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Maps, plates, charts, etc., may be filmed at different reduction ratios. Those too large to be entirely included in one exposure are filmed beginning in the upper left hand corner, left to right and top to bottom, as many frames as required. The following diagrams illustrate the method: Les cartes, planches, tableaux, etc., peuvent dtre fiim^s d des taux de reduction diffdrents. Lorsque le document est trop grand pour dtre reproduit en un seul clich6, il est film6 d partir de I'angle supdrieur gauche, de gatiche iS) droite, et de haut en has, en prenant le nombre d'images ndcessaire. Les diagrammes suivants illustrent la mithode. 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 ^ 'I If » * M^ORjfALS OF twb^iluNDRgD YfeARS. A(jb'BY A k'i,v- .* Rev^.Th SY ..■? *« OMAS KpNwrcic, mmmm ? S<^ THE WALDENSES IN 1686. UO THEWALDENSESIN1686. Aemorfale of JLwo Dun&re& Ideate Bgo. BY A FEW OF THE PASTORS OF THE VALLE\.\ Dedicated to the Waldensian Families. " The enemy hath overturned all in the sanctuary."— (Fr^«cA Version. Psalm Ixxiv : 3. " They that sow in tears shall reap in joy."— Psalm cxxvi : 5. TRANSLATED FROM THE FRENCH BY REV.T.FENWICK, Elders Mills, Ont. WITH AN APPENDIX BY THE TRANSLATOR. DEVICE OF THE WALDENSIAN CHURCH, S. R. BRIGGS, Toronto Willard T|iact Depository, Toronto. 1887. vy3 The Times, Parkdale Printers. TO ^ht JftemcrB OF I LOVINGLY DEDICATE THE FOLLOWING TRANSLATION AND APPENDIX. " The only cki/d of his mother, and she was a widow." —Luke viii. 12. -mure endearing still than all, Thy constant flow of love, that knew no fall, Ne'er roughened by those cataracts and breaks, That humor interposed too often makes ; All this, still legible in mem'ry's page, And still to be so to my latest age, Adds joy to duty, makes me glad to pay Such honors to thee as ihes* pages may ; Perhaps a frail memorial, but sincere, Not scorned In heaven, though little noticed here." (Slightly altered from Cowper.) INTRODUCTION. Ne;:t to Palestine, there is not a corner of the earth whose history is of such thriUing interest to the Protestant Church, as that of these three Alpine Valleys in which the Waldenses dwell. For three hundred years they endured persecutions, the terrors of which the Judgment Day alone can reveal. Not until A.D. 1848, were all disabilities removed, and the Waldenses placed on a civil and religious equality with their Roman Catholic fellow-citizens. As a specimen of the fruit of Roman Catholic principles still avowed, the story of the Waldenses deserves consideration, and as an illustration of Christian heroism, deserves to be placed alongside of that of the martyrs, immortalized in the Eleventh Chapter r'"the Epistle to the Hebrews. It ill becomes the churches of the Reformation to forget them, and it is a cause for thankfulness that in recent years, so much has been done to repay, or rather acknowledge an indebtedness, that can never be repaid. This volume is a brief account of one of these bloody persecutions, in which the combined powers of the Duke of Savoy and Louis XIV. seemed to have crushed the last spark of national life, out of the Waldensian community. But it was not so deter- mined. They survived and still live, and are now, holding up the cross to reviving Italy. The Trans- lator has done good service to the cause of Christ in giving this record to the English reader. R. P. MACKAY. mmm THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. IX. Having been favored with a reading of the advance sheets of the little volume "The Waldenses in 1686," we cake great pleasure in commending it to the Chris- tian Church of the present day. We consider it to be well fitted to stir up in it a spirit of love and zeal, like that so remarkably manifested by these our Waldensian brethren ?oo years ago. The records of the faith and patience of the Saints furnish a good antidote to the indifference and vvorldliness that abound in our own day. D. J. MacDonneli,, Minister of St. Andreiih Church, Toronto . A. H. Newman, D.D., LL.I)., Prof. Church History., Mc Master Hall., Toronto. M MacVicar, Ph.D. IX. I)., Prof. Apoh^etics and Christian Ethics., McMaster Hall. Toronto. H. M. Parsons, Pastor Knox Church, Toronto. D. H. MacVicar, D.D., LL.D., Principal Presbyterian College, Montreal. Geo. Douglas, D.D., LL.D., Principal Methodist College, Montreal. W. Cavan, D.D., Principal Knox College, Toronto. I '^\ '<>: >-■■,.. 5 j'^, 1 \) THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. XI. The year 1686 was a disastrous one to the inhabit- ants of these Valleys. It is a sadly memorable one to us, their descendants. Our object in bringing again to mind the painful events which took place, now 200 years ago, is not to awaken feelings of animosity and hatred towards the authors of that fearful persecution which resulted in the exile of the last survivors of our people. These feel- ings our martyred fathers never had. We, who are laden with the favours of our heavenly Father, shall not make ourselves guilty of having them. Our object in calling to our remembrance the severe trial through which the Lord made our people pass, IS only to draw from it the lessons of huniliation, repentance, and Christian faithfulness which our God and Father gives us in it. XII. THE VVALDENSES IN 1686. JPrrfaa bg the ^ranaktor. Last year, during my travels in Europe, I spent a day in the Waldensian Valleys. I would have greatly rejoiced if I could have spent, at least, a month in them, but I could not stay any longer than I did. I am an admirer of the Covenanters of my native land. They and the Waldenses were brethren in suffering for Christ. Yea, during the year 1686 — the one to which the following translation chiefly refers — both were per- secuted for His sake. I staid at Torre Pellice, called in French, La Tour. While there, I attended two meetings, at each of which I had the privilege of say- ing a few words to a Waldensian audience. I also visited the Waldensian College, Orphanage and schools. Some time ago, Signor Pons, one of the Waldensian pastors there, very kindly sent me a copy of Zes Vau- dois en 1686. Souvenirs (Tily a deux cents ans. I was so much interested in it that I read it through at one sitting. It seemed to me that a translation of it into English might be profitable as well as interesting to Canadians. I have now the pleasure of putting it be- fore them in the following pages. Different Walden- sian pastors expressed to me the hope that if I should be permitted to return to Canada, I would do some- thing, as I might have opportunity, to interest Cana- dians in their Church. I shall be much pleased if I shall learn that some have become, either interested, or more interested in it, by means of this work. We have as much reason as the Waldenses of to- day, to rejoice and thank God that we are not per- THE WALDENSES IN 1686. Xlll secuted as the Waldenses were in 1686. But the spirit of Popery is the very same to-day that it was then. The Hon's nature is not in the least changed by his being put into a strong cage. Let us not be satisfied with mere excitement of our feelings when we hear of such things as the sufferings of the Waldenses two hundred years ago. •• Let us, with zeal like theirs inspired, Begin the Christian race, And, freed from each encumb'ring weight. Their holy footsteps trace. Behold a Witness nobler still, Who trod affliction's path, Jesus, at once the Finisher And Author of our faith." Let us never forget that we cannot be true Christians without having to suffer persecution. " All that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecu- tion," (ii. Timothy, iii. j 2). If we do not suffer it in one way, we shall in another. But if we continue faithful to death, we shall receive a crown of life. We can do so only through Christ strengthening us, but if we seek the grace we need, we shall not seek in vain. At first, I thought only of the publication of the following translation. The Publishers suggested the addition to it of an Appendix having special reference to the present state of the Waldensian Church. This was the origin of the Appendix. When I began it, I thought that a short one would suffice. But as I went on, one thing after another presented itself to me as likely to be interesting to the readers, and, therefore, claiming a place in it. The difficulty with me then was, not what to put in, but what not to put in. To those friends who have assisted me in my translation, I return my sincere thanks. To me, this work will ever have very painful XIV. THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. memories connected wich it. A great part of it was written during my mother's last illness, and in the room in which she was lying A very slightly different lorm of the foregoing part of this Preface was finished a little after two o'clock one morning, while I was helping to minister to her wants. A part of the Ap- pendix was written about four o'clock another morning, id the same circumstances. She was about a month ill. At last, at midnight of Tuesday, Oct. 26, thirty- four years and a week after she was made a widow, " the Master of the house" came to her, (Mark xiii. 35). I was standing by the head of her bed when He did so. A few gasps, and the machinery of her frame which, for well nigh 87 years, had gone day and night without ceasing, came to a perfect stand-still. I was left mourning for my mother. (Psalm xxxv. 14). ^' Her own sweet smile" which I had so often seen was there, " but there was no breath in her." The follow- ing Friday, we laid her remains in the house appointed for all living. I can say with the