Siege of Alès
Encyclopedia
The Siege of Alès was undertaken by Louis XIII of France
, and the city captured in 17 June 1629.
, in the Siege of La Rochelle
. Huguenot resistance persisted in the south of France though, and Louis XIII endeavoured to eliminate it as well. With Privas
and Anduze
, the city of Alès was at the center of a string of Protestants strongholds in the Languedoc
, stretching from Nîmes
and Uzes
in the east, to Castres
and Montauban
in the west. Ales was selected by Antoine Hercule de Budos, Marquis des Portes (1589-1629), as a strategic target to severe Huguenot defenses in two and disconnect their main centers of Nîmes and Montauban.
After Privas on 28 May 1629, in which the Marquis des Portes was killed, Alès surrendered after an intense siege on 17 June. At the end of the siege, Henri, Duke of Rohan, the leader of the Huguenot rebellion, submitted.
without resistance. This was one of the last events in the repression of the Huguenot rebellions
in France
.
The siege was followed by the Peace of Alès (27 September 1629), which settled the revolt by garantying the practice of the Huguenot religion and judicial protection, but requiring Huguenot strongholds as well as political assemblies to be dismantled.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, and the city captured in 17 June 1629.
The siege
The Siege of Alès followed the disastrous capitulation of the main Protestant stronghold of La RochelleLa Rochelle
La Rochelle is a city in western France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department.The city is connected to the Île de Ré by a bridge completed on 19 May 1988...
, in the Siege of La Rochelle
Siege of La Rochelle
The Siege of La Rochelle was a result of a war between the French royal forces of Louis XIII of France and the Huguenots of La Rochelle in 1627-1628...
. Huguenot resistance persisted in the south of France though, and Louis XIII endeavoured to eliminate it as well. With Privas
Privas
Privas is a commune of France, capital of the Ardèche department. It is the second-smallest administrative center of any department in France, larger than only the commune of Foix. It is the fifth-largest commune in the Ardèche, behind Annonay, Aubenas, Guilherand-Granges, and Tournon-sur-Rhône. It...
and Anduze
Anduze
Anduze is a commune in the Gard department in southern France.-Population:-References:*...
, the city of Alès was at the center of a string of Protestants strongholds in the Languedoc
Languedoc
Languedoc is a former province of France, now continued in the modern-day régions of Languedoc-Roussillon and Midi-Pyrénées in the south of France, and whose capital city was Toulouse, now in Midi-Pyrénées. It had an area of approximately 42,700 km² .-Geographical Extent:The traditional...
, stretching from Nîmes
Nîmes
Nîmes is the capital of the Gard department in the Languedoc-Roussillon region in southern France. Nîmes has a rich history, dating back to the Roman Empire, and is a popular tourist destination.-History:...
and Uzes
Uzès
Uzès is a commune in the Gard department in southern France.It lies about 25 km north-northeast of Nîmes.-History:Originally Ucetia, Uzès was a small Gallo-Roman oppidum, or administrative settlement. The town lies at the source of the Eure, from where a Roman aqueduct was built in the first...
in the east, to Castres
Castres
Castres is a commune, and arrondissement capital in the Tarn department and Midi-Pyrénées region in southern France. It lies in the former French province of Languedoc....
and Montauban
Montauban
Montauban is a commune in the Tarn-et-Garonne department in the Midi-Pyrénées region in southern France. It is the capital of the department and lies north of Toulouse....
in the west. Ales was selected by Antoine Hercule de Budos, Marquis des Portes (1589-1629), as a strategic target to severe Huguenot defenses in two and disconnect their main centers of Nîmes and Montauban.
After Privas on 28 May 1629, in which the Marquis des Portes was killed, Alès surrendered after an intense siege on 17 June. At the end of the siege, Henri, Duke of Rohan, the leader of the Huguenot rebellion, submitted.
Aftermath
The remaining Huguenot cities rapidly fell, and finally Montauban surrenderedRedition of Montauban
The Redition of Montauban occurred on 21 August 1629, when the Huguenot city of Montauban surrendered to the Catholic troops of the French king Louis XIII under the direction of Richelieu....
without resistance. This was one of the last events in the repression of the Huguenot rebellions
Huguenot rebellions
The Huguenot rebellions, sometimes called the Rohan Wars after the Huguenot leader Henri de Rohan, refers to events of the 1620s in which French Protestants , mainly located in southwestern France, revolted against royal authority...
in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
The siege was followed by the Peace of Alès (27 September 1629), which settled the revolt by garantying the practice of the Huguenot religion and judicial protection, but requiring Huguenot strongholds as well as political assemblies to be dismantled.