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Jean de Vivonne, seigneur de Saint-Gouard and marquis de Pisani

Jean de Vivonne was born in 1530, the son of Artus de Vivonne and Catherine de Brémond. His father Artus had served the French crown during the Italian Wars, meanwhile his mother was in the entourage of the queen mother Louise. His parents married in 1519. While Jean would have many siblings, only one had descendants, Marie de Vivonne. He came from the junior branch of an old family (recorded from the latter 11th century) established in the Saintonge and Angoumois.

In addition to his seigneurie of Saint-Gouard, and baronie, then marquisate of Pisany, Jean de Vivonne was also the sieur de Ramades, Foyes, Pessines, Les Comes and La Croix-Blance.

After his return to court in 1582 rumour swirled at court of his marriage to a fashionable woman of the court named mlle. de Vitry. However, Saint-Gouard was happy to remain simply a lover of hers. In 1587 he secured an excellent marriage (enabled by his recent establishment as a marquis) to a young widow of a very noble family named Julia Savelli, who had been married to Ludovico Orsini prior to his execution by the senato di Venezia (senate of Venezia).

Jean de Vivonne and Julia Savelli had issue:

• Catherine de Vivonne, marquise de Rambouillet (1588–) married the vidame de La Mans in 1600 and became famous through her salon for her influence on the intellectual life of high society.

His wife and daughter would join him in France during the final years of his life.

As concerns his youthful education little is known though he had a greater taste for being a 'valiant gentleman' than he did for reading. Saint-Gouard enjoyed the privilege of being an enfant d'honneur, meaning that he was raised alongside the royal princes. He first took a role in combat at the age of 15 in 1545. A few years later when he reached 18 he participated in his first campaign.

Saint-Gouard fought in the siege of Mariembourg during the French campaign of 1554–1555. In this campaign he was wounded and briefly experienced Imperial captivity.

He fought under the command of the maréchal (marshal) de Strozzi during the latters campaign in Italia, then with the duc de Guise during his campaign into the peninsula. In Piemonte he fought under the authority of maréchal de Brissac.

During the first French War of Religion he participated in the only major field battle of the war at Dreux.

With the Osmanlı İmparatorluğu (Ottoman Empire) putting Malta to siege in 1565, certain French lords rushed to join the defence of the island bastion. In this they were responding to a call for aid from the grand master Valette. Among those joining the defenders on the walls were the sons of maréchal de Brissac, and maréchal de Strozzi, and Saint-Gouard. In total around 300 French gentleman and 800 soldiers would arrive at Malta. They would however, only arrive after the siege had ended. Nevertheless the Osmanlı government was greatly perturbed at this development, and Catherine sought to sooth their anger through condemning those nobles who had rushed to join the defence of Malta and banishing those who had made the journey. This punishment was however aimed at seeing them return to France.

In the short peace between the second and third French civil wars, Saint-Gouard undertook his first diplomatic mission when he was made an extraordinary ambassador to Spanish Nederland.

Saint-Gouard was involved in all the battles of the Third French War of Religion (1568–1570|third French War of Religion]]. He fought at the royal victory of Jarnac in 1568. At the royal victory of Moncontour in 1569 he was seriously injured.

Saint-Gouard was entrusted with the military responsibility of being capitaine de cinquante hommes d'armes des ordonnances du roi (captain of 50 men-at-arms in the royal ordinance company).

In the winter of 1571 Saint-Gouard returned to diplomatic service when he undertook an extraordinary diplomatic mission to the Holy See for the purpose of securing the release from captivity of the comte de Caiazzo, a servant of the French crown who had been put before the inquisition under suspicion of 'heresy'. Saint-Gouard approached Pope Pius V with haughty resolve on the matter and succeeded in obtaining Caiazzo's release through the Papal Nuncio. His success in this effort elevated his profile.

According to the English ambassador, when back in France, shortly before his departure to España, Saint-Gouard involved himself in a Catholic plot. Upon the arrival of the Protestant admiral de Coligny at court, Saint-Gouard was intending to surprise and destroy him.