late Leopold von Ranke's son beside his father's coffin, — " It was the privilege of the son to minister in his holy and glorious office at his mother's funeral." I write these lines in the room in which she exchanged worlds. Painful to me is the thought that, to the end of my life, she shall be to me only an object of recollection. Her kind- ness to me, shall ever be to me a most pleasing one. " I hope to meet her in the promised land," *' where we shall meet to part no more, and still together be." Shortly before my mother was taken from me, I had this work ready, as I considered, for publication. Since then, I have received papers, the reading of which has led me to make alterations on, and additions to, the Appendix. Elders Mills, Ont., Dec, 15, 1886. T. F. THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. XV ON THE LATE MASSACRE IN PIEDMONT Avenge, O Lord, Thy slaughtered saints, whose bones Lie scattered on the Alpine mountains cold : Even them who kept Thy truth so pire of old. When all our fathers worshipped stocks and stones, Forget not : in Thy book record their groans Who were Thy sheep, and in their ancient fold Slain by the bloody Piedmontese that roll'd Mother with infant down the rocks. Their moans The vales redoubled to the hills, and they To heaven. Their martyr'd blood and ashes sow O'er all the Italian fields, where still doth sway The triple tyrant : that from these may grow A hundred fold, who, having learn'd Thy way. Early may fly the Babylonian woe. Milton. The above is one of the best^known of the author's sonnets. It was written — as the title implies — on the occasion of a piersecution of the Waldenses in his own day. The leader in that persecution was a predecessor of the Duke of Savoy, the leader in the one described in the following pages. Cromwell sent him a message in which he told him very plainly that if he did not " let these men alone " he would make him feel the power of his arm. The Duke knew that he had to do with one who was not to be trifled with. He, there- fore, very wisely " governed himself accordingly. " The Protector offered to remove the Waldenses from their Valleys and place them in Ireland. Had his offer been accepted, no doubt the state of " the green h m XVI. THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. isle to-day, would have been a very different one from what It IS. He also sent somewhere about ;^3o,ooo, ($750,000) for the relief of those who had suffered " the spoiling of their goods. " ^Only a part of that money reached those for whom it was raised. Charles II., often called "The Merry , Monarch," but who would more truthfully be called " The j Miserable Monarch, " some way or other, obtained possession of the rest. He, of course, spent it in the service of the Devil. The Waldenses still hold Cromwell and Milton in honour on account of what they did in their behalf. On the walls of their College>t Torre Pellice (La Tour) IS a large engraving ; representing "The Uncrowned King, " and his Secretary, the -poet of Paradise Lost T. F. h CHAPTER I. §tate of the lalkjiB in 1686. I. Material and Civil State of the Waldenses. [HE ducal throne was occupied in 1686 by young Prince Victor Amadeus II, who was twenty years of age. They valleys of Pra- gela and Perouse on the left bank of the Cluson and the town of Pignerol belonged to France, whose king was the powerful Louis XIV. The edict of 1664 confined the Waldenses within the narrow limits of the Valleys. It compelled them to leave Luserne, Lusernette, Bubiane, Campillon, Fenil, Garsillane, Briqueras. St. Second, and other parts of the plain, where they had eleven churches and several schools. Worship was even forbidden in the whole territory of St. Jean. There was great material misery in the Valleys. The last thirty years had been times of troubles and continual wars. In 1665, the third great persecution took place. From 1660 to 1664, was the famous war of the banished, the leader in which, on the side of the Waldenses, was the valiant and pious Captain Janavel. From 1675 to 1685, the attitude of the ducal court towards the Waldenses, became more and more friendly. On the 31st of January, 1682, all the priv- ileges granted in olden times to the Waldenses, were officially confirmed. Our fathers hoped to enjoy, at last, and for a long time, rest and liberty. But lo ! in less than four years after, the Revocation of the Edict B THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. iiji hi !"^ . ■ Ml I! mil 111 I of Nantes cast a gloom on their future ; and the Edict of January 31, 1686, let loose on these mountains the most fearful storm which has ever threatened the exist- ence of the Israel of the Alps. II. Moral and Spiritual State of the Wal- DENSES. The evangelical churches of the Valleys had, in 1686, an ecclesiastical organization corresponding in its main features, to the one under which we are to-day. The Waldensian communities were 13 in number. The names of the pastors over them in that memor- able year have been preserved to us. They are as follows : — Sidrac Bastie, pastor of St. Jean, Moderator. David L^ger, pastor of Les Clos, Assistant Moderator. Jean Chauvie, Secretary. Jahier, pastor of Rocheplate and Prarustin. Jahier, pastor of Pramol. 6. Guillaume Malanot, pastor of Angrogne ? (i). 7. Leydet, pastor of Pral. 8. Giraud, pastor of La Tour (Torre Pellice). 9. Bertrand. Danne. Laurens, pastor of Villar. Bayle, pastor of St. Germain ? (i). Bayle (the son). Arnaud had just arrived in the Valleys. He, as well as Montoux, and some others whom we shall find again, in Switzerland, among the Waldensian (i) I here follow the author in using marks of interrogation. What they mean I cannot see, unless that these persons* were only probably pastors of the places mentioned in connection with their names. — T. F. I. 2. 3- 4. s- 10. II. 12. 13- THE WALDENSES IN 1686. exiles, was formerly a Waldensian pastor in French territory. The Waldenses distinguished themselves from those around them by the Scriptural purity of their doctrines, by their honest and laborious lives, and by the faithful discharge of their duties as citizens. The Duke wrote, in 1677, to the Pope's Nuncio : *' If one had regard only to politics and temporal inter- ests, so much trouble and expense would not be necessary, and it would be to the advantage of their Royal Highnesses to allow the people of the Valleys, who are faithful, well-disposed, industrious, and useful to the country, to spread abroad and multiply." The mortal enemies of the Waldenses have, in vain, tried to establish different charges against them. The evidence of facts has always silenced them. The approach of persecution produced a religious awakening in the Valleys. Easter was celebrated with unusually large assemblages. A letter to the Swiss ambassadors from Bastie, the Moderator, written on the 17th of April, contains these words : — " I well believe that all the pastors are resolved to live and die among their flocks, since Your Excellencies do not disapprove of it. Certainly, it would be neither honest, nor excusable to forsake them at such a critical time, and we would, without doubt, have to reproach ourselves, in some measure, should evil befall them, since the good shepherd is called to lay down his life for his sheep." Indeed, nine pastors were imprisoned with their flocks, and neither threats, promises, nor the suffer- ings of three years in prison, could make them abjure their faith. Leydet, the pastor of Pral, died a martyr at Luserne, glorifying God by the calmness of his soul, and the serenity of his faith. Thousands of men, women, and children, chose THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. rather to give up family joys, liberty and life than make sacrifice ot their faith, and their Christian hope. I ll!J * * * The Waldensian people was not, however, com- posed only of believers — of converted persons. AU did not faithfully serve their Saviour. The last thirty, years had made manifest much moral wretchedness. The trial wh ch approaches, discovers to them their sins, and urges them to confess. At the head of their military regulations one reads these words : — " Since the war which is being waged against us is an effect of hatred against our religion, and our sins are the cause of it, every one must amend his ways." And in their daily prayer they said : " O Lord, our Great God and Merciful Father, we humble our- selves before Thy face to ask ol Thee the pardon of all our sins, in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, in order that by His merits Thine anger may be pacified towards us who have offended Thee so much by our perverse and corrupt life." But this free confession of their sins did not pro- duce, in general, a deep humiliation, and a return to the Lord with all their heart. Many of the things which took place in that sad year — 1686 — are tokens of a feeble and languishing spiritual life. Human wisdom has more place in their deliberative assemblies than the cries of anguish and the courageous words of faith. Pastors suffer and die with their flocks in more instances than they expose themselves to defend their sheep. The chiefs of the people and the captains are with- out forwardness and energy. No man stands in the breach to wrestle with the Lord in order to obtain from Him the pardon and deliveiance of his people. No captain puts himself at the head, of the armed people to lead them on to victory. One would say that the power of the Prince of Darkness has, at this most im- THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. 