Margaret of Navarre

Born April 11 1492

Margaret was won to faith by the preaching of LeFevre around the year 1512

Margaret influenced her brother Francis King of France to protect Protestantism. Her influence went only so far, however, and he later banned reformed books and began allowing persecution, only putting a halt to executions when his sister Margaret was in Paris.

Margaret was able to secure the release of many preachers and Christian poets who were imprisoned for declaring the Truth of the Gospel.
One example of Margaret’s influence is with Berquin, a French nobleman and a vocal Protestant, he was arrested in 1523 then released at the request of Margaret. Two years later Berquin is once again in trouble and examined severely but he continued strong saying: “I will not yield a single point.” Again he was liberated because of Margaret’s influence. He was finally arrested in 1529 and this time none of Margaret’s efforts could get him released – he was put to death for refusing to agree with the Papists.

In 1527 Margaret married Henry the Catholic King of Navarre. He began to show disapproval of her practicing Protestantism and treated her harshly for her faith. When her brother (who was always very fond of her) heard of this he threatened war with Navarre. This made King Henry afraid so he promised to allow Reformed worship. Then becoming curious, he looked further into his wife’s beliefs and was soon converted from Roman Catholicism to the protestant faith!

Margaret died December 21 1548 praying that her children would continue working for Reformed freedoms.

Margaret’s prayer was answered in her daughter Jeanne d’Albret and Grandson Henry II.

Margaret of Navarre's speech at the Palmerston North Reformation Day celebrations

Good Evening Ladies and Gentlemen

 

My name is Margaret of Navarre.

 

I was born April 11, 1492 in France and I plan to go back to my homeland before I die.

 

My father was a direct descendant of Charles V, and a claimant to the crown, if both Charles VIII the presumptive heir, and Louis, Duke of Orléans, failed to produce male offspring.

 

On 16 February 1488, My father, Charles, married my mother Louise when she was 11, she was the daughter of Philip II of Savoy and Margaret of Bourbon, My mother named me after my grandmother "Marguerite"

 

My father died when I was nearly four; my year-old brother became heir presumptive to the throne of France. Thanks to my mother, who was only nineteen when she was widowed, I was tutored from my earliest childhood by excellent teachers and I even learnt Latin. (Amo, ….)  When I was ten, my mother tried to marry me to the Prince of Wales, later Henry VIII of England; but this was "declined with thanks".

Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519) died while our guest (my brother and me) after designing a large château for us.

I was married at the age of seventeen to Charles IV of Alençon, when he was aged twenty, by decree of King Louis XII (who also arranged the marriage of his ten year old daughter, Claude, to my brother Francis). I was forced to marry a generally kind, but practically illiterate, man for political expediency—"I,  the radiant young princess with violet-blue eyes ... had become the bride of a laggard and a dolt".  I had been bartered to save Louis' royal pride, by keeping the County of Armagnac in the family.

 

I was won to faith by the preaching of LeFevre around the year 1512

 

I became the most influential woman in France, with the exception of my mother, when my brother acceded to the crown as Francis I in 1515. I tried to be very kind, gentle, gracious, charitable, a great dispenser of alms and friendly to all.

 

I influenced my brother Francis King of France to protect Protestantism. My influence went only so far, however, and he later banned reformed books and began allowing persecution, only putting a halt to executions when I was in Paris.

 

I was able to secure the release of many preachers and Christian poets who were imprisoned for declaring the Truth of the Gospel.

One example of my influence is with Berquin, a French nobleman and a vocal Protestant, he was arrested in 1523 then released at my request. Two years later Berquin is once again in trouble and examined severely but he continued strong saying: “I will not yield a single point.” Again he was liberated because of my influence. He was finally arrested in 1529 and this time none of my efforts could get him released – he was put to death for refusing to agree with the Papists.

 

My most remarkable adventure involved freeing my brother, King Francis, captured in the Battle of Pavia, Italy, 1525, and held prisoner in Spain by Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor. (A Venetian ambassador of that time praised me as knowing all the secrets of diplomatic art, hence to be treated with deference and circumspection.) In a critical period of the negotiations, I rode horseback twelve hours a day, for many days, through wintry woods, to meet a safe-conduct deadline, writing letters at night.

 

After the death of my first husband in 1525, I married Henry II of Navarre in 1527. (Ferdinand II of Aragon had invaded the Kingdom of Navarre in 1512, and Henry ruled only Lower Navarre.) Henry was a Catholic, he began to show disapproval of me practicing Protestantism and treated me harshly for my faith. When my brother (who was always very fond of me) heard of this he threatened war with Navarre. This made King Henry afraid so he promised to allow Reformed worship. Then becoming curious, he looked further into my beliefs and was soon converted from Roman Catholicism to the protestant faith!

On 7 January 1528, I bore Henry a daughter, the future Jeanne III of Navarre (mother of the future Henry IV of France).

My only son, was born in Blois on 7 July 1530, when I was thirty-eight, middle-aged if not already old by 16th century standards. But he died on Christmas Day that same year. Scholars believe that my grief motivated me to write my most controversial work, in 1531. Anne Boleyn (who was, if nothing else, a catalyst for the English Reformation) was a lady-in-waiting my sister-in-law. (This was all before Anne returned to England and became Queen to Henry VIII. (Actually……Anne was in service to me rather than to my sister-in-law Claude) and that Anne Boleyn became a friend, admirer and a disciple of mine and took on my views about Christianity. I have a letter from Anne Boleyn after she became Queen with strong expressions of affection to me. I gave Anne the original manuscript of my most controversial poem at some point. Then in 1545 (after Anne Boleyn's execution by her husband Henry VIII), Anne's daughter, Elizabeth I (1533–1603) translated this very same poem by me into English when she was just twelve years old, and presented it, written in her own hand, to her then step-mother, the English Queen Katherine Parr. (This literary connection between myself, Anne, Katherine Parr and the future Queen Elizabeth I suggests a link between the legacy of reformist religious convictions, with me as mentor.)

Although I encouraged reform within the Catholic Church, I was not a Calvinist. I did, however, do my best to protect the Reformers and dissuaded Francis I from intolerant measures as long as I could.

I seemed to live in both the Renaissance and the Reformation. I liked to be involved in charity work. I would walk unescorted in the streets of Navarre, allowing any one to approach me and would listen at first hand to the sorrows of the people. I was really concerned for the poor. Henri, my husband, King of Navarre, believed in what I was doing, even to the extent of setting up a public works system that became a model for France. Together he and I financed the education of needy students."

I am praying that my children will continue working for Reformed freedoms.

 

*From many sources including:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marguerite_de_Navarre

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lower_Navarre

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Navarre