What we can loudly proclaim is, that still in all Europe there does not exist a people of such good faith, simplicity, frankness, and kind-heartedness, as the Vaudois of the present day. They preserve a respect for religion, a love for their duties, and a purity of opinions and morals which may in vain be sought for among other nations called Christian; and these virtues are joined to so much modesty, that they appear perfectly natural, and never ostentatious. What a touching and sublime spectacle do these people present to every kind heart and good understanding which contemplates them! They are good husbands, good fathers, kind friends, and good citizens, and have always, even in the midst of their persecutions, shown the greatest fidelity to their princes. Nay, even have, after an interval of a few days only, turned in their defence those arms which they had used against them, in the preservation of their lives and religion.
During the long course of persecutions they have sustained, notwithstanding the perfidy with which they were treated, and the horrible tortures which they underwent, they have never given way to vengeance, and have contented themselves with repelling force by force. So that no instance is to be found, in their history, of a defenceless enemy having been ill used, or of their having violated their promises, even while treated with systematic perfidy. Nor have they ever shed blood, except when their absolute safety obliged them. If so many virtues, so many good qualities, are sometimes mingled with weaknesses, we must attribute it to the imperfection of human nature; observing that it is only some individuals who are worthy of reproach, and that the mass of society is (humanly speaking) irreproachable. It would, perhaps, be possible to clear off these faint stains, if the ancient ecclesiastical discipline was again enforced; and it is in aid of this object that we have consecrated the next chapter to its description. Happy, thrice happy should I be, if this, or any part of my work, should tend to draw any of my countrymen (still more than at present) into the path of life. If this whole people, by drawing daily nearer to the Eternal One, should ever render themselves worthy to have it said of them—"This is the patience of the faithful, behold them who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus."
Note.—Having had the opinion of my friends, the commissioners of the Walloon Synod, upon my MS. and this having been thought too bright a picture of the Vaudois morals by one of those gentlemen who had never visited the valleys, I thus replied to one of them:—"I am not surprised that my picture of the manners of my countrymen should appear to you too highly coloured. But if you had lived some years among these excellent people, as I have done, and then in a country where the corruption of manners is as great as it is here, and in the towns in Switzerland, you would not think so. For, although we may be degenerated from the purity of our ancestors, I protest to you, that it is only those parishes immediately adjoining to Piémont which have incurred this reproach. In all the rest, their kindness of heart, frankness, benevolence, and zeal for religion, would enchant you. I have more than once visited all the parishes, and have resided in most of them, being acquainted with a great many of their inhabitants; and, by all this experience, I am confirmed in the belief that there does not exist, in our days, a people in morals so pure, life so irreproachable, and piety so exemplary, as the Vaudois."*
That the Vaudois have preserved until the time of the Reformation the doctrines of the primitive church, as described in the epistles of the Apostles, has been acknowledged by Luther, Melancthon, Bucer, and Æcolampadius, in the different letters which they addressed to our ancestors. And it was by their advice that the latter relaxed somewhat from the ancient severity of ecclesiastical government, fearing that it might estrange persons otherwise desirous of embracing their belief; and others, who having fallen into error, preferred abjuring their creed to exposing themselves to the shame of public punishment. I cannot think, however, that these changes have proved advantageous, and Melancthon himself confesses, he cannot disapprove of the former strictness, and wishes it had been adopted in the Protestant churches. It is certain that the total abolition of all discipline among the latter has been pernicious to good morals. Let us examine the methods taken by the Vaudois to preserve them uncorrupted.
Public Worship, &c.
The public worship was always celebrated in the Vaudois language till 1630, when a pestilence swept off the whole of the barbes,* then fifteen in number, with the exception of two, who were inefficient from age.** In consequence, pastors were invited to come from France and Geneva; as these knew neither Vaudois nor Italian, they preached in French, a custom which still continues, (though the churches have long been served by Vaudois,) but though few families speak French habitually, there is no one who does not perfectly comprehend it, all their books being in French; and consequently the children always receive their instruction in that language. They make use of the Swiss liturgy, not having it in their power to print one of their own. In the holy sacraments the bread was, until 1630, broken into three parts, and the water thrice sprinkled in baptism, in remembrance of the Trinity.
The parishioners, without exception, assembled at the house of their respective elders, for communion, which was celebrated four times a year; when before Easter, and sometimes before Christmas, each person was required by his pastor to give his reasons for his faith, and if one was passed over, it was esteemed an affront. Oh virtuous people! why hast thou not persisted in this laudable custom, so well calculated to perpetuate thy happiness, and maintain thy zeal for religion? Before the time of the plague above mentioned, the pastors each year were subject to a visit from the moderator and two members of the synod, who, after minute inquiries, made their report to the synod. The foreign clergy would not submit to this ordinance, and though it has been since re-established, these perquisitions have not been made with the same strictness.