In early 1572 he was sent to España for the purpose of congratulating the Spanish king Felipe II on the birth of his son Fernando. He arrived in España on 23 February 1572. Felipe received him on 27 February and he made a good impression on the monarch. He was presented to Felipe by the current French ambassador to España, the baron de Fourquevaux and it was agreed that Saint-Gouard would succeed him in the difficult post.

In this office Saint-Gouard would be a subject of correspondence for Catherine, the queen mother. In total 53 letters survive from Catherine to Saint-Gouard covering both his roles in Madrid, and in Roma, an average of one every 96 days. She would be a considerable correspondent for him in turn, receiving 85 of his letters. Only three letters from Catherine to Saint-Gouard survive for the period 1572–1580. Gellard argues from this that given the regularity of her correspondence we have for the 1560s, this likely reflects a low survival rate of the queen's communication with her ambassador as opposed to a ceasing of communication. Nevertheless, the historian notes it is quite possible the death of the queen of España, Catherine's daughter Élisabeth in 1568 would have caused a decrease in the quantity of communication. Correspondence with the queen mother was official diplomatic correspondence, and would be conducted in tandem with the correspondence to the king. Letters from each, and to each often composed the diplomatic 'packet' that the ambassador received and sent out to the French court. Despite this, the historian Ribera sees Catherine's role as a diplomatic correspondent becoming more secondary during Saint-Gouard's tenure in España, with the letters to her become more sparse in detail, with the understanding king Henri III was to confide the more elaborate details to her. Gellard disagrees with Ribera as to the simplicity of the correspondence imparted to Catherine. In addition to his regular correspondence with the king and Catherine, Saint-Gouard would also exchange letters with the king's brother the duc d'Anjou in the early 1570s and with the sécretaire d'État the seigneur de Villeroy the latter of whom was the recipient of 10% of his correspondence.

Around a half of Saint-Gouard's correspondence back to France would be encrypted. In 1574 Saint-Gouard's entourage would be compromised by an agent of the Spanish kings who delivered all the ambassador's secrets to Felipe. This is the only example of such an act of subterfuge in the period subject to Gellard's study (1559-1589).

His residency of 10 and a half years in España would be the fifth longest French diplomatic mission of his time, behind the ambassadorships of du Ferrier to Venezia (11.5 years), Jean de Liverdis to the Swiss Grauer Bund - Grey League (14.5 years), Guillaume Ancel to the Holy Roman Empire (17.5 years) and Danzay to Danmark (21 years). As the latter decades of the sixteenth-century wore on ambassadorships trended towards longer and longer periods.

As ambassador to España, Saint-Gouard was to enjoy an income of 18,000 livres annually. During his tenure in España, Saint-Gouard frequently complained that both his income and his expenses went unpaid by the French crown. In 1580 he protested to Henri that he was completely ruined in terms of his finances to the point of no longer being able to endure his role as an ambassador. According to Saint-Gouard he was owed around 75,000 livres by the crown at the start of 1580. While in Portugal in January 1582, he wrote to Henri that his creditors in Madrid had lost their patience with him. The king endeavoured to provide him ecclesiastical benefices. In addition to financial complaints, Saint-Gouard complained in September 1580 that his ambassadorship was akin to a disgrace in which he was 'poor and miserable'. He opined that his 'disgrace' in 'exile' would feel less sore if it had been possible to experience it in France, as opposed to on the diplomatic stage. In part the large number of complaints were a product of rhetoric, money did sometimes arrive from court and when it did not it could be supplemented with offices. Not overly diplomatic in nature, Saint-Gouard participated in brawls and 'thrashed his enemies with his cane'. He informed the king of these episodes.

In the first year of his tenure he was faced with several crises in Franco-Spanish relations. Felipe convinced the Pope to refuse dispensation for the royal marriage of the Protestant king of Navarre to the king's sister Marguerite. Meanwhile French Protestants offered aid to rebels against Spanish authority in Nederland (with documents implicating the French king as being involved being seized in Vlaanderen). Further a fleet was assembled in La Rochelle that was suspected of being brought together for operations against Spanish colonial possessions. Through all this, Saint-Gouard had to keep the two kingdoms at peace with one another. In turbulent interviews with the Spanish royal secretario (secretary) Gabriel de Zayas he claimed the French king Charles was not involved in any anti-Spanish actions.