5 portant moment, cast the most valiant into a sleep, as formerly it did the Apostles in Gethsemane. The valley of St. Martin breaks the covenant sworn, some days before, at Rocheplate. The Waldenses of Val Perouse, and in succes- sion those of Vale Luserne, fall into the snares of the enemy. The persecutors come down on the fold, plunder, butcher, and destroy the flock without a shepherd. The pastor Danne apostatizes. Out of 1,973 fam- ilies which composed the Waldensian people, 425 renounce their faith to save their lives and their goods. This year should be to us one of humiliation, re- pentance, and rising again. Let us not forget the words which Janavel wrote three years after these painful events : — *' If our Church has been reduced to so great an extremity, it is our sins which are the cause of it. We must, therefore, every day, humble ourselves the more before God." " Let there be nothing firmer than your faith." H. Tron, Pastor of Villar-Pellice. v\ ^ ii'^.l.. iiliii! -i;.i;u. CHAPTER II. ^ht «bkt ot Jattttarg 31. [NE cannot relate the sad events of 1686 with- out speaking of Louis XIV, and Victor Amadeus II, who were so largely responsi- ble for them. Victor Amadeus was only nine years old when he succeeded his father Charles Emanuel II, under the regency of his mother Marie Jeanne de Nemours. The young duke having confirmed the privileges granted to our fathers, there was reason to hope that the Valleys would long enjoy the blessings of peace and rest. But a dark cloud was gathering beyond the Alps, where Louis XIV sought to atone for his dissolute and debauched life by rooting out the Hu- guehots. This monarch, as great by his vices as by his ex- ploits in war, had begun by buying conversions to Popery at a money prjce ; but this system resulted only in purifying the Reformed Church, and in creat- ing numerous beggars, who went from one city to an- other, selling their abjuration in each. He tried the dragonnades, compelling the poor Huguenots to lodge, feed and pay the expenses of these booted mission- aries, whose commission was to torment the poor Protestants by unworthy annoyances. But, to strike a still more fearful blow at the Re- formed Church, whose utter destruction the cruel des- pot desired, the King of France signed, at Fontaine- bleau, on the i8th of October, 1685, the revocation of the liberties granted to the Protestants by Henri IV, THE WALDENSES IN l6S6. J • in his celebrated Edict of Nantes (April, 1598). Wor- ship was forbidden, churches were levelled with the ground, and our lellow-Christians were forced to leave the country, or choose between apostacy or death. Then were seen hundreds of thousands of persons — men, women, children, and old men — taking with heavy hearts the road to exile, braving the dangers of the sea in frail vessels, exposing themselves to forced marches, to indescribable fatigues, and to perils without number, in disguises of every kind in order not to be surprised, sent to the galleys, or massacred. We mention the atrocities to which the Reformed were exposed in the dominions of Louis XIV, because they struck with the same blow the Waldenses of Val P^rouse and Val Pragela, which then belonged to France, as well as Pignerol and Casal, and also be- cause they were only the prelude to those which struck our fathers in all the Valleys. The Waldensian Churches of Dublon, Pinache, Villar-P^rouse, Men- toules, Suchbres, Fenil, Fenestrelles, Pragela, Chau- mont, Oulx, and elsewhere, were demolished, or turned into Roman Catholic churches. The pastors were driven out or massacred, and the flocks left with- out leaders, were reduced to choose between apostacy and slaughter. In vain the Waldenses who inhabited the part of the Valleys then belonging to France, sought a refuge with their fellow-Christians of Val St. Martin and elsewhere. Yielding to the pressure of his powerful neighbour, Victor Amadeus issued a decree dated November 4, 1685, forbidding his subjects to receive the persecuted French. He ordered the latter to leave in eight days or abjure their religion. Louis XIV, who laboured to root out the Protest- ants of France, was anxious that the Duke of Savoy should do the same on this side of the Alps to the iiiij i il i i Jli iilii •illll! ;: 'I' 'tiiil i'' nlil THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. Waldenses. The revocation of the celebrated edict of Henri IV was not yet published when Louis XIV wrote to Turin on the 1 2th of October, exhorting Victor Amadeus to use against the Waldenses the same measures which he was employing for the de- struction of the Huguenots. This letter from the King of France to the Marquis d'Arcy, his ambassador at Turin, opens the series of a long diplomatic correspondence, of which we can give only the substance. The King takes the trouble to write himself, so much has he at heart the extermi- nation of the Waldenses, which is represented to him, by the priests, as a meritorious work. At first Victor Amadeus resists. He replies that he ought to examine into matters deliberately, that several of his predecessors have, in vain, engaged in this undertaking, and have even brought by it great disorders into their dominions. Persuaded that " the Reformed Church can be destroyed only by force," the King urges the Duke to employ it in his dominions, offering him the help of his troops from Pignerol Casal, and F^nestrelles, and assuring him that he would do a thing agreeable to him and the Pope. "You must," he wrote to him from Versailles, January 17, 1686, " withdraw with one stroke from the Waldenses the favours and permissions granted them by your prede- cessors, order the demolition of their churches, forbid them to perform any religious exercise, and, at the same time, lay on the most obstinate the ^lodging of your troops. Victor Amadeus delayed matters, and did not yield to the importunities of his dangerous neighbour till the latter had threatened him that he would withdraw his friendship from him, and, especially, till R^benac Feuquibres had whispered to him that the King his master would find means, with 1,400 men, to drive out the Waldenses ; but that, in that case, he would keep THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. for himself the valleys which the latter inhabited. The hurtful influence at Rome which wrought at the same time at Versailles and Turin, added itself to Louis XIV, and the emissaries of the Vatican made themselves very busy conspiring for the destruction of the Waldenses. The society De propaganda fide et extirpandis haereticis (For the propagation of the faith and the rooting out of heretics,) the Nuncio, the con- fessors of exalted personages, and the regular and the secular clergy, all blew on the fire which seemed to be going to consume our forefathers. Then appeared that fatal Edict of January 31, 1686, which is an infamy on those who framed it, as well as on him who was so weak as sign it, and of which the following are the chief points : — 1. " All religious exeicises to cease at once and for ever. 2. ''Religious meetings forbidden to be held, un- der the penalty of death and the confiscation of goods. 3. " All ancient privileges to be abolished." 4. *' All churches and places of worship to be de- molished. 5. "Pastors and schoolmasters to become Roman Catholics, or leave the country within fifteen days, un- der the penalty of death and the confiscation of their gcodj. 6. " Protestant children to be brought up in the Roman Catholic religion. The father to be sent to the galleys for five years, and the mother to be publicly scourged with rods, if their child be not presented to the parish priest within eight days. 7. "Waldensian pastors who shall renounce the doctrines which they have hitherto preached, to re- ceive a pension of one-third more than their salary. 8. " Protestant strangers to embrace Catholicism, or leave within eight days. 9. " They are permitted to sell their goods in this m M i^ ^'1 lO THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. internal, only, hovrever, to Roman Catholic purcha- sers. It IS impossible to imagine the terror and deadly anguish which the reading of such a document to the assembled Waldenses produced in the Valleys. Et. Bonnet, one of the pastors of Angrogne. l- ^ 7 CHAPTER III. §toitetrlanb. (i) |0 HUMAN view, the fate of the Waldenses seemed to be fixed. This people, few in number, was devoted to utter destruction. But He, who in His goodness, provides a lair for even the beasts of the field, had also prepared a refuge for His oppressed childn^n. To the Swiss, next to God, our forefathers were beholden for their existence. At the commencement of the reformation, this kind people said to the Waldenses by the mouth of their reformer Oecolampadius: "We acknowledge, that Christ is in you, therefore, we' love you as breth- ren." From that time they gave them many tokens of their brotherly love. When the edict of January 31, came to the know- ledge of the Evangelical Cantons, it produced there the deepest emotion. A cry of alarm ran with light- ning speed through the bosom of all the Swiss churches : *' We must go to the help of our brethren m danger !" Immediately, a letter was written to the Duke of Savoy to ask him to cor.inue to his subjects in the Valleys the privileges which had been granted (1) We are indebted to the kindness of Col. deBueren, Presi- dent of the city of Berne, and other Swiss friends, for having been able to obtain several interesting particulars on our subject, copied from the archives of Berne and Zurich for the Waldensian Historical Society. D. P. 12 THE WALDENSES IN 1 866. m them by his predecessors. But, while an answer was being waited for, it was voted at a