The ancient pastors were also accustomed to invite the censure of their consistory once a year, upon any thing they might disapprove; and, after general consultation, the first of the elders freely gave his opinion of the conduct of the pastor. Ecclesiastical punishments were also severe; a murderer, adulterer, or lewd person, could only be reconciled to the church after having given unequivocal proofs of repentance, and a long exclusion from the sacrament. Such persons were also obliged to appear publicly in the church, (the number of times being regulated by the extent of guilt,) and after sitting on a seat apart, stand up at the end of the service, while the pastor announced that a person was permitted to make public reparation for his fault. The penitent then implored aloud the pardon of God, and his brethren, for having set them so bad an example, and promised amendment; upon which the barbe announced to him the remission of his sin, on the part and in the name of the Almighty, and concluded by an exhortation to the people. This custom is authorized, nay, prescribed by the Gospel, as one of great utility. I must however repeat, sins of this nature are still extremely rare in the vallies. Games of hazard were never permitted, and dancing was so strictly forbidden, that the wife of a pastor was publicly censured for having been present at a May-day dance in Luzerne, though she did not herself take part in it. "There are also," says Leger, "ordinances against blasphemy and swearing; but during the twenty-three years I have been minister, and twelve moderator, no one instance of the kind has ever occurred; and I am convinced in a whole century here one should not hear the name of God taken in vain."
The consistories in each parish are composed of the pastor, the elders, and the deacon: * no one is admitted among the elders without a very strict examination; the dignity lasts for life, unless forfeited by unworthy conduct. In important cases the heads of families are called in to the assistance of the consistory, who decide by the majority of votes. There were besides other councils, called colloques,** composed of the pastors and one or two ancients from every church, who met once a month in each valley to take cognizance of those differences which were not finally arranged at the consistories. From the colloques an appeal might be made to the synods; but disputes were sometimes settled by choosing arbiters, and exacting a promise of obedience to their decision. By these means was every dispute terminated, for it was absolutely forbid, under any pretence, to have recourse to courts of law.
How consistent these rules were with the spirit of primitive Christianity may be seen, by referring to the sixth chapter of St. Paul's epistle to the Corinthians.
The synods were the most solemn and general councils of the Vaudois, and were formerly held every year, (but now every second year,) at each parish in turn, excepting the four most remote.* They consist of the pastor and two elders from every parish, together with a commissioner from the sovereign, who, however, is not allowed to speak in the discussions.** This assembly forms a court of dernier resort to all others, appoints pastors and schoolmasters, and creates a moderator, adjoint, and secretary; who, under the name of La Table, form a committee for the management of affairs, until the meeting of the next synod. But the synods do not assume the right of interfering in matters of faith.*** Indeed, I find that all the articles of belief, and declarations of faith by our ancestors, have been drawn up in special general assemblies, consisting not only of pastors and elders, but also of such heads of families who could attend. As, for example, the articles d'union des vallées, in 1571.
At the opening of their synods the pastors preach in turn, and it is then only that the Catholics permit the members of their church to attend such sermons, which they do in great numbers.****
This name, which originally signified uncle, was generally given to those persons treated with any particular respect and reverence, and was used to distinguish the pastors, until the calamity of 1630, mentioned above. "These barbes* were," says Leger, "models of all virtue, pious, humble, innocent, mild, and peaceable; as well as diligent, laborious, and vigilant in their office; faithful labourers in the Lord's vineyard; they consecrated all their time and talents to the care of souls; exposing themselves to reproaches and persecutions, nay, even death itself in defence of the truth; despising the vanities, luxuries, and honours which the world offered to them. In a word, they fulfilled to the utmost every duty of nature and society." Among them many were married, others remained single, on account of the changes of abode then so often necessary to keep up a correspondence with distant countries; particularly (since the twelfth century) with Bohemia, Germany, Gascony, Provence, Dauphiné, Languedoc, England, Calabria, and Apulia. Our barbes visited each of those countries in turn, preaching and animating the courage of their brethren; and the money necessary for their journeys and support while absent, was furnished them from the valleys.
Besides preaching, they occupied themselves in making copies of the Holy Scriptures, for the use of their flocks; many of them studied medicine and surgery, an occupation the more laudable as medical men have always been very scarce in the valleys, only one residing even now in the valley of St. Martin, and none in that of Luzerne, except the apothecary of the Catholic town of that name. It is true that the frugal manner of life among the Vaudois renders their assistance little necessary; and well acquainted as were our ancient barbes with the simples, with which our country abounds, they found among them almost all the remedies required.