News of the St Bartholomew's Day massacre was greeted with delight by the Spanish king Felipe II. Receiving word on 7 September from one of his agents in France he went to a monastery to hear 'Te Deums' in celebration. Saint-Gouard received news of the massacre from the Spanish king, and made a good face of sharing his pleasure at the news. It would only be on 12 September that Saint-Gouard received his instructions as related to the massacre. This slow delivery of the information to Saint-Gouard laid bare the disarray in the royal court. Word from the French court explained the course of events more precisely: the massacre was not premeditated but rather a by-product of the failed assassination of Admiral Coligny. Saint-Gouard endeavoured to maintain the illusion of a crown that was in charge. Catherine wrote to Felipe gratefully that she and her son had been able to fight off the Protestant conspiracy against them. Eager to seize the moment she proposed a marriage between the duc d'Anjou and Felipe's daughter Isabel. Around this time, Anjou wrote to Saint-Gouard optimistic that the recent massacre might see the king properly obeyed by those who had 'deceitfully become his companions' who from now on would not seek to defy their kings wishes.

The king's brother the duc d'Anjou was elected as king of the Rzeczpospolita Obojga Narodów (Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth). There was much anger about this in España and rumours swirled in España that the duc d'Anjou did not wish to assume the mantle of the Commonwealth's kingship. Saint-Gouard was left to face off against this hostility and received word from Charles that Anjou had departed to take up his new charge in the hopes that this would combat the Spanish rumours.

In the regency government of Catherine after the death of Charles and before Anjou (now Henri III) could return from the Commonwealth to France, Catherine became the sole conduit for diplomatic correspondence from Saint-Gouard.

In 1576 a Parisian lawyer named Jean David made his way back from Roma (possibly after a meeting with the Pope) in the retinue of the bishop of Paris. On route he died in Lyon, and papers were allegedly discovered on his person by the authorities that argued the descendants of Hugues Capet had been abandoned by god and had fallen into degeneracy (i.e. Henri III), while the descendants of Charlemagne (including the house of Lorraine-Guise) were flourishing in body and spirit. It followed that the duc de Guise wished to establish himself as king. The text spread around the capital but for the moment the king did not view it as a serious threat. According to de Thou, Henri had received a copy of the treasonous text from his ambassador Saint-Gouard, who in turn had discovered it after it was sent by the Pope to Felipe. Thus both the Papacy and the Spanish crown were implicated in the conspiracy. The authenticity of the text is disputed, with some arguing that it may have been manufactured to justify the 1588 assassination of the duc de Guise by arguing that he had been engaged in anti-Valois plans for over ten years. Felipe for his part would have seen advantage in providing to Saint-Gouard a text which could cause factional instability in France.

During the years 1576 and 1577, the king's brother the duc d'Alençon and the Protestant king of Navarre both undertook negotiations with Felipe through the agent Claude du Bourg. Saint-Gouard endeavoured to combat these negotiations. Simultaneously to these efforts, Saint-Gouard worked to reassure Felipe that Alençon was not being supported by Henri in his ambitions against Spanish held Nederland.

Saint-Gouard sought to secure the marriage of a Spanish princess for the duc d'Alençon however in this he was unsuccessful.

In 1577 Saint-Gouard received the royal honour of induction as a chevalier (knight) into the the Ordre de Saint-Michel (Order of Saint-Michel), the highest order of French chivalry. That same year he entered the king's household when he was made a gentilhomme de la chambre du roi (gentleman of the king's chamber), and also the royal government when he was made a conseiller (councillor) in the conseil privé, a charge he would hold until 1598, the year before his death.