diet held at Baden about the middle of February, to send an embassy with all speed to Turin to plead there the cause of the VValdenses. The position of the two ambassadors who were chosen, shows how much, importance was attached to their mission. They were two Councillors of State — Messrs. Gaspard de Mueralt, of Zurich, an.d Bernard de Mueralt, of Berne, both known by their piety, their prudence, and their skill in diplomatic questions. The mstructions which were given them bore on two points. They had. first to make every , effort to obtain from the DUke the revocation of the Edict of January 31, and in case they should not suc- ceed in that — which was to be looked for — they were to endeavor, in concert with the Waldenses, to procure for them liberty to leave the country on favourable terms. Our ambassadors set out without loss of time. As they pass through Vaud and Geneva, they learn how many exiles these Cantons can take in. On the 27th of February they leave Geneva, stay some time at Chambery to get f/iere from the President, the Marquis de Bellegarde, information regarding the matter of the Waldenses, and arrive at Turin on the 7 th of March, at nightfall. It is not till five days after — the 13th of March, at nine o'clock at night — that they can have an audience with the young Duke. They set forth in burning words the end of their mission; ask in the name of their lordships of Berne and Zurich whose domains touch his own, that the liberties which the Waldenses have enjoyed in the past be preserved to them, and support their petition by a very detailed memorial. In favour of their fellow-Christians they bring forward; I. The fact that the Waldenses have never separ- ated themselves from the religion of their prince, since iii ilill! THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. 13 they have practised their " Reformed" religion for eight centuries^ therefore, long before coming under the rule of the dukes of Savoy. 2. The concessions obtained by them in the year 1561, then in 1602, and in 1603, provisionally con- tinued by the Senate and the Chamber in considera- tion of the sum of six thousand French ducatoons which these churcaes paid. 3. The axiom that religion cannot penetrate into the heart by violence, but only by the way of persua- sion. 4. The fact that the Waldenses are good subjects of His Hi£;hness, in no way fomenters of revolt, with being which, they are falsely charged. The answer of the Duke was delivered to the am- bassadors, two days after, by the Marquis de St. Thomas. It was such as one might expect from a feeble prince, threatened by the most powerful despot of Europe. Here, in a few words, is the substance of it : — It was fate which drove the Duke to issue the Edict of January 31. "The large wheels moved and drew the small ones." Having in his neighbourhood a prince who was powerful and jealous of his authority, he was obliged to conduct himself with great circum- spection. (Later, it was said openly to the ambassadors that the orders came from Versailles). He could not alter the Edict which had been i^^ued, seeing that the Waldenses had committed hostile acts against his other subjects, and armed themselves against him. The concessions of 1655 were only toleration. Furthermore, he forbade the Waldenses only the ex- ercise of their religion, but did not wish in any way to to do violence to their conscience. The ambassadors replied, without result, to the objections of the Duke by a memorial, which was de- livered on the 20th of March. Seeing that they could not, on any ground, hope H THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. for the repeal of the fatal Edict, they resolved to enter on negotiations on the second point which this com- mission bore — the removal of the Waldenses from the country. They set out, therefore, for the Valleys three days after, furnished with a letter from His Highness to the Governor of Luserne. Behold them arrived in the country of these op pressed brethren, to whom they come to say otherwise than by vain words: — " Be of good cheer! God does not forsake you." From Luserne they send a messenger to Angrogne, and the news of their arrival spreads in a short time through the whole Valley, as far as Rocheplate and Prarustin. Soon after, they set out themselves from the seignorial palace on horseback, preceded by two drums, and go up as far as the hamlet of the Oudins — near the historic Chanforan — where the meeting has been summoned. It was the 24th of March. A good number of ministers and deputies from the Valleys are gathered together to receive their benefactors, perhaps in the great house which is still seen in the centre of the hamlet, and which bears the date of 1588. The latter state the object of their visit, relate the check which they have met with in their efforts to obtain the repeal of the Edict, and, considering their painful cir- cumstances, they counsel our poor forefathers to make a great and terrible resolution — that of leaving the country ! Ah ! however grave may be the circumstances, it is not easy for a people to decide on a sudden, to forsake their old country, their dear mountains, that land hallowed by the memory of valiant forefathers, and ^ where the bodies of so many loved ones await the re- surrection. It need not, therefore, astonish us, that after a long discussion, our Ambassadors had to return to THE WALDENSKS IN 1686. 15 Turin without having been able to obtain a decision on the part of the Waldenses. Two days after, March 26, they send their secretary Zollinger to renew their entreaties. The preparations on the part of the two bodies of the enemy's army for making the assault were proceeding rapidly. At Pignerol, the ladders and iron hooks for the «?oldiers were ready. There was no time to lose. The indeci- sion of the Waldenses might be fatal to them. Then, at a meeting held at Ciabas (called Muston), the most of the Waldensian parishes, their pastors at their head, decided by the mouth of their delegates to choose exile instead of the death which threatened them. Only the parishes of Angrogne, St. Jean, and Bobi, to which was added later a part of those of La Tour and Villar, stood firm. A letter signed by 17 ministers and Waldensian deputies, and accompanied by a memorial setting forth the difficulties which the pros- pect of going out from the Valleys met, was sent to the ambassadors on the 28th of March, (i) The Duke having learned by means of a petition of these latter in favor of exile which was the in tention of the most of the Waldenses, replied by Count Graneri on the 7th of April, that he would not hear of treating with his subjects unless they first laid down their arms, and humbled themselves before him, ask- ing of him pardon for their conduct. Then he would consider on what conditions he would grant them the favour of letting them go out of his dominions. It was in vain that the ambassadors besought that, at least, a special commission should be nanied to study these ' { I ) This letter bears the following signatures :— Sidrac Bastie, Moderator; David Leger, Assistant- Moderator; Jean Chauvie, Secretary; Jean Laurens, Jean Jahier, G. Malanot, P. Leydet, ^ P. Jahier, Giraud, Bertrand, Ministers; Jean Malanot, Jacques Peyrot, Jean Baptiste Roberto, Etienne Gautier, Paul Beux, Jean Pierre Guanta, Daniel Albarin. — D. P. i6 THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. and to make them known. All that they could obtain was a safe conduct for six Waldensian deputies. Zollinger, the secretary, set out the second time for the Valleys, furnished with this document on the 4th of April. The day following, a large meeting of Waldenses was held in the church of Serre (Angrogne). Not- withstanding the threats of the Duke, referred to in the letter of the ambassadors, there was still a differ- ence of opinion. A discussion was kept up for more than five hours. At last, six deputies were chosen, of whom five were in favor of their leaving the country. The sixth, named Blanchi, was against it. They arrived at Turin on the 5th of April, bearing different letters fr^m those whom they represented. The same day, the Ambassadors, grieved to see division continu- ing among the Waldenses, persuaded that the only hope of safety for this " little flock" was in exile, wrote a long and touching letter to the obstinate parishes, and sent it by Blanchi. Let us quote in closing this chapter, a few frag- ments of this letter, which will show our readers better than we can in our own w^ords, the spirit of apostolic charity with which these good ambassadors were animated. " It is true that one's country has great charms, that the most of men have a natural desire to live and die there. Yet, the children of God should not set their heart on it, since they are strangers on the earth, and heaven is their true country. You would, therefore, be guilty of distrust of Divine providence, if you were to fear that you could not find other countries where you could live in comfort, and worship your Heavenly Father." "You should set before yourselves the example of the patriarchs who drew down on themselves the blessing of God by trusting in His promises, and THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. 