Religious Events

The Signing of the Edict of Nantes (1598)

Treaty

Citation Formats

General Reference

Divinity Atlas. "The Signing of the Edict of Nantes (1598)." Accessed August 30, 2026. https://www.divinityatlas.com/religious-events/the-signing-of-the-edict-of-nantes.

APA Style

Divinity Atlas. (n.d.). The Signing of the Edict of Nantes (1598). Retrieved August 30, 2026, from https://www.divinityatlas.com/religious-events/the-signing-of-the-edict-of-nantes

BibTeX

@misc{divinityatlas-the-signing-of-the-edict-of-nantes-1598,
  author = {Divinity Atlas},
  title = {The Signing of the Edict of Nantes (1598)},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://www.divinityatlas.com/religious-events/the-signing-of-the-edict-of-nantes},
  note = {Accessed August 30, 2026}
}

Henri IV of France signed the Edict of Nantes at Nantes on 13 April 1598, ending the French Wars of Religion between Catholics and Huguenots. The edict granted Huguenots freedom of conscience throughout France, the right to worship in specified towns, civil equality with Catholics and control of a number of fortified towns for their own security. It held, with periods of reduced enforcement, until Louis XIV revoked it in 1685, after which large numbers of Huguenots fled France. This entry is for the signing itself; the edict as a legal instrument is recorded separately elsewhere in this database.

Facts

Consequences

What It Settled

Ended the French Wars of Religion and granted Huguenots freedom of conscience and civil equality; it held, with periods of reduced enforcement, until Louis XIV revoked it in 1685, after which large numbers of Huguenots fled France. 1

Lasting Consequence

Held, with periods of reduced enforcement, until Louis XIV revoked it in the Edict of Fontainebleau on 18 October 1685, after which large numbers of Huguenots fled France for Protestant states across Europe and the Americas. 1

The Event

When It Happened

13 April 1598. 1

Where It Happened

Nantes, France. 1

Principal Parties

Henri IV of France, who signed the edict; the Huguenot delegates whose petitions it answered. 1

Scholarship

Where It Is Recorded

Registered by the Parlement of Paris on 25 February 1599, after Henri IV pressed for its enforcement. 1

Status

Legal Status

Granted Huguenots freedom of conscience throughout France and the right to worship publicly in specified towns and on named noble estates, short of full civil equality with Catholics, who alone could worship freely everywhere including Paris. 1

Cross-Tradition Connections

Associated With

Calvinism (Reformed)

Source The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church, 3rd revised editionF. L. Cross and E. A. Livingstone (eds.)

France

This source names France directly: "Henri IV of France signed the Edict of Nantes at Nantes on 13 April 1598, ending the French Wars of Religion between Catholics and Huguenots."

Source The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church, 3rd revised editionF. L. Cross and E. A. Livingstone (eds.)