After the seizure of French shipping in 1577 Saint-Gouard protested that the Spanish were so unjust in their behaviour that they made the 'Turks' look good by comparison. In January 1578 Saint-Gouard detailed to the Spanish secretario Zayas that the French prisoners were put in the hold without food and left to starve. After this the ambassador alleged they were subject to tortures and falsified confessions.

In the crisis of the Portuguese succession from 1581–1582, Saint-Gouard did not believe that the claims of dom António to the throne had merit. With sadness he saw the submission of the Bragança to Felipe as necessary. Henri meanwhile tasked Saint-Gouard with travelling to Belém near Lisboa where Felipe was established to complain of the treatment of French merchants and people. He would remain in Portugual from August 1581 to January 1582 living in great poverty during his stay.

Upon his return to Madrid he received royal funds at last. He then went back to Lisboa where he enjoyed superior accommodation. It was his responsibility to ensure that France and España and remained at peace at this time. This was despite the French military expedition to the Açores that was being organised under the command of the colonel-general Strozzi (son of the maréchal with whom he had travelled to Malta in 1565). In Lisboa, Saint-Gouard bore witness to the departure of the fleet which was to sail and crush Strozzi's force. In August 1582 he held his final audience with Felipe and departed back to France happily. His successor as ambassador ^α, the sieur de Longlée was already in Iberia at the time of Saint-Gouard's relief.

While the crown struggled with the prospect of seeing Saint-Gouard financially compensated for his long ambassadorship, it could reward him with office. In 1583 Henri established Saint-Gouard in the position of governor of the city of Saintes, a charge that offered great prospects of profit. He would hold this charge until 1596. During the 31 December 1583 induction into his new most senior (and more exclusive) order of French chivalry, Saint-Gouard would be established as a chevalier of the Ordre du Saint-Esprit (Order of the Holy-Spirit).

In 1584 Saint-Gouard was established as the French ambassador to the Papal States upon the death of the prior ambassador Paul de Foix. He would be the only sword noble of this period to hold multiple ordinary diplomatic postings, something that was more common for robe nobles. The French ambassadorial post to Roma was the most chaotic one, with several of the incumbents in the office dying during their postings while others were made cardinals. This caused numerous interims in the posting. There would be a considerable deal of time between the death of Foix and his arrival, and it is unknown who held the office on an interim basis pending his arrival. He arrived in the city in March 1585 and established himself in a palazzo belonging to the queen mother Catherine. He would enjoy much support and many connections in Roma. As his sécretaire he enjoyed the services of Antoine de La Boderie. During his ambassadorship he denounced the cardinal de Pellevé, who had been established in Roma around 1574, as a source of intrigues and mischief.

In his capacity as ambassador he received correspondence from the queen mother Catherine, and would still be receiving letters from her as late as 1588, near to her death when she was both ill and depressed. Unlike his residence in España, the communications he received in Roma from Catherine are well preserved.

The following month, in April, Pope Gregory XIII was succeeded in the Papal office by Pope Sixtus V. Sixtus endeavoured to establish himself independent of both French and Spanish influence. In his capacity as ambassador to Roma, Saint-Gouard frequently clashed with Sixtus. Despite their often tense relations, Sixtus appreciated Saint-Gouard's 'vigour and courage'. The new Pope decided to recall his Papal Nuncio to France the bishop of Bergamo and replace him with the ligueur and Spanish sympathetic archbishop of Nazareth. Henri was greatly aggrieved by this and refused to receive the replacement, ordering the governor of the Lyonnais to halt his progress at Lyon. Chevallier speculates he may have been driven by the domestic frustrations he was experiencing after having been forced into a peace which conceded to his enemies in the Catholic ligue. Saint-Gouard championed Henri's decision before the Pope, even before he had received instructions from France, and demanded the Pope see to the archbishops recall. This offended the Pope so significantly that the Pope ordered that he depart the Papal States within 5 days, something he would do on 25 July 1585. Henri did not retaliate against Sixtus for the dismissal of his ambassador.