17 forsaking their houses and lands in obedience to His command to go and live in distant countries. A like confidence cannot but be very pleasing to the Lord, and it is, without doubt, more in harmony with the spirit of the Gospel to forsake one's country, than to take up arms against one's sovereign. It is to suffer- ings, not to resistance, that Christiar ■ are called. We do not see that either the Apostles or the Primitive Church set up any other defence against their perse- cutors than patience and prayer." " You will not doubt that we have been surprised to learn that you find it difficult to resolve to take this resolution (that of exile), and that you mean to resist two formidable powers which have resolved to root you out in case you oppose their will. By this mean you will not only act against your duty, against Christian prudence, and against your true interests, but you will also give us good reason to com- plain of you, because when you engaged us in a nego- tiation with your Prince, you would not condescend to avail yourselves of the advantages which we were in a position to obtain for you. Open then your eyes to consider the misery into which you are goiiig to cast yourselves." *' If you persist in your obstinacy, you will be guilty before God, not only of having thrown away your life which you can save, and of having exposed your wives and children to slaughter, but also, of having caused the ruin of these beautiful remains of the Waldensian Churches which you could remove into some other country." " Till God inspire you with this wholesome feeling,- and you give your deputy authority like that of the other parishes, we commend you to His compassion c i8 THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. and Divine protection, remaining Gentleman, Yours very affectionately at your service." This letter did not succeed any better than the others in bringing the Waldenses to an agreement. We shall see in the following chapter how the edict of April the 9th changed the appearance of matters. D. Peyrot, One of the Pastors of Angrogne. 11 CHAPTER IV. ggLANCHI, the deputy of the parishes oppos- '^ ed to the pitoposition of the ambassadors re- lative to exile, returned from the Valleys with a letter which decidely expressed the feelings of those whom he represented. " They are resolved," said this letter, "to be the child- of their fathers, and they hope that the Lord ren use will be their deliverer; that He will be pleased to weak things to confound' those which are mighty." At the moment when he wa:: again gomg into Turin, unexpected news stunned the Swiss ambassadors. The Duke, without giving them any notice whatever beforehand, published an Edict of exile for the Wald- enses. The Chamber, in secret session, had drawn it up at night on the 8th of April, and on the 9th it had been signed by the Duke. The impossible clauses which it contained, showed the Waldenses once more that their ruin was sealed. Here they are: — "Though our subjects of the Valleys of Luserne professing the Protestant Reformed religion, are worthy of the severest punishment for not having obeyed our Edict of January 31, and for having committed enor- mous acts of rebellion, yet our innate clemency moves us to open to them the door of our favours. * * Con- firming in other parts our Edict of January 31, we 20 THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. order our Reformed subjects to lay down their arms within eight days from the publication of these presents. * * We forbid them to form assemblies or detach- ments, in order to give free access to Judges, Mission Fathers, Monks, Catholics, and converts to Catholicism, to go into the houses which they have left. * * * Losses sustained by the said Missionaries, Monks, Catholics, and converts to Catholicism must be made good by the Reformed in general, if it cannot be proved by whom they have been caused. * * And to show how great is our clemency, we permit those who desire to do so, to leave our domains in the time fixed by the Edict, reserving to ourselves the right to send out our- selves those whom we judge it necessary to send out to insure the peace of Catholics and con- verts to Catholicism. * * We grant to those who leave to carry away their clothing, and to sell their goods', provided they do so to Catholics or converts to Catholicism, permitting them to empower four or six persons to remain at Luserne to conclude these contracts. " Those who leave must, without having any fire- arms with them, be at the places and on the days which shall be appointed them, to take the road wnich shall be pointed out to them, either by Savoy, or by the Valley of Aoste. Those from the Val Luserne must ready to set out from La Tour on the 2ist of April inst.; those from the Valley of Angrogne, from St. Bar- thelemi,Rocheplate and Prarustin must be at St. Second on the 22nd, and those from the Valley of St. Martin and I'Envers Perouse forming the third brigade, must be at Miradol on the 23rd, * * In consideration of a pimctual obedience to our orders, we grant our said subjects the full pardon of their excesses, forbid- ding the judges to prosecute them for these. If they rendsr themselves unworthy of so great favour, we THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. 21 shall make use of all the means with which God has entrusted us, in order to chastise them." The ambassadors showed themselves but little satis- fied with this Edict, and communicated to the Duke their views after they had put them into the form of a memorial. They complained especially: — i. Of the shortness of the time allowed the unhappy Waldenses to go out of the domains of His Royal Highness. 2. Of the small number of persons appointed to sell the goods of all the Waldenses. 3. Of the too limited time for this sale itself. Still the six Waldensian de- puties were sent into their parishes furnished with 100 printed copies of the Edict, in order to circulate them iri all the Valleys. Discord was further increased among the Waldenses after the arrival in the Valleys of the pastor Arnaud who brought encouraging news from Bale and Geneva, and stirred up his fellow Christians to defend them- selves, in spite of the opposite opinion of the Seigneurs de Mueralt and the pastors. The reading of the Edict resulted in uniting the great majority of the people in the same resolution — that of remaining in the country and defending them- selves. On the 14th of April, at a meeting held at Rocheplate the great resolution was formed. On the 17th of the s^me month, it was ratified in the presence of the Lord. A letter brought by Zollinger, the secre- tary, in name of his Seigneurs urged the Waldenses to submit, notwithstanding the pressing demands of the decree. It closed in these terms: — "His Royal High- ness with all his house, and his troops, will set out next Tuesday for Luserne where he will wait the time which he has granted, or may grant in case of disobedience; but, if the time be past, your slaughter will not be de- layed one hour longer." But this resolution has little effect on the readers, on the contrary, like a flock which gathers together when it sees the wolf coming, m / 22 THE W^LDENSES IN 1 686. iif they tighten by communion with Christ, the bonds which unite pastors and flocks. The former cease to insist in favour of leaving the country, and write to the ambassadors through the Moderator Bastie: — "I well believe that all the pastors are resolved to live and die among their flocks, since Your Excellencies do not dis- approve of it. Certainly, it would be neither be honest nor excusable to forsake them at such a critical time, and we would, without doubt, have to reproach our- selves in sone measure shonld evil befall them, since the good shepherd is called to lay down his life for his life for his sheep." The solemn engagement is entered into ! Behold now this people, few in number, ready to face death once more for their country and religion They pre- pare themselves for the last struggle by fasting and prayer. As it was the eve of Good Friday, it wrs agretid to devote that day to humiliation. Everywher exhortations to r^entance and reformation were ad- dressed to the people of the Valleys, in order to receive with humility the trials through which they were to pass Then, in each parish, on the following Sabbath, the Easter one, a solemn Communion of all the children of these mountains was celebrated. In some parishes the people assembled in such numbers that the Holy Supper was dispensed in the open air. But, in the midst of the general humil'ntion, the note of Christian hope does not fail to make itself heard, and it awakens in hearts accents of joy and courage. " Lord Jesus," cries the pastor Arnaud, "ThoU; who hast suffered so much, and hast died for us, grant us grace to be able to suffer also, and to sacrifice our life for Thee ! Those who endure to the end shall be saved. Let each of us cry with the Aposde: * I can do all things through Christ who strengtheneth me.' " THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. 23 To many hundreds of our forefathers, this Easter was the last which the) celebrated here below. May we all meet with them at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb ! One word more, in closing, on the Swiss Embassy. Seeing the us.elessness of their mediation, the ambas sadors were preparing to leave when they received two letters dated f-om Angrogne, and addressed — the one to the Evangelical Cantons, in the name of all the Waldenses — the other to the ambassadors, in the name of the pastors. These were touching letters in which gratitude was shed abroad in excuses for the result of the attempts of the Cantons and their deputies. As suredly these generous benefactors could not say to themselves when they read these letters that they had wrought for ungrateful persons. In vain our two noble friends, the Messrs. De Mueralt besought of the Duke leave to accompany him to the camp of Briqueras to seek there to be fur- ther useful to the Waldenses. They were advised to take again the road to Switzerland, which they decided to do after having received a farewell hearing. " But," says the account presented to the Seigneurs of Zurich, "the moment of their departure, they re- ceived a letter from the parish of Villes^che whose in- habitants urgently asked permission to avail themselves of the Edict of April 9, and leave the country." " Notwithstanding the decision come to, the Ambas sador of Berne set out for the camp. In vain ! On the way, he met the secretary of the Marquis de St. Thomas who brought him the news that the French troops had, that very morning, made the planned as- sault, and the army of Savoy was on the march with the same design. All negotiation was thus cut down. * * Next morning, the news were confirmed by evidence which could not be gainsaid, for, besides the roar of cannon which was quite distinctly heard, the I'' 24 THE WALDENSES IN 1686. fri!!"""