The Forty-five guards were recruited by Jean Louis de Nogaret de La Valette, Duke of Épernon to provide

Henry III of France Henry III (french: Henri III, né Alexandre Édouard; pl, Henryk Walezy; lt, Henrikas Valua; 19 September 1551 – 2 August 1589) was King of France from 1574 until his assassination in 1589, as well as King of Poland and Grand Duke of ...

with trusted protection in the midst of the War of the Three Henrys. The Forty-five were noblemen of lesser nobility (many from

Gascony Gascony (; french: Gascogne ; oc, Gasconha ; eu, Gaskoinia) was a province of the southwestern Kingdom of France that succeeded the Duchy of Gascony (602–1453). From the 17th century until the French Revolution (1789–1799), it was part o ...

) with little more than a horse, a sword, and a few acres to live on. In the king's service, they were paid a lavish wage (by their standards). In return, 15 of them were to be on duty, day or night, ready at the king's call. After the Catholic League revolt in

Paris Paris () is the capital and 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), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, King Henry III was forced to flee to

Blois Blois ( ; ) is a commune and the capital city of Loir-et-Cher department, in Centre-Val de Loire, France, on the banks of the lower Loire river between Orléans and Tours. With 45,898 inhabitants by 2019, Blois is the most populated city of the ...

, there, he staged a coup, regaining control of the Estates-General by employing the Forty-five to kill

Henry I, Duke of Guise Henry I, Prince of Joinville, Duke of Guise, Count of Eu (31 December 1550 – 23 December 1588), sometimes called ('Scarface'), was the eldest son of Francis, Duke of Guise, and Anna d'Este. His maternal grandparents were Ercole II d'Este, Du ...

when he came to meet the king at the

Château de Blois A château (; plural: châteaux) is a manor house or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking regions. Nowaday ...

on 23 December 1588, and his brother,

Louis II, Cardinal of Guise Louis II, Cardinal of Guise (6 July 1555, Dampierre – 24 December 1588, Château de Blois), was the third son of Francis, Duke of Guise, and Anna d'Este. Life He was elected archbishop of Reims in 1574, succeeding his uncle, Charles of Guise. ...

, the following day. After the king was assassinated by

Jacques Clément Jacques Clément (1567 – 1 August 1589) was a French conspirator and the assassin of King Henry III. He was born at Serbonnes, in today's Yonne ''département'', in Burgundy, and became a Dominican lay brother. During the French Wars of Re ...

, the crown of France passed to Henry IV of Navarre; the Forty-five also passed to him and served him faithfully until his death, which was also by assassination – ironically in a conspiracy in which Épernon may have been involved. The exploits of Henry III and the Forty-five are the subject of '' The Forty-Five Guardsmen'' by

Alexandre Dumas Alexandre Dumas (, ; ; born Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie (), 24 July 1802 – 5 December 1870), also known as Alexandre Dumas père (where '' '' is French for 'father', to distinguish him from his son Alexandre Dumas fils), was a French writer ...

References

French Wars of Religion Military history of France {{France-hist-stub

See also

References