![Colloquy of Poissy by Robert-Fleury](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/57/Colloquy_of_Poissy_by_Robert-Fleury.jpg)
The Colloquy at Poissy was a religious conference which took place in
Poissy
Poissy () is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. It is located in the western suburbs of Paris, from the centre of Paris. Inhabitants are called ''Pisciacais'' in French.
Poissy is one ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
, in 1561. Its object was to effect a reconciliation between the
Catholics and Protestants (
Huguenots
The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...
) of France.
The conference was opened on 9 September in the refectory of the convent of Poissy,
[ the French king (aged 11) himself being present. It broke up inconclusively a month later, on 9 October, by which point the divide between the doctrines appeared irreconcilable.
]
Background
The Calvinist
Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...
faction in France was strong and vocal, under the guidance of several princes of the royal blood and members of the higher nobility. The spread of Protestantism and the application of its fundamental principle of private judgment produced far-reaching differences in belief. To heal these and so bring about unity, a conference was held at Weimar
Weimar is a city in the state of Thuringia, Germany. It is located in Central Germany between Erfurt in the west and Jena in the east, approximately southwest of Leipzig, north of Nuremberg and west of Dresden. Together with the neighbouri ...
in 1560, between the Lutherans Viktor Striegel (1524–69) and Flacius, on free will.
The Poissy conference was arranged by Catherine de' Medici, the Florentine Catholic queen-mother and regent during the minority of her son, Charles IX of France
Charles IX (Charles Maximilien; 27 June 1550 – 30 May 1574) was King of France from 1560 until his death in 1574. He ascended the French throne upon the death of his brother Francis II in 1560, and as such was the penultimate monarch of the ...
,[ with the support of the Chancellor ]Michel de l'Hôpital
Michel de l'Hôpital (or l'Hospital) (1507 – 13 March 1573) was a French statesman.
Biography
De l'Hôpital was born near Aigueperse in Auvergne (now Puy-de-Dôme).
His father, who was physician to the Constable de Bourbon, sent him to stud ...
and the lieutenant-general of the kingdom, Anthony of Navarre. The heads of the Catholic party had attempted to frustrate any form of negotiation.[
Disaffection towards the ]Holy See
The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of R ...
had paralysed French Catholic activity. The Council of Trent
The Council of Trent ( la, Concilium Tridentinum), held between 1545 and 1563 in Trent (or Trento), now in northern Italy, was the 19th ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. Prompted by the Protestant Reformation, it has been described a ...
, a general council, was in session under the presidency of Pope Pius IV, but voices were heard even among the French bishops, advocating the convocation of a separate national synod. Instead, Catherine and her advisers chose a religious conference under the direction of the civil power. The Pope tried to prevent, what under the circumstances had to be construed by Catholics as, the defiance of his ecclesiastical authority.[
]
Attendance
The Pope sent as papal legate Ippolito d'Este
Ippolito (I) d'Este ( hu, Estei Hippolit; 20 March 1479 – 3 September 1520) was an Italian Roman Catholic cardinal, and Archbishop of Esztergom. He was a member of the ducal House of Este of Ferrara, and was usually referred to as the Car ...
, known as the Cardinal of Ferrara, with Diego Laynez, the second General superior of the Jesuits
, image = Ihs-logo.svg
, image_size = 175px
, caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits
, abbreviation = SJ
, nickname = Jesuits
, formation =
, founders = ...
, as his adviser, to dissuade the regent and the bishops. But the affair had gone too far. At the conference, six French Cardinals and thirty-eight archbishops and bishop
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...
s, with a host of minor prelates and doctors, spent a month in discussions with the Calvinists.[ ]Theodore Beza
Theodore Beza ( la, Theodorus Beza; french: Théodore de Bèze or ''de Besze''; June 24, 1519 – October 13, 1605) was a French Calvinist Protestant theologian, reformer and scholar who played an important role in the Protestant Reformation ...
from Geneva
, neighboring_municipalities= Carouge, Chêne-Bougeries, Cologny, Lancy, Grand-Saconnex, Pregny-Chambésy, Vernier, Veyrier
, website = https://www.geneve.ch/
Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevr ...
and Peter Martyr Vermigli
Peter Martyr Vermigli (8 September 149912 November 1562) was an Italian-born Reformed theologian. His early work as a reformer in Catholic Italy and his decision to flee for Protestant northern Europe influenced many other Italians to convert a ...
from Zürich
, neighboring_municipalities = Adliswil, Dübendorf, Fällanden, Kilchberg, Maur, Oberengstringen, Opfikon, Regensdorf, Rümlang, Schlieren, Stallikon, Uitikon, Urdorf, Wallisellen, Zollikon
, twintowns = Kunming, San Francisco
Zürich ...
appeared at the colloquy; the German theologians to whom invitations had been despatched only arrived in Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
after the discussion was broken off.[ Beza was assisted by Nicolas des Gallars, who wrote a report of the conference, for ]Edmund Grindal
Edmund Grindal ( 15196 July 1583) was Bishop of London, Archbishop of York, and Archbishop of Canterbury during the reign of Elizabeth I. Though born far from the centres of political and religious power, he had risen rapidly in the church durin ...