?"^^! mountains were covered with « vapour of smoke.' Thus return was pointed out " Our friends set out on the 24th of April, and the wTh'^hl"^ "'"!,""' i'??"^"^^" °^*^^i^ ^^ssion, closes TcLo n tLT'^'.''^;'^ '^°"^^ y^^' *°-^^y' find an echo m the heart of every true Waldensian:— these Kh!c^°''l K ^i' ^'^f^' ^^^^ compassion on deliverance^^^^^ ^"^ ^' P^'"'"^ ^° grant them a full D. Peyrot, etc. (^m CHAPTER V. [HE hero of Rora and Rociaman^out, Josue Janavel, who had been excluded from the amnesty of February, 1664, by which the war of the banished had been brought to a close, had withdrawn to Geneva. Notwith- standing his great age and his wounds, he had preserved all his force and his burning love to his absent country. From the bottom of his exile he had watched with anxiety the events which took place in succession in Europe, in which, not without great fears, he had seen forebodings of a fresh storm which was about to burst on his dear Valleys. Then, that is to say, towards the end of 1685, he wrote to his fellow- countrymen a letter which is an admirable one for the counsels full of wisdom which it contains. The Counsels of Janavel relate, some to the military tactics which the Waldenses are to use if they be at- tacked, others to the discipline which they are to main- tam among their troops, and others, finally, to their religious duties. Strategic counsels. Janavel counsels the Waldenses, " should war arise," to present, first of all, petitions to their sovereign. Not having forgotten the treachery of Pianezza> April 22, 1655, and so many other instances of the same kind, he advises them urgently and " in God's name,** not to accept any quartering on them of troops^ ;^l i '!!! ..|!ii i:'v J! ■ 26 THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. for any reason whatever, " otherwise," he adds, *' it will be to your hurt." They must, at the same time, keep themselves in readi- ness^ so as not to be surprised, and be able, even with- out oflficers, to repel the first attack, which, he sup- poses, will be owing to treachery. Janavel next describes to his fellow-citizens what military organization they must form among them- selves. They must form companies of 1 8 or 20 men, and appoint a Commander-in-chief of all their troops. They must have a secret Council, which shall be, at the same time, State Major and Superior Council of Discipline, composed of a faithful and God-fearing man from each Valley, one or two courageous pastors, and the Commander-in-chief. All these officers shall be appointed by the votes of the people —by universal suffrage. Janavel who was gifted with an extraordinary mili- tary genius, and knew, so to speak, every stone and every path of his dear Valleys, points out in detail what positions in them are important for strategical purposes; what ones it will be necessary to strengthen as points of defence, what ones it will benecessary to supply as places of refuge, and what ones it will be necessary to abandon as incapable of being held. Passing next to the manner in which they should fight, our valiant captain counsels them never to sound a retreat. He points out how they should set them- selves in battle array; how they should pursue the enemy: with what weapons they should fight him, among which he notices slings, scythes, and large pieces of rock which the women will be able to help to roll down on him. Disciplinary counsels. Janavel knew by experience how important discipline is in an army. He, therefore, does not forget to point out to the Waldenses the prm- THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. 27 11 i- 1- )- Lt l- cipal articles which they must inscribe in their code of military discipline. According to his counsels, soldiers must be most strictly forbidden to blaspheme the holy name cf God, to quarrel among themselves, or abuse the enemy with insulting words. Debauchery, thieving, and cowardice, as well as insubordination must be severely punished. Finally, the officer must answer before the Council, for each of his soldiers. Religious counsels. Janavel was not only a great captain and a bold warrior, he was also, and above all, a humble and believing Christian. His code of mili- tary discipline begins with a call to repentance, and closes with a prayer to be used, night and morning, throughout the camp. " If our Church have been brought to so great an extremity," he says, " our sins are the true cause of it. You must, therefore, humble youi selves more and more, and heartily ask pardon of Him * * having always recourse to Him. * * Let there be nothing firmer than you faith." " For the carrying on of the war, * first, you must all, as many as there are of you, fall on your knees, and lift your eyes and hands to heaven, and your heart and soul to the Lord, in earnest prayers." Janavel insists particularly on the union which should exist among the Waldenses. The first thing which you will have to do," says he, " is to be closely united. This union should exist, above all, between flocks and pastors. Let the pastors be obliged to fol- low their flocks day and night, in order to be honoured and respected as servants of God on the earth." We do not believe that we are mistaken when we 5ay that if the Waldenses had faithfully followed these counsels, if they had been closely united, firmly resolv- ed on resistance, filled with faith and courage, they, Ill ' * I' i 28 THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. lias wheZhf T "T ''""" =° ^^''"y overcome. uEert H -^ !,'• .^' ^"Prised them while they were direSon • w. V'"'°"u' °"" « ^''^'^ ''^^d, without werecrL.^ ^^l"°'''''^''^''°'-e'«'°"der that they were crushed in such a short time. But let us not anticipat e events. D- Gay, Junior, Pas/or of Prarustin. IliMl: ji '-N • , ■ ii/ i||i ■ 1 1 CHAPTER VI. xonat anb §t. JEtartin. IHE time fixed in the Edict of April 9, for the submission and exile of the Waldenses had just expired, and the preparations for this war of extermination were completed. Then the French troops began their march to attack the Val P^rouse, and the Val St. Martin, while the Ducal troops marched against the Val Luserne. Let us first accompany the French troops under Catinat. First Dav. Two hours before Easter Mondav, two detachments of 200 soldiers each, set out from Pigne- rol, and stretching along the two banks of the C^uson, th'-ew bridges over that river before the Village ^ f the Portes, and occupied the neighbouring heights to com- mand the road. Soon the bulk of the troops appeared and succeeded in making a passage on the right bank. The first brigade commanded by M^lac was composed of Dampierre's and Clerembaut's regiments and 100 foot dragoon's of La Lande's, besides sixty troopers of Rousillon's. The second brigade commanded by Cat inat himself, comprised the Limousin, Du Plessis-Bel- libre and Provence regiments, and the LaLande and Dauphin dragoons. Catinat ordered Lieut. Col. Ville- vieille to attack St. Germain. The Waldenses with- drew further up, and stationed themselves behind tne intrenchments of the Barricade where, till near three in the afternoon, they stood the fire of the assailants i'''mS! 30 THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. who lost many men. Several captains were wounded. The Provence Major was killed. De Longueval who was left behind by Catinat to finish this affair, ordered Villevieille to fall back on St. Germain; but a vigorous sortie of the Waldenses changed into a murderous rout the retreat of the French who crossed the Cluson in disorder, losing a number in it. " No one has ever been able to learn," says Arnaud, " the number of wounded and killed which they had in the first action; for they were careful to hide them, and to bring their wounded into the town by night." Villevieille escaped into the church with 30 men and 2 officers, and there withstood the siege by the Waldenses till night. ** These war-trained peasants" says an official account, "climbed up on the roof and into the trees to over- whelm the besieged." Arnaud had even ordered water to be brought into the church ia order to drown them in it. Villevieille and a Lieutenant were wounded as well as two Waldenses, the only ones who had to suffer from the fire of the enemy the first day. During the night, the governor of Pignerol, warned by a lieutenant, sent a reinforcement to St. Germain, and the next day, the cavalry assisted Villevieille to hold his post and compelled the Waldenses to withdraw further up. As for M^lac and Catinat, they had continued their march, and were gone to encamp, the former at La P^rouse, or, it may be, even at Chateau du Bois, and the latter at Le Clot des Boulard, in TEnvers du Pomaret. Second day. Having set out from Le Clot an hour and a half before daybreak, Catinat found himself very early in the morning, Tuesday 23, above Fort Louis, which had to be abandoned by the Waldenses as well as the villages of Rioclaret where the French killed and burned what they could on their passage. " We have killed," said the general, *' 40 or 50 of their men." That done, Catinat went up to La Sarra, and suddenly THE WALDEKSES IN 1 686. 