Shortly after being expelled from Roma by Sixtus and returning to France, Saint-Gouard found himself in the centre of a storm. He was suspected by the duc de Nevers of being the author of several aggrieving letters about him. Keen to confirm his suspicions, the duc de Nevers turned to the doctor Philippe de Cavriana in September to gather information on Saint-Gouard. Cavriana inquired of the royal entourage' as to what Saint-Gouard may have said about the duc de Nevers in his diplomatic despatches back to France. This inquisitiveness greatly aggrieved Catherine who asked Cavriana to cease his investigations. Still enquiring on the duc's behalf, several days later Cavriana got into a showdown with the royal favourite the duc d'Épernon. Épernon informed Cavriani that the ambassador had written nothing as concerned the duc de Nevers and swore as such on his honour as a gentleman. If Cavriana continued to investigate Saint-Gouard it would attract the ire of the king. While Nevers' agent took cares to speak quietly to Épernon, the latter was embarassed that Épernon spoke loudly in front of many courtiers. Cavrians assured Épernon that if Nevers was sure that it was Saint-Gouard they would not be in this position right now. As such he was seeking more information. Cavrians pushed Épernon on the matter, asking him whether he'd seen the 'slanderous letters' and whether they had not been written in Saint-Gouard's hand. Épernon in turn replied that he had indeed seen the letters, but that they were unsigned and unmarked.

Clearly understanding the situation, and appreciating that Henri was both keen to protect Saint-Gouard, and see him returned to his ambassadorial post, Cavriana advised Nevers that it would be best to end his attempts to receive satisfaction (Nevers had been seeking a duel with the ambassador). He wrote similarly to the duc's wife Henriette de Clèves advising her to intercede with her husband against his desire for revenge.

As a further reward for his services, in May 1586 Henri erected the marquisate de Pisani in Saint-Gouard's favour, comprising his lands in Poitou and Saintonge. It would be by this name he would be known forthwith.

Henri for his part found himself subject to the distaste of the Papal Nuncio for his decision to seek negotiations with the Protestant king of Navarre and prince de Condé in the summer of 1586. The king justified himself on the grounds of the immiseration of the kingdom. The Nuncio begged him not to make such a decision to seek peace without first seeking the advice of the Pope. Catherine, who was to lead the negotiations , would depart to conduct them in July. Before she did she urged Pisani to sooth the Pope's concerns about her peace mission. Her efforts succeeded in securing an armistice with the Protestants which lasted until the spring of 1587.

Thanks to the work of the cardinal de Rambouillet and cardinale d'Este, the return of Pisani to his embassy would be arranged, and thus he departed Paris back for Roma on 23 June 1586, arriving in the city on 19 August. After the return of Pisani to Roma, Henri consented to the replacement of the bishop of Bergamo with the archbishop of Nazareth as Papal Nuncio.

In late August, Pisani reported back to Henri of the Pope's disapproval for Catherine's peace mission. The Pope reminded Pisani that until such time as 'heresy' was vanquished in France, Henri could not truly be absolute master of his kingdom. There was also much domestic opposition to the efforts to broker peace between the royal party and the Protestants both radical preachers and from the ligueur lords like the duc de Guise (who liaised with the new Papal Nuncio on his plans to reject a peace).

It was with sadness that Pisani observed the death of the cardinale d'Este, a great supporter of the French in December 1586. However this was counterbalanced by a new ally for the protection of French affairs the cardinal de Joyeuse.

A flood of Catholic outrage greeted the execution of Mary Stuart on 1 March 1587 by the English queen Elizabeth I. The Pope enquired of Pisani as to how Henri was planning to respond to the killing, 'was Henri going to avenge the murder, as he was obligated to do for his honour?'. Henri was no more able to avenge the death of Marie than he was to stop her execution. He contented himself to host a solemn service in Paris in her memory.

Relations between the Papacy and Henri were improved at this time. In March of 1587 the hostile bishop of Nazareth had died and been replaced by the pro-French bishop of Brescia in the charge. Sixtus opined to Pisani that the rebellion of Guise against the crown was of advantage to the Protestants. The Catholic ligue should unite with the crown for the destruction of Protestantism.

