourbon, as Charles X., and intrigued behind the
shadow of his name. The Duc de Mayenne, their
present chief, was the most formidable of Henri’s
opponents; his party called for a convocation of States
General, which should choose a King to succeed, or
to replace, their feeble Charles X. During this struggle
the high Catholic party, inspired by Jesuit advice,
stood forward as the admirers of constitutional principles;
they called on the nation to decide the question as
to the succession; their Jesuit friends wrote books
on the sovereignty of the people. They summoned
up troops from every side; the Duc de Lorraine sent
his son to resist Henri and support his own claim;
the King of Spain sent a body of men; the League princes
brought what force they could. Henri of Navarre
at the same moment found himself weakened by the silent
withdrawal from his camp of the army of Henri III.;
the Politique nobles did not care at first to throw
in their lot with the Huguenot chieftain; they offered
to confer on Henri the post of commander-in-chief,
and to reserve the question as to the succession;
they let him know that they recognised his hereditary
rights, and were hindered only by his heretical opinions;
if he would but be converted they were his.
Henri temporised; his true strength, for the time,
lay in his Huguenot followers, rugged and faithful
fighting men, whose belief was the motive power of
their allegiance and of their courage. If he
joined the Politiques at their price, the price of
declaring himself Catholic, the Huguenots would be
offended if not alienated. So he neither absolutely
refused nor said yes; and the chief Catholic nobles
in the main stood aloof, watching the struggle between
Huguenot and Leaguer, as it worked out its course.
Henri, thus weakened, abandoned the siege of Paris,
and fell back; with the bulk of his forces he marched
into Normandy, so as to be within reach of English
succour; a considerable army went into Champagne, to
be ready to join any Swiss or German help that might
come. These were the great days in the life
of Henri of Navarre. Henri showed himself a hero,
who strove for a great cause—the cause
of European freedom—as well as for his
own crown.
The Duc de Mayenne followed the Huguenots down into
the west, and found Henri awaiting him in a strong
position at Arques, near Dieppe; here at bay, the
“Bearnais” inflicted a heavy blow on his
assailants; Mayenne fell back into Picardy; the Prince
of Lorraine drew off altogether; and Henri marched
triumphantly back to Paris, ravaged the suburbs and
then withdrew to Tours, where he was recognised as
King by the Parliament. His campaign of 1589
had been most successful; he had defeated the League
in a great battle, thanks to his skilful use of his
position at Arques, and the gallantry of his troops,