There were some of these venerable men, who, like the apostles, applied themselves to mechanical arts, but the most particular object of their care was the instruction of youth, and especially those intended for the church. In the most ancient times, the studies of the latter were confined to the learning by heart the gospels of St. Matthew and St. John, and the epistles; with a good part of the writings of Solomon, David, and the prophets; after which on presenting good testimonials, they were admitted into the ecclesiastical order, by the imposition of hands.*
Not only the inhabitants of the valleys, but the youth of distant countries came to have the instructions of our barbes. For Illyricus,* the Papist author before quoted, affirms—"I find that it was common, nay, customary, for Bohemians to travel from their country to their Valdensian preceptors in Lombardy, as if to some school or college for the sake of studying divinity."
The History of Alsace (lib. i.) makes a similar statement, with regard to the Alsaceans preparing themselves for holy orders.
The cavern, which served for the accademia of our venerable barbes, where they sowed and cultivated the principles of their pure and blameless religion, and whence they spread them through the world, is still in existence; it is the cavern of the famous Pré du Tour in the parish of Angrogna. Besides this sacred college, there was, and still exists in each parish, one or more schools, where the children of both sexes are instructed in writing, reading, arithmetic, and sacred music,** well as in the elements of religion. There are also two latin schools, where those destined to the study of divinity learn Latin, and a little Greek, previous to their removal to Lausanne or Geneva.
Note.—How different is this instruction from the method pursued in our days; it sufficed then to have studied the Christian religion in the gospel. But now a minister of the gospel must pass the flower of his youth, in learning sciences which certainly do not render him a more zealous and virtuous Christian, than he would have been had he studied alone at the school of Jesus. Now, for four or five years he is to groan beneath the study of languages:* then he goes on to the study of the belles lettres; and then to philosophy, of little use indeed to him, and indeed injurious, as it is taught at some universities. See here, ten years of labour and expense! and for what? To gain a knowledge of subjects which have no connection with the science of happiness. Ten years, during which, the youth who has devoted himself to the preaching of the gospel, has scarcely heard mention made of it; or if he has, only as a necessary part of his studies; while he should have made it his principal object. After this comes theology, which surely ought to consist in the simple, but fundamental and thorough knowledge of revelation; the proofs which establish its truth; and above all, the duties which it recommends. Is this the method of study in the colleges? By no means. It is not the gospel which they teach; it is the various opinions of commentators, and heads of sects, on different passages of the sacred writings. Is this to conform to the spirit of religion? is it not, on the contrary, to engage one's self in that pretended wisdom, that futile science it so much reproves? Let me be allowed freely to say, that I consider the manner in which the Christian religion is taught and learnt in our days, as the principal obstacle to its progress. The gospel has no need of all this paraphernalia of science, to affect the feelings or judgment.
It possesses in itself all that is necessary to produce these happy effects. I have only to cast a glance back upon our good ancestors, when our barbes studied the Bible alone, to be confirmed in my opinion. Is there now among the nations regarded as the most enlightened, any example of a society, which has attained to such a degree of perfection? Surely, if the answer is in the negative, we must not deny the source of the superiority of the ancient Vaudois over other nations, and even over the Vaudois of the present day. It is true that the studies of our young divines have not always been so simple. Logic, together with Italian, French, and Latin, were added, but still there was nothing like the present course of study. I deny not that all these sciences, (with which it is wished to adorn divines,) may be very useful in the countries where they are taught; as France, Germany, England, Switzerland, and the United Provinces; but I believe all this apparatus of learning to be totally useless in our valleys, and that it is consequently in vain to condemn so many youths, destined to the priesthood, to such heavy expense and waste of time;* and every enlightened person will be aware of the cruelty of awakening these young men to the pleasures of learning and science, when on their return to their homes, they must abandon them from poverty, want of time, and their isolated situation. For to whom can they communicate their sciences? to the Vaudois? they understand the gospel alone, and are indifferent as to the rest.
It must be remarked that the object of this note regards the Vaudois alone, and that it has been added with a view of drawing their attention to the establishment of a college, of which the author has drawn up a plan, which will be added at the end of the history. When it is considered what important objects may thus be obtained by a very small comparative sacrifice of money, it is hoped the benefactors of the Vaudois will turn their attention to it, and that some influence might be exerted by the British government to obtain the necessary permission, at the court of Turin.—Vide calculations of the expense by a traveller, in 1825.