In August the Pope authorised an alienation of 500,000 écus of church land in France. This was in response to his being informed that Henri intended to personally lead an army against the Protestants. Pisani sent a porter to inform Henri of the Pope's decision When word arrived in France, the clergy was outraged and protested against the measure. They were soothed by the the cardinal de Gondi and the new Papal Nuncio. Due to the fact the money was not presently available, Henri asked Pisani to request a 400,000 écus loan from the Pope in return for receipt of interest from the alienation.

In early 1588, the Papal Nuncio tried to nudge Henri towards delivering his campaign against the Protestants. Henri was reluctant to comply, and argued that if he threw himself against the Protestants, he would be leaving Picardie and Normandie in the hands of the ligue. The Nuncio retorted that Henri had two enemies, and as he could only make war on one it should be the Protestants. On 18 February, Henri wrote to Pisani asking him to see to it that the Pope reminded the ligue of their need to show obedience to him and see to the service of god, as opposed to their ambitions.

Having established an agreement with the Spanish king Felipe, when the time came in April for a conference at Soissons between Henri's surintendant des finances Bellièvre and the ligueurs the duc de Guise, and cardinals of Bourbon and Guise there was no prospect of an accord being reached. The Papal Nuncio informed Sixtus of the conferences failure before it had opened. Pisani continued to push Sixtus to make it clear to the ligueurs that they needed to unite loyally with the king to achieve the destruction of Protestantism. However, the speed of the Pope's response did not reflect the urgency of the situation. From 10-13 May the ligue rose up in Paris with Guise at its head, and attempted to impose a settlement on Henri.

After the humiliation of the day of the Barricades, Henri retreated from Paris to Chartres leaving the capital in the hands of the ligueur rebels. He opined to his ambassador in Roma that he held duc de Guise solely responsible for the uprising. Pisani was to assure the Pope that Henri remained committed to wage war against the Protestants in Poitou, but before he could do this, Guise needed to be removed from the capital and returned to his governate of CHampagne. If Guise continued to further his own ambitions, Henri would be compelled to preserve what authority he had left by combatting the duc. He furthered this with a letter to the Pope in which he obliquely implied he could be compelled to assassinate Guise (though he did not name him in his letter to Sixtus) when he stated that the extreme circumstances he found himself in might force him to resort to extreme remedies.

On 4 July Henri noted with impatience to Pisani that if he did not have peace in his kingdom within the next several weeks, he would enter open war with the ligueurs. He thanked the Pope through Pisani for offering the services of a Legate, but requested this role be given to the Nuncio. After having concluded an agreement with the ligueurs shortly thereafter in the edict of Union on 21 July in which he swore never again to make an accord with 'heretics'. Similarly France was never to have a 'heretical' king, he would adopt the decisions of the Council of Trent, grant to the Catholic princes the towns conceded to them in the 1585 treaty of Nemours, relieve Épernon of his governate of Boulogne and sell off the property of Protestants. With this agreement confirmed, Henri assured Pisani he would now be waging war against the Protestants alongside the ligueur leaders the duc de Guise and duc de Mayenne.

After have effected the assassination of the duc de Guise, Henri moved to ensuring the act was properly justified internationally. André Hurault de Maisse who was departing for Italia was instructed to inform the late duc's maternal uncle the duca di Ferrara that Guise had been poisoned by his ambition and was planning to seize Henri and hand him over to the ligueurs in Paris. Henri was confident that the Pope would approve of the act he had undertaken, and wrote to Pisani to this effect. He justified himself on the grounds that Guise was a threat to not only his crown but also his life. Almost as an afterthought the king mentioned the death of the cardianl de Guise. Pisani was further informed that the Pope would see it as not only lawful but also a pious act. By this means, Henri declared, he had stemmed the greatest source of strife between his Catholic subjects. To assist Pisani in this effort would be the cardinal de Joyeuse. Henri's impression that the Pope might be supportive was not drawn from nothing, as a few months previous the Pope had urged him to punish those who defied his authority with severity.