31 rushed on the villages of Pramol, from which the in- habitants fled in the direction of Peumian, leaving the enemy a large quantity of victuals and ten of their killed. On their side, the troops of M^lac having set out from Chateau du Bois, with a hundred peasants to open a road for them in the snow, had carried the post of Pas de I'Ours, and having come down on the slopes of Bonvil, had burned the villages, killed "a number of these barbets^^ (i) as Catinat himself writes, and committed acts of brutality and cruelty which remind ox\Q oi ihQ Piedmontese Easter of 1655. (2) In the evening they encamped at Les Clos. Third day. On Wednesday morning, 24th, Melac crossed Rioclaret and rejoined Catinat at Pramol where he arrived about ten o'clock. The Command- er-in.chief had just sent 500 men in the direction of St. Germain to make sure the communications with Pignerol, and had gone himself with 500 others in the direction of Angrogne to reconnoitre the places which he intended to cross next day. Towards five in the evening, he received information that the Waldenses of Val Luserne had surrendered in the morning, and he (i) This was a name given to " the poor persecuted Walden- ses." It was formed from barbes, the title which they gave their pastors. As here used, barbets is applied to the Waldensian people, as well as to their pastors, very probably, because the former professed to be followers of Christ, as well as did the lat- ter. The word is used in the Alps in the sense of bandits and smugglers. No doubt, it was first applied to that class in mock ery of the Waldenses, though, of those who now so use it to de- scribe the former, very few may mean anything disrespectful to the latter, yea, or even know the origin of it. T. F. (2) This was the Massacre in Piedmont in which Milton wrote the well-known sonnet quoted on another page, and which roused the righteous anger of Cromwell as described in the note on it. According to some, it was the persecution which is the subject of this work, which so deeply moved them. This is a glaring absurdity, for the former was in his grave twelve years, and the latter in his twenty-eight before it began. T. F. ■' . 'I'll i I mm 33 THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. hastened to inform those encamped at Peumian, assur- ing them that if they would lay down their arms, all would be forgiven them. He went even so far as to guarantee them that his army would go through their village without touching a fowl in it. The Waldenses could scarcely doubt the word of Catinat, especially, when they could, in the evening, see the troops of Savoy on La Vach^re. Fourth day. Catinat, however, was not faithful to his promise. The detachment which he sent on Thursday morning to Peumian separated the men from the women, and had the former conducted to the Duke, while they gave up their families to the un- bridled soldiery which made them suffer "all the horrors of outrage and slaughter." Women were found there who resisted so boldly, that their execution- ers could not get the better of them till after they had mutilated them in their four limbs. Others were bu- ried alive, or pinned to the ground by a sword run through their breast. ■ In the afternoon Catinat rejoined Don Gabriel La Vach^re, and Melac's brigade which had taken the heights arrived there by Mont Servin. Catinat, Don Gabriel, the ambassador D'Arcy, and the Duke of Savoy, who wished to go thither on Friday, could thus, on the heights of La Vachbre, congratulate themselves on having in such a short time, and with such small losses, obtained the surrender of the Waldenses who occupied some of the most favorable positions of the Valleys. By Thursday evening, the prisons of Luserne were filled with men and women from the Val Perouse, the Val St. Martin, and the Valley of Angrogne. Three days' rest could well be granted to the soldiers "to give the inhabitants of the Valleys time to lay down their arms, and put themselves at the mercy of the Duke, and, by this mean, (we quote from a letter of Catinat) prevent the troops from being THE WALDENSES IN 1 6 86. 33 marched through the Valleys which it is so difficult to do without their making havoc." They had, indeed, showed very plainly what they knew to do. HUNTING THE BARBETS. (i) The three days of re; ;pite brought new surrenders, and increased by two thousand souls the number of Waldensian prisoners. The rains which had begun again, compelled the French to go down on St. Ger- main, and it w^as not till the 2nd of May, that they set out again on their march to the Valley of St. Martin to "ransack that country" and finish "cleansing it from that moral filth," as the unworthy sovereign of the Waldenses wrote to Catinat. The number of prisoners at that time was estimated at more than 6000 ; but it was a question about "completely purging the Valleys formerly thickly peopled, and not leaving in them a single inhabitant." Catinat went to the top of the Val St. Martin with the Provence regiment, 200 men taken from each of the other four regiments, and 200 dragoons. Sixty Waldenses had retreated to La Balsille when the enemy attacked them on the 3rd of May without be- ing able to penetrate into their retreat. But despair- ing of victory, they sent, towards midnight, two deputies to the French general, to surrender them- selves on the same conditions as their brethren had done. On the 7th of May, the colonel of the Provence regiment was able to send to Les Clos, and from there to Luserne, about eighty persons — men, women, and children. Those who were taken with arms in their hands were killed by the soldiers, or hanged on trees by police furnished by the Duke. Catinat had given orders that "those should be treated with a little ; (i) See note on page 31. D iifl! illiiiiiii; ; i I ! i 1 1 t IP iiii 1 1 ;34 THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. cruelty who were found hidden in the mountains, and who had given his men the trouble to go and take them." The soldiers had little need of this encourage- ment. They had burned one after another the mem- bers of Jean Ribet of Massel, because he refused to abjure. At Les Fontaines they had massacred four children before the eyes of their mothers, whom they afterwards killed. Others had been cast down from the top of the rocks, torn asunder by horses, mutilated in an abominable manner, compelled to hang their brethren. At Pral, whither Catinat went on the 4th of May, and whither he sent afterwards the Clerembaut regiment to hold the Passes of Julian and Abribs, the pastor Leydet was seized in a cave in which he had taken refuge, and was singing a psalm in a low tone. He was taken to Luserne, where he was put in the stocks and tormented by the monks. He refused to abjure, and died a true martyr on the scaffold, uttering these words : " O my God, into Thy hands I com- mend my spirit." Every day the French troops — which were at their full strength on the 6th of May in the Val St. Martin, and there formed several detachments — discovered some Waldensians in their hiding places, or surprised them while they were seeking a refuge beyond the frontier. On the 9th, Catinat could write : "This country is completely desolated. There are no more, either people or beasts. There are no mountains where nf^ one has ever been, and I send to them every day. The troops have hud difficulty, owing to the ruggedness of the country, but the soldiers have been well rewarded for it by the booty. The Duke of Savoy has about 8000 souls in his hands." Notwithstanding that, one would nave said that the fewer the number of the defenders of the country be- came, the more formidable those who remained made THEWALDENSES IN 1686. 35 themselves. When Catinat believed that ^'that race of barbets (i) w?s entirely rooted out," he learned to his mortification that thirty or forty of them had been discovered "at the top of the gorge called Basiglia," nestled in a living rock whither they had gone up by ladders, and which they called a fortress made by the hand of God : where they had nothing but snow to drink, where they could not have much pro- visions, but which could not easily be taken. Colonel de Magny had attacked them at the same time in four different places. All that he gained was two captains and a great number of soldiers wounded by blows of stones. Catinat went thither himself, staid there two days with 550 men, and lound means, not without suffering serious losses, to take this post by the top. "This plan has, as usual, disarmed the revolted, " said the general, •*■><■" there were some sixty of the rebels killed, men and women, who were found hidden in the rocks half-way up, as in eagles' nests. ■* * The soldiers killed the women as well as the men, because they often galled our little parties by rolling down stones on them." "There was only one prisoner whom I ordered to- be hanged. I know of nothing more to be done here. * * There cannot be in this country more than a few solitary individuals hidden in the mountains " like the partridge from the hunter. These "solitary individ- uals " became terrible. Sometimes, on the heights of Bobi, hidden behind entrenchments of dry stones, (i) they let a hundred French come within their reach, fired a murderous volley, and fled like chamois. Sometimes, favored by a mist on the Pelvou, they utterly destroyed an isolated party of scouts. To take three or four of them was a task. "The Provence regiment," wrote Catinat on the 25th of May, "took (i) See note on prge 31. {2) Loose, that is merely piled up. T. F. •■i 36 THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. four of the most determined of that class of people, one of whom, though wounded, managed to escape. The other three were hanged. " Towards the middle of June, the number of Wal- denses still wandering in the mountains was estimated at only fifteen or twenty. The French troops had, in the space of a month and a half, finished their work of destruction. They left the Valleys to return to the soil of France. H. Bosio, Pastor of St, Germain. in 1 1 iiiljl ! ! 