Those who are ignorant that our annals are marked by blood and misery, will be surprised to find that the history of these virtuous and simple Vaudois, worthy of the admiration of mankind, is little else than a series of calamity. Nor will they be able to reconcile the barbarity and ferocity, with which they have been persecuted, with the candour and innocence of these victims. One word is sufficient to explain the horrible enigma; mistaken zeal is blind to the duties of religion and nature. Can we call those reasonable beings, who, while claiming the privileges of the human race, utterly forgetful of humanity, massacre thousands of their fellow-creatures in cold blood. Why is it that the potentates of the earth have constituted themselves judges of an affair which regards God alone? Or who has given them a right to treat as heretics, those who think differently from themselves, or to pour out their blood before the altars of God?
It was at the end of the fifteenth century that these scenes commenced; for previously, though the victims of secret intrigue, the Vaudois had suffered no open persecution. It was reserved to the Inquisition to work their ruin. A Spanish priest named Dominic, came to France to preach against the Vaudois of Albi or Albigenses; and succeeded so well that his order received the title of the preachers. He established himself at Toulouse, and thence dispatched his spies in all directions to make perquisitions for those suspected of heresy, and punish them.*
Gregory IX., then Pope, soon perceived the advantage he might derive from such missionaries, and authorised the Dominicans in France and Spain, and the Franciscans in Italy, to make inquisition (inquirere) after heretics; as well as to try, convict, and punish them. Such is the origin of the Inquisition, a tribunal so execrable, that it threatened to drown the human race in blood. Its principal seat was at Rome, and on the model of that, was established at Turin, that famous council, De Propaganda fide et extirpendis hereticis, which we shall hereafter call the Propaganda. This council began by declaring the Vaudois unworthy of communication with other Christians, ordered the confiscation of their property, the demolition of their houses, even the cutting down of their trees; sent to all princes and sovereign lords, to require them to search for and deliver up such heretics to the Inquisition; inflicted heavy penalties on those who concealed them; and conferred the third of their property on the informers, who pointed out their retreats. But these measures were too weak; the court of Rome aimed at the utter extirpation of this unhappy people, and committed to its ministers, the power of delivering over to the secular arm, that is, of putting to death without mercy, all those they considered heretics. Nay, these ferocious missionaries pronounced sentence against corpses which had been buried twenty and thirty years; dragged them from their tombs to flaming piles, and confiscated the possessions of the families to which they belonged.
A father was forced to give evidence against a son; a sister against a brother; a wife against her husband; the bonds of nature, blood and friendship, were esteemed as nothing, to the objects of the Inquisition; even those suspected of heresy were rigorously punished, if they could not procure witnesses to swear to their innocence. The accused was ignorant of the name of his accuser, nor was he allowed any advocate, except such as might be chosen by the Inquisition. One witness alone was sufficient for condemnation to the torture, and even where the crime could not be proved, the victim was never acquitted, but his name was branded with infamy, and remained inscribed on the registers of this relentless tribunal.
I content myself with referring my readers to l'histoire de la religion des églises réformées, by Basnage, 1725, 4to., where they will discover ample proof that the above statement is not overcharged; and find extracts of the acts of the Inquisition of Toulouse, erected against the Vaudois and Albigenses.
I cannot however refrain from transcribing some of the Articles which have served as rules to the inquisitors in the persecutions of our ancestors.
Some of the rules followed by the Inquisitors in their proceedings against the Vaudois:
That no one can be received as a penitent or admitted to absolution, if guilty of directly or indirectly concealing a heretic.
That no one, after having been given over to the secular power, be permitted to justify himself before the people, lest by his explanations it should appear to the simple that injustice had been done him; and if he should escape, the Catholic religion be thereby injured.
That no one condemned before the people shall be pardoned, even should he retract, and promise conversion; for a sufficient number of these heretics could never be burnt, if they were suffered to escape on such pretexts; because these promises being only drawn from them by the fear of torments, would not be observed, and if they should promise conversion before the people, and death be then inflicted, the people might think them unjustly treated. Therefore it is best never to let them speak before the people.
That during examinations, the Inquisitor should always have a book open before him, appearing to have therein registered, a quantity of depositions, and, indeed, the whole life of the heretic.
Inevitable death must be placed before his eyes, if he refuses to confess and renounce his heresy. If he answers—"If I must die, then, I prefer to die in my own faith," his execution must be hurried on as much as possible, and mercy never shewn.
No attempt should ever be made to convince heretics by the Scriptures, for they pervert them with such dexterity, as often to confound the most learned men, who attempt to answer them, and thereby they become more hardened.
A heretic must never be answered categorically; and in an interrogatory several questions should always be given at a time; so that in whatever way he may answer, he may be replied to, to his confusion.