The Papal Nuncio in France decided against excommunicating Henri out of fear it could drive him into the arms of the Protestants, and therefore left the decision in the hands of the Pope.

On 4 January word reached the Papacy of the assassinations that had transpired at Blois. This was followed a day later by the official notice of the act from Henri. According to cardinal de Joyeuse, the Pope was not surprised to learn of the assassinations, remarking that Guise and his brother had received several warnings of the king's intentions. On 6 January Pisani, who had not yet received his diplomatic despatch from the king, met with the Pope. Pisani attempted to explain Henri's actions. Pope Sixtus restrained himself in his reactions, asking if Pisani had ever heard of a prince who killed a cardinal.

However, in his next meeting, with the Venetian ambassador, the Pope exploded in anger. He argued to the ambassador that if Henri had executed the duc de Guise after the day of the barricades it would have been one thing, but to kill the duc after having made a public reconciliation with him was murder and not justice. This was furthered in his meetings with the Spanish representative. On 7 January Joyeuse spoke with Sixtus and tried to justify the 'deserved end' of the ligueur princes. The Pope cut him off, crying that that was not the way to deal with men of such quality. Guise should have been arrested, and the cardinal sent to Roma for trial. Joyeuse retorted that the Pope himself had proposed to Henri that he should defenestrate the duc de Guise back in May. The king only needed the forgiveness of god for the killing of the duc, however the cardinal informed the pope that Henri wished to receive absolution for the death of cardinal de Guise.

On 9 January Sixtus discussed the murder of the cardinal de Guise with the cardinals of the consistory, arguing to the body that the deed could not go unpunished. Both Pisani and Joyeuse grew fearful that extraordinary penance might be imposed on Henri as a result.

After a meeting of cardinals on 10 January it was decided to suspend consistorial matters related to France. Joyeuse opined fearfully that this could cause a break between the French and Roman churches, and a return to pre-Concordat elections in the French church. Joyeuse advised Henri that he would need to request absolution from the Pope, and also release the ligueur cardinal de Bourbon and archbishop of Lyon who he had arrested.

In early January Henri sent to Pisani and Joyeuse the brief which the Pope had provided him on 20 July 1587. This brief granted him the privilege to receive absolution for his sins for a confessor of his choosing, including for sins that would normally be the business of the Holy See, such as the automatic excommunication the killing of a cardinal resulted in (the king had killed the cardinal de Guise alongside the duc de Guise). When the Pope was reminded of this brief, he retorted that it only applied to sins committed prior to its granting. In January the commander of Dyo was sent to the Holy See by the duc de Mayenne to represent him. Dyo took the position that after the murder of the duc and cardinal all good Catholics were fearful and required the protection of an act emanating from the Pope.

During these months, the ligueur representative in the Papal court, Jean de Piles, abbot of Orbais worked to convince the Pope to excommunicate Henri. Pisani denounced the abbot as a pernicious agent of the Lorraine princes on 25 January. Ligueur pamphlets printed in Paris were also sent to Roma.

From January to February 1589, the cardinal de Joyeuse and Pisani negotiated with the Pope. Joyeuse seeing that neither he nor Pisani were making any impression on the Pontiff after a month of work, wrote to Henri urging him to establish a special envoy who would request absolution for him. Henri conceded to the Pope's position and his representative the bishop of Le Mans was sent to Roma. The bishop arrived on 23 February and was received by the Pope two days later. He enjoyed several audiences with the Pope, and in one on 8 March the Pope demanded that the envoy provide a simple request for the king's absolution. After Le Mans again demurred on the grounds of the rights of the king and French nation, Sixtus exploded and threatened to imprison the bishop. Pisani who was also present for the audience protested that it was the duty of ambassadors to explain their masters reasoning. On 13 March Joyeuse brokered an agreement by which the bishop of Le Mans would make the appeal for absolution, kneeling at the feet of the Pope he confessed on the behalf of Henri. The Pope declared his satisfaction but maintained his refusal of absolution until such time as the archbishop of Lyon and cardinal de Bourbon were released, as this had not yet come to pass. Subsequently in April Henri entered into alliance with his distant Protestant cousin and heir the king of Navarre, throwing the prospect of agreement with the Papacy into doubt. The Pope's ambassador in France withdrew from the court after the agreement was reached, staying in Lyon until the death of the king.