'm^A CHAPTER VII. ^iiuk on the lal ^nBtxnz bg the Juml %XO0fB. |N the 27th of April, while the French troops were invading the Val Perouse, the Duke of Savoy sent forward the Piedmontese forces encamped at Bibiane, Fenil, and Garsigliana, to make them occupy the better positions between Briqu^ras and St. Jean. There were 4,529 combatants, including ofificers, cammanded by Don Gabriel of Savoy, the Duke's uncle. The first column, to the right, commanded by the Commander-in-chief, was formed of the regiments of the Guards and Monferrat, with four pieces of artillery and several hooked muskets. The second which was led by Brichanteau, was composed of the two Nice regiments, and the marines, and had to occupy the centre. Finally, on the left, towards Angrogne, the Marquis d'Ogliane had under him the Savoy, Croix Blanche, and Saluces regiment, with a squadron of cavalry. More than a hundred mules were ready to trans- port the war stores, such as powder, balls, fuses, grenades, cannons, and hooks, as well as victuals, as flesh and wine. I^irst day. At daybreak on Tuesday, April 23, not Monday the 22nd, as our historians affirm, at the signal of three cannons fired from the castle of Briqueras, the ducal troops began the attack, directing their front 38 THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. III M ililiil U towards the summit of the hills of St. Jean and An- grogne, where the Waldenses occupied small posts. The engagement took place at all points at the same time, and, in spite of the frequent volleys which they had to suffer, the three columns of the enemy having forced all the intrenchments, quickly gained the top of the hills. The few hundreds of Waldenses, though they fought boldly, had to yield to the numbers, and especially to the artillery of Don Gabriel, and to raise their front of resistance, by withdrawing to points less numerous, and nearer each other. When he arrived at La Sea, Gabriel brought to a hail his troops which had marched, climbed, and fought with much vigour. Gathering around him D'Oliagne, Brichanteau, and Parelle, he was asked to pursue the Waldenses who had rallied "in better order than one can believe," says a report of their enemies, to defend the place called Roncialla. The fire of artillery which had a good effect, " did not hinder " these obstinate " Waldenses from waiting on a firm footing for the enemy, and skirmishing a long time," causing heavy losses to the regiment of marines and a squadron of gendarmes, to whleh the Savoy and Saluces regiments came to lend a strong hand, not to let them be crushed. Second day. Wednesday the 24th, an hour before day, Gabriel of Savoy gave orders to take the strong position of La Roncialla, m order to continue his march towards the heights of La Vach^re, where he was to join Catinat's troops on the 25th. But, during the night, the Waldenses abandoned this place which they could not have kept long,and withdrew behind an intrenchment further up. What took place during that painful day, one of the most fatal in the history of our forefathers, and which was as the hour of the funeral knell of a whole people ? Must we believe, according to an account THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. 39 ;j sketched by a Catholic hand, and published by M. de Rochas, that the Waldensians, seeing it impossible to stand their ground before the ducal army which was moving forward in order of battle, were the first " to beseech Don Gabriel to ask favour for them from His Royal Highness, their sovereign," or should we rather, with M. A. Muston, say that it was from the camp of Gabriel that the offer of favour went forth ? Be that as it may, one thing is certain, namely that Gabriel of Savoy sent that day, to the Waldenses, who were strong ly intrenched near La Vachere, the following letter, signed with his own hand: "Do not hesitate to lay down your arms, and be assured that in committing yourselves to the clemency of His Royal Highness, favour will be showed you, and no one will touch either your own persons, or those of your wives or children." What is not less certain, is that trusting in a promise so formal confirmed by the Duke Victor Amadeus whom M. de Castellamont met half way up the mountain, the Waldenses opened their intrench- ments to Gabriel, and placed themselves, without arms and without mistrust before his troops. Taking off the mask, Gabriel caused these poor too-confiding mountaineers to be immediately seized and bound as galley slaves, and then hurried away by the dragoons and infantry to the dungeons of Luserne whicn were already crowded (i) with their betrayed brethren. Thus the enemy by using trickery and treachery, seized on these redoutable Valleys where their defend- ers "had positions so advantageous, and intrench- ments so strong that they could have held them ten years," according to the opinion of a contemporary. The same day, the ducal troops went to La Vachere, and the next, Catinat joined them with his army. On Thursday the 25th, De Parelle went down to (I) In the otigineil j'oMcHs, literally " strewn. T. F. m ! ; ^ij II i, ■m 40 THE WALDENSES IN 1 686 iVi: ■!:-^^ I Pra-du-Tour where were the wives, the children, and all the provisions of the Waldenses, as well as i number of disarmed men. Letus'ipread a veil over the out- rages and massacres which took place there, and let us say that a detachment was formed to send a part of this unhappy people to increase that of the prisoners of Luserne. On Friday the 26th, Victor Amadeus set out from Luserne, where he had been since the 23rd. Follow- ing the road which his troops had made, he went in person to La Vach^re to see the encampment of his troops, and that of the French army there. In the evening, the Duke returned to Luserne, and gave orders to pursue what remained of the Waldenses flee- ing, or grouped at a few points in the Valley. Isolated combats. Two important posts of La Tour (Torre Pellice) still held out: Ciamprama and Les Geymets. They fought a whole day, and caused great losses to the enemy who left there the commander of the Mondovi militia. Towards evening, worn out and without ammuni- tion, the assailants of Ciamprama had recourse to the same perfidy which had succeeded so well at La Vach^re. Waving a white napkin, they show a paper which they say is " a letter from the Duke who be- stows favour on all his subjects." The Podestat Prat of Luserne, having attested the truth of this declara- tion, the Waldenses cease firing, let the enemy retire in peace, and go themselves to seek rest. But soon the Catholic soldiers return with new re- inforcements, and seize on the abandoned post. The defenders of Les Geymets, after a vigorous re- sistance fall back towards Le Villar passing through Les Bonnets, where the enemy remained two days without daring to attack them. This time was em- ployed in new snares into which several Waldenses let themselves fall. Decimated by surprise or treachery, THE WALDENSES IN 1 686. 41 the Waldenses abandoned Le Villar, and fell back on Bobi, towards the end of April. Last struggles. As the Duchess of Savoy wrote, the Waldenses who retired to Bobi were resolved " to hazard all in desperation," and it was a question "about purging the Valleys, and not leaving in them a single inhabitant." With this design, Gabriel of Savoy, on the 4th of May, marched all his troops against all the Waldenses intrenched on the heights of Subiasc. This first attack was repulsed. A few of Gabriel's officers, and several of his soldiers fell there. They were, in like manner, victorious in some new attacks, when, on the 13th of May, the French troops, led by the Mar- quis de Parelle through the Pass of Julien, surprised the valorous defenders of Bobi in their rear. Taken between two fires, the Waldenses dispersed on the heights of La Sarcena and Garin. Emissaries were sent them who offered them liberty if they would surrend- er. Several of these unhappy persons fell into the sn^re, and were cast into prison. Acts of a nameless barbarity were committed on men, women, and even on children ! The least un- fortunate were those who were thrown down from the top of the mountains, like the twenty-two who were cast from the heights of Bariound de Parneireugna, into the ravines of Le Cruel. Some of these victims who had been caught on the sharp points of the rocks, and whose flesh was in shreds were found still breath- ing several days after. Daniel Mondon, an elder of Rora, after seeing all his numerous family slaughtered, was compelled to carry the heads of his two sons as faras Luserne, where he was himself hanged on a gibbet. On the 1 7th of May, the ducal troops set out again on their march to hunt the barbets (i) and to " purge entirely all these mountains from heretics." There re- (i) See note on page 31. [!(