If there are any who protest they never were guilty of the Vaudois heresy, they must be admonished, that there are proofs sufficient to convict them; promising them in ambiguous terms, that they may hope for pardon on a free confession; many will then confess, with the hope of saving their lives.
Such were the Rules of the Inquisition, at the end of the eleventh century.
CENTURIES.
We have already stated, that when Valdo and his disciples were driven from Lyons, towards the end of the twelfth century, many settled in our valleys. In consequence about 150 years afterwards, the population becoming excessive, many families withdrew to Provence, where they built Cabrieres, Merindol, Lormarin, and other villages. Others went to Paysanne, Biolet, &c., villages in the Marquisate of Saluces; and some retired to Meane and Mathias, near Susa. But the most considerable colonies formed at this time, sought an asylum in Calabria, and Apulia; where they first built the town called Borgo d' Oltramontani,* near Montalto, and fifty years afterwards (on the increase of new settlers) San Sisto, Vacarisso, Argentine, and St. Vincent. The Marquis of Spinello also allowed them at last to build on his lands, near the sea, the fortified town of Guardia, which soon became a flourishing place.
About the year 1400, a persecution arising in Provence, many Vaudois returned to the valleys, and thence, accompanied by others of their brethren, directed their course to Naples, in the neighbourhood of which they founded successively the little towns of Moulione, Montavato, La Celia, and La Motta.
About 100 years after this some Vaudois of Frassinieres (then making one body with those of the valleys) went to inhabit the town of Volturara, near those above mentioned, which was the last considerable emigration at this period.
All these little colonies were regularly instructed by pastors, who travelled from town to town for that purpose. Our barbes even possessed houses at Florence, Genoa, and Venice, in which last city were 6000 Vaudois.* There were even numbers in Rome itself, who lived in concealment.
Although the Vaudois of Val Louise, and two other places in Dauphiné, were persecuted in 1380,** this calamity did not extend into Piémont till 1400, when all the inhabitants of Pragela were forced to fly to the highest mountains, where about eighty women and children died of cold. After the massacre of all who fell into their hands, the persecutors pillaged their houses, and carried their booty to Susa.
This persecution was far exceeded in severity by that in the Valley of Luzerne, excited by the monkish missionaries in 1476. These men, notwithstanding the four edicts confirmatory of the privileges of the Vaudois, published by the Dukes Louis and Amadeus and Duchess Jolante, from the years 1448 to 1473, procured bulls of great severity against them, from the inquisitor, Aquapendente, and Campesio, bishop of Turin, in 1475. Many Vaudois in consequence fell beneath the hands of the executioner, and among them the barbe Jordan Tertian was burnt at Susa; and Rouzier, Chiamp, Ambroise, and Hian, also suffered martyrdom in other places.
In order to add force to the above bull, the Duchess Jolante issued, in 1476, her Latin edict, (still extant,) directing the magistrates of Luzerne, Cavour, and Pignerol, to use every means to bring the Vaudois over to the Catholic faith; and, in case of resistance, to execute the inquisitorial bulls against them.
In this edict, the Duchess herself gives evidence of our antiquity; I had almost said, apostolical succession, since the words are, "to make them enter (venire) into the bosom of the Roman communion," and not re-enter.
Clement the Seventh may be regarded as the founder of the most monstrous empire which has ever existed, exciting the flames of persecution against all those who refused to acknowledge him as supreme head of the church. Innocent the Eighth proceeded upon the same plan; taking advantage of the brutal ignorance of the age, to lay the world at his feet, and to dictate supreme laws to nations and their sovereigns.* The bull of the latter Pontiff,** addressed to Albert de Capitaneis, papal nuncio at the court of Charles Duke of Savoy, is too important to pass unnoticed. The Pope complains that "the followers of that pernicious and abominable sect of malignants, called Pauvres de Lyon, or Vaudois, say and commit many things contrary to orthodox faith, offensive in the eyes of God and pernicious to their own souls." In consequence of which, (and thinking himself obliged by the duties of his office absolutely to root out this accursed sect and all contaminated by it,) Innocent, through his full power, orders "all bishops, archbishops, vicars, and others possessing ecclesiastical office, to obey his inquisitor, and to take up arms with him against the said Vaudois, in order to tread them under foot, as venomous serpents, and thus fortify the people confided to them in the profession of the true faith." He then recommends to all—"to neglect nothing, and employ their best endeavours for such a holy and necessary extermination of the said heretics." And exhorts all sovereigns and princes "to take the shield of orthodox faith, and to lend him and all bishops, &c. &c. their assistance, to the end that they may exterminate and entirely destroy all these execrable heretics."