Over the coming months, Henri continued to fail to release the archbishop of Lyon and cardinal de Bourbon from prison. However now the Pope was more incensed to learn of Henri's alliance with the Protestant king. On 5 May pope Sixtus announced his decision, Henri must release the archbishop of Lyon and cardinal de Bourbon within ten days. Within sixty days he must either come to Roma himself or send a proxy to represent him. If he failed to undertake both of these acts he would be excommunicated. In this declaration he did not mention Henri's alliance with Navarre but admitted to the Venetian ambassador that it was the reason he had made the declaration. Judging Henri's situation to be desperate he expected the king's submission and readied himself to open his arms to the errant prince. Pisani for his part attempted to stop the publication of the decision, but was unsuccessful. During May, the military situation for the ligue in France declined greatly after the loss of the battle of Senlis, Navarre writing confidently that soon Paris might fall to them. In response to this Mayenne looked to Roma for a coup of his own, hoping to see the expelling of Pisani, the prosecution of the bishop of Le Mans and the declaration of a crusade. Upon the publication of the Papal monitoire (warning that proceeds excommunication) on 26 May, both Joyeuse and Pisani abandoned Roma. 1589 thus represented the end of Pisani's tenure as ambassador to the Papacy, the marquis judging the publication of the monitoire to conclude his ambassadorship. Henri was distraught to learn of his excommunication, but was reassured by Navarre that the true way to respond to the Pope's move was to recapture Paris.

After tarrying for a while in Firenze, Pisani embarked at Livorno for France alongside the bishop of Le Mans. Joyeuse meanwhile travelled on to Venezia. On route back to France the ship Pisani and Le Mans were travelling in was attacked by a corsair, Pisani led the successful repelling of the attacker, allowing them to reach Languedoc. When informed, Sixtus was impressed to learn of Pisani's feat.

Many French Catholics were left in a difficult position after the assassination of Henri III. The royal army that was besieging Paris collapsed from a size of 40,000 men to 18,000, many soldiers deserting rather than lending their services to a Protestant. They now faced the prospect of having to serve a Protestant king. While this was too much for some, in the following days many nobles of Guyenne swore themselves to the king of Navarre as Henri IV. Among them were maréchal de Matignon and Biron, the duc de Ventadour, the seigneur de La Rochefoucauld, the comte de La Vauguyon, the duc de Thouars and Pisani. These were all military nobles capable of mobilising their networks in the favour of the new king.

In July 1590, Pisani undertook a conference for Henri at Saint-Germain with the Papal legate Caetani. However this meeting bore no fruit.

The Pope greatly opposed the Protestant Navarre's assumption of the crown. All Catholics who supported him were ordered to withdraw their support on pains of excommunication. Beyond his spiritual interventions, the Pope dispatched a small army to support the ligueur cause in their war with Henri, however it was badly ravaged by dysentery and accomplished little. With the death of Pope Gregory in October 1591 a new election was held. The new Pope, elected in January 1592 maintained his support for the ligueur cause. Henri meanwhile dispatched two of his supporters who he hoped would be well received by the Papacy on 4 October, Pisani and the cardinal de Gondi. They were to swear Henri's support for the Pope and that in the same manner as his predecessors he had a 'filial devotion' to the Holy See. Pisani knew that the Pope would not agree to meet with him and that he would likely only be able to make his devotions to Loreto. However the Pope continued to direct his severity against Catholic supporters of Henri IV. Thus, with Pisani and the cardinal de Gondi on the road to Roma to ask the Pope to assist in the potential conversion of Henri to Catholicism, the Pope forbid them to continue their journey. He was supported in his refusal to meet with Pisani and Gondi by the ligueur agents in Roma. As such the royalist