, then bishop of London
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
where de Gallars currently had a church.
Proceedings
On 9 September the representatives of the rival denominations began their pleadings. The proceedings were opened by a speech of Chancellor L'Hôpital, who emphasized the right and duty of the monarch to provide for the needs of the Church. Even should a general council be in session, a colloquy between Frenchmen convened by the king was the better way of settling religious disputes; for a general council, being mostly composed of foreigners, was deemed incapable of understanding the wishes and the needs of France.[
The spokesman of the Reformed Church was Beza, who, in the first session, gave a lengthy exposition of its tenets.][ Beza's speech explained the principles of the Reformed understanding of the ]Eucharist
The Eucharist (; from Greek , , ), also known as Holy Communion and the Lord's Supper, is a Christian rite that is considered a sacrament in most churches, and as an ordinance in others. According to the New Testament, the rite was instit ...
; it was later revised, amended, and published in France. He excited such repugnance by his pronouncements on the Communion that he was interrupted by Cardinal François de Tournon.[
]Charles, Cardinal of Lorraine
Charles de Lorraine (c. 1525 – 26 December 1574), Duke of Chevreuse, was a French Cardinal, a member of the powerful House of Guise. He was known at first as the Cardinal of Guise, and then as the second Cardinal of Lorraine, after the death o ...
replied in the second session (16 September). On the motion, however, of Ippolito d'Este, the legate, exception was taken to the further conduct of the negotiations in full conclave; and a committee of twenty-four representatives, twelve from each party, was appointed ostensibly to facilitate a satisfactory decision.[ On the Catholic side there existed little wish for conciliation.
The Jesuit Laynez then claimed that the divinely appointed judge of the religious controversies was the Pope, not the Court of France.][ The acrimony with which he opposed the Protestants at least clarified the situation.][
Catharine appointed a smaller committee of five Calvinists and five Roman Catholics. Representing the Calvinists were Beza, Vermigli, Gallars, Marlorat and Delespine.] Representing the Catholics were the Protestant Bishop of Valence
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Valence (–Die–Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux) (Latin: ''Dioecesis Valentinensis (–Diensis–Sancti Pauli Tricastinorum)''; French: ''Diocèse de Valence (–Die–Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux'') is a diocese of the L ...
and Archbishop of Sens alongside the Abbot of Salignac, Boutellier, and Claude D'Espence. Their task was to devise a formula on which the two churches might unite with regard to the question of the Eucharist. The Cardinal of Lorraine had asked whether the Calvinists were prepared to sign the Confession of Augsburg
The Augsburg Confession, also known as the Augustan Confession or the Augustana from its Latin name, ''Confessio Augustana'', is the primary confession of faith of the Lutheran Church and one of the most important documents of the Protestant Ref ...
, a matter of dissension between them and the Lutheran Protestants. The committee drafted a vague formula which could be interpreted in a Catholic or a Calvinistic sense, and was consequently condemned by both parties.[ The assemblage of prelates refused assent,][ and the Calvinists would not commit themselves to the Lutheran Confession.
]
Further conferences
Subsequently there were meetings at Altenburg (20 October 1568 – 9 March 1569) between the Jena
Jena () is a German city and the second largest city in Thuringia. Together with the nearby cities of Erfurt and Weimar, it forms the central metropolitan area of Thuringia with approximately 500,000 inhabitants, while the city itself has a po ...
theologians and those from Wittenberg, on free will
Free will is the capacity of agents to choose between different possible courses of action unimpeded.
Free will is closely linked to the concepts of moral responsibility, praise, culpability, sin, and other judgements which apply only to ac ...
and justification;[.] and at Montbéliard
Montbéliard (; traditional ) is a town in the Doubs department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in eastern France, about from the border with Switzerland. It is one of the two subprefectures of the department.
History
Montbéliard is ...
(1586) between Beza and the Tübingen
Tübingen (, , Swabian: ''Dibenga'') is a traditional university city in central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated south of the state capital, Stuttgart, and developed on both sides of the Neckar and Ammer rivers. about one in three ...
theologians, on predestination
Predestination, in theology, is the doctrine that all events have been willed by God, usually with reference to the eventual fate of the individual soul. Explanations of predestination often seek to address the paradox of free will, whereby G ...
.[ The Roman Catholic Church continued the Council of Trent until 1563, and issued its own statements on the Eucharist and many other points of contention raised by various Protestant churches.
]
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
*{{cite book, last= Sutherland, first=N. M., title=Princes, Politics and Religion, 1547-1589, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=10cACwAAQBAJ&pg=PA136, year=1984, publisher=Hambledon Press, location=London, isbn=978-0-8264-6401-9, pages=113–138, chapter=7. The Cardinal of Lorraine and the ''Colloque'' of Poissy, 1561: A Reassessment
1561 in France
French Wars of Religion
Poissy
Religion in the Ancien Régime
Disputations