The Roman Pontiff proceeds, "to order all preachers to preach this crusade, to excite and inflame the faithful to destroy this pestilence by force and arms; to absolve all the crusaders, contributing by their arms or otherwise to this holy extermination, from all ecclesiastical censures and sentences. He grants to all the crusaders a dispensation for all irregularities. He recommends to all inquisitors to make composition with all those who have goods or possessions unjustly acquired, provided they will employ them for the extermination of the heretics. And he gives to all persons fighting against the latter full indulgence and remission of all the sins they may have committed; and this pardon is to extend even to the moment of their death."* He also gives to the crusaders "the right to take possession of all goods of heretics, moveable and immoveable. The missionaries shall command all those in the service of these heretics to leave them, and to obey our apostolical commands, under pain of excommunication. All those who have any debtor promise due to these Vaudois shall hold themselves as free from it, and discontinue all commerce with them. All those disobedient to these commands shall be deposed from all their orders, rank, and dignities, whatsoever they may be; and the ecclesiastics shall lose their benefices, the laity their honours, titles, fiefs, and privileges, becoming infamous, and incapable hereafter of holding any office or employment."
Such is this series of horrible maxims, subversive alike of all justice, humanity, and religion.*
This bull, which was followed by an apostile from the Legate, almost as long, and signed by two notaries of Pignerol, authorized by the Duke of Savoy, to publish it in all his territories; was the cause of eight hundred thousand Vaudois being put to death in different parts of Europe. Leger vouches for this fact; can any terms then be sufficiently severe for the cruelty of this monster Innocent VIII.
To return, the nuncio Capitaneis, furnished with the Pope's letters patent, having engaged the Duke of Savoy, the King of France, and other neighbouring princes to furnish troops for the extermination of the inhabitants of the valleys, about 18,000 men were assembled, besides 5 or 6000 Piemontese volunteers, eager to obtain both the pillage of the valleys and full remission of their sins.
In order to ensure success, this army was divided into several corps, and attacked at once Angrogna, Luzerne, Perouse, and St. Martin, as well as Pragela, where, after many cruelties committed, they were repulsed by the inhabitants. The chief attack was made in the Valley of Angrogna, towards Roccal Mag-nol, where the Vaudois were prepared to receive it; some of the advanced guard had armed themselves with a kind of long wooden cuirass, which defended the men, and from which the arrows rebounded; and under this living rampart the second rank made good use of their long cross-bows, but were on the point of yielding to superior numbers; when one Revel, indignant at the insulting shouts and imprecations of Lenois, who commanded the enemies, shot him with an arrow, upon which his troops were struck with a panic and fled. The French and Savoyards, irritated by this defeat, made another attack on the side of Angrogna, but though at first successful, they were afterwards repulsed. One of their captains, Saquet, falling from a rock into the torrent Angrogna, the spot was called by his name more than a hundred years after.
In the attack upon Pral, of 700 men, who engaged the Vaudois near Pommiers, one ensign alone escaped, whom the Vaudois pardoned, that he might carry the news of this defeat to the rest of the army. The attacks in other quarters having had no better success, all open hostilities ceased, although desultory incursions were made into the valleys for a year afterwards, which did great mischief, in keeping up an alarm and preventing the cultivation of the land.
Philip the Seventh, Duke of Savoy, at length resolved to put an end to the war, and sent a bishop to treat with the Vaudois, at Pra Ays-suit; the only condition being, that they should come to Pignerol, where his court was, to ask pardon. This was assented to, and the Duke granted a general pardon, on receiving a sum of money; he allowed that he had been ill informed; confirmed their former privileges, and affirmed that he had not such good, faithful, and obedient subjects as the Vaudois.
It was on this occasion that Philip VII. desired to see the children, it having been reported among the vulgar, that the Vaudois children were born with one eye in the midst of the forehead, and four rows of black teeth: a striking instance of the ignorance in which Piémont was plunged at that time.
The favour of their prince did not, however, defend the Vaudois from the persecutions of the inquisitors, who, from the convent near Pignerol, took many prisoners, either by force or stratagem, and seldom allowed them to escape death. By their intrigues they prevailed upon Marguerite de Foix, widow of the Marquis de Saluces, to drive all the Vaudois from her territory, in the year 1500. These poor exiles, after taking refuge for five years in the valley of Luzerne, and making incessant supplications for permission to return, at length suddenly attacked their enemies sword in hand, and gained possession of their homes, where they remained unmolested during the greatest part of the sixteenth century.
Every one knows that the commencement of the sixteenth century was marked by the change in religious opinions throughout Europe which produced the Reformation; nor need I here specify the names of the reformers, or enumerate their labours in different countries, from Luther's public acts, in 1516, to the assemblage formed by Cranmer in England, of Bucer the martyr, Fagius, and others, about the middle of the century.
Our barbes had, in 1526, sent barbe Martin and others, to hold a conference with the reformers Zwinglius, OEcolampadius, and Bucer, and had returned with many eulogiums on the constancy and simplicity of the Vaudois. Luther, though at first no friend to the Vaudois, admitted, upon better information respecting them, that they were most improperly styled heretics, and expressed his admiration of the courage with which they had renounced all human systems, in order to be guided solely by the light of revelation. Calvin also took a lively interest in them, and held their doctrines in high estimation. To the eulogiums of the reformers were added, however, some rebukes on what they esteemed errors in church discipline, and some German ministers returned with the barbes, to consult on their amendment. The strictures of the reformers rested on points of doctrine not specified by our histories; too much lenity shown towards feeble persons, who attended mass from fear of persecution; and lastly and principally, "that the Vaudois had not celebrated their worship with sufficient publicity for some years."
I must be permitted to say, that even these, reproaches appear to me ill founded. Our ancestors would have been indeed blamable had they concealed their faith; but, on the contrary, they defended it at the price of their property and lives. All that can be said is, that their external worship was not so regular as in our days; because, as a means of security, they often worshipped God only in caverns and forests, and in their private houses.
When our barbes had communicated to their brethren the observations of the reformers, an assembly was convoked to discuss them, at Angrogna, on the 12th of September, 1532, which was attended from every part of the valleys. The result was a new confession of faith, though it appears the assembly was not entirely unanimous, for two pastors and some others were of opinion (and with reason) that it was better to adhere to the old confessions, and particularly that of 1100.
I would go farther and say, that these confessions of faith, so frequent since the Reformation, have been pernicious.
Is it not an act of folly or vanity to dare to form confessions of faith, other than the Apostles' creed? I do not hesitate, therefore, to blame our Vaudois for having thus departed from the wise maxims of their forefathers.
The spirit of this document, and the publicity with which the Vaudois resolved in future to celebrate divine worship, greatly astonished their enemies. The monks, who had been sent into the valleys to collect the revenues of their curés, and to convert the inhabitants, despaired of their undertaking, and returned in great ill-humour. But their hatred to the Vaudois was too inveterate to allow them to remain idle; and having put in force every stratagem, they at last succeeded in their plots so far as to induce Duke Charles to begin a new persecution.
Many Vaudois, to escape the last persecutions, had withdrawn from their country to Merindol, Cabrieres, and Lormarin, in Provence, where they lived undisturbed until 1534; when the bishops of this country, making researches for heretics, seized these unhappy people, and finding them to be Piemontese, wrote to the inquisitor and to the archbishop of Turin, at whose instigation the Duke consented to appoint Pantaléon Bressour, lord of Rocheplatte, director of the war against the Vaudois. Bressour, provided with letters patent, went to examine the Vaudois prisoners in Provence; and from them learned not only who were the barbes who came from the valleys to instruct them, but the names of almost all the families there. From this information, he formed two lists., viz. one of declared, the other of suspected heretics, which he presented to the inquisitors; he was soon armed with fresh powers, by the edict of Quiers, (dated August, 1535,) to seize all whom he knew to be Vaudois, and to force them to enter into the Catholic faith, or undergo the punishments they deserved. Civil and military officers, and all other subjects were enjoined to obey the requisition of Bressour for assistance, under a heavy penalty.
Having chosen 500 men from the Duke's whole army, this leader attacked the Vaudois, who had not the slightest suspicion of the violation of the peace, and massacred them without any distinction of age or sex, spreading consternation throughout the valleys. The following day, as they marched into the Val de Luzerne, with the intention of continuing the carnage, our Vaudois suddenly attacked them in front, rear, and flank, and succeeded in destroying most of these assassins, the rest took to flight, abandoning their prisoners and booty. Perrin (the historian) attributes this victory, in great measure to the slings, which the Vaudois used at that time with the greatest dexterity, and which formed their principal weapon. Blanche, countess of Luzerne and Angrogna, complained in vain of this perfidious invasion: two days afterwards appeared letters from the Duke, forbidding the inhabitants of the valleys to assemble in arms, under a penalty of one hundred silver marks. Bressour, however, contented himself with seizing those Vaudois who were mingled among the Catholics in Lower Piémont, and soon filled his castle, the prisons and Convents at Pignerol, and the inquisition at Turin, with prisoners. After they were tried by the inquisitors, vicar, and assessors, part of them were condemned to the flames, and the rest to several years imprisonment. There were some indeed whose fate was never known.
The Duke, seeing that these persecutions made no impression, and having remarked that, in open warfare, "the skin of a Vaudois always cost fifteen or twenty of his best Catholics," by his letters, forbid them to be further molested on any pretence whatever.
My readers will see that he was here actuated by a political motive* Francis the First, king of France, having demanded a passage for his army destined for the reconquest of the Milanese, the Duke thought proper to refuse, and consequently to employ all his forces to protect the frontiers. It was therefore necessary to engage the Vaudois to defend their passes, through which the French could have directly penetrated. However, notwithstanding all resistance, the enemy soon forced their way through Savoy into Piémont; and, after bearing their part in the sufferings of the war, the Vaudois remained under the government of the French for twenty-three years.
They were during that time little disturbed on account of their faith, although some individuals occasionally fell victims to the fanaticism of the inquisition. Catelan Girardet, of St. Jean, was burnt at Revel in 1535; as he was led to execution he took up two pebbles, and, rubbing them together, thus addressed his persecutors: "You hope by your persecutions to destroy our churches; you will no more obtain your object than I can destroy these two stones in my hands." After which he submitted to his fate with admirable resignation. In 1536, the barbe Martin Gonin, of Angrogna, as remarkable for his learning as for his piety, was seized at Grenoble, on his return from Geneva, and thrown into the Isere for his perseverance in the faith.
The Vaudois at this time resolved on publishing the Bible, having only the New Testament and some books of the Old, which were sparingly scattered among them, This they accomplished at the expense of 1500 gold crowns, paid to the printer at Neuchatel, who undertook the work. The translation was made by the barbe Robert Olivetan, with the assistance of his relation the celebrated Calvin. Though some say, that the version of Lefevre d'Estaples, prepared a few years before, served them for a model; it is certain that this translation of Olivetan's was used as the basis for almost all those since published. It was revised and reprinted by the academy of Geneva, in 1588.
We have mentioned the commencement of the persecutions of the Vaudois in Provence, in 1534; they were revived in 1540, by the parliament of Aix citing the inhabitants of Merindol to appear before them; when they refused to do so on account of, the danger they would be exposed to, they were condemned to the loss of their lives and possessions. The execution of this barbarous sentence was deferred till 1545, when Cardinal Tournon obtained permission to proceed by force of arms; Minier, president of the parliament and lieutenant of the king, was the principal executioner; having marched from Aix on the 16th of April, he commenced by burning the villages of Pepin, La Motte, and St. Martin, and massacred all the inhabitants, sparing neither age nor sex. On the 17th, he ravaged and burnt Lormarin, Ville-Laure, Treizemenes, and Genson. On the 18th, he set fire to Merindol, when he put to death a child, the only one remaining of its inhabitants. And, finally, on the 19th, this monster destroyed the town of Cabrieres, where 800 victims scarcely satiated his thirst for blood. The assassins under Minier's command even extended their cruelties to infants yet unborn, in a manner too shocking to relate.
Those who escaped from this horrible carnage fled to the valleys and to Geneva; but, after some years, returned to take possession of their property. While these scenes were acting in the south of France, Pope Paul III. excited the parliament of Turin to similar acts in the valleys, then under the French dominion. To a petition for mercy, the only answer returned by Francis the First was, that if they did not conform to the laws of the Roman communion he would punish them as obstinate heretics, since he did not burn such persons in France to tolerate them among the Alps. They were then enjoined to send away their barbes and receive Roman Catholic priests to celebrate the mass.
The Vaudois replied courageously, that it was impossible for them to obey such commands; that they were always ready to render unto Cæsar the things which belonged to Cæsar; but that they would render unto God what pertained to him, however dearly such obedience might cost them. No doubt, at another time, this would have excited a general persecution, but Francis had too much to do to employ his forces against them. The parliament, therefore, contented itself with individual persecution, and ordered all judges and magistrates vigorously to assist the officers of the inquisition, and to commit to the flames all the Vaudois who might fall into their hands. In consequence many suffered, and among them one Hector, a bookseller, who was burnt 1555, in the square of the castle at Turin, and behaved with great heroism.
Until this time the houses of the barbes had served for the churches of their flocks; but they were now considered as too small, and it was decided to build temples:* the first erected was St. Laurence, at Angrogna; but others were built in val Luzerne and val St. Martin in the same year, 1556. It was also about this time that they began to send students to foreign universities, which relieved the barbes, who were much employed now, but also decreased the number of young divines, as comparatively only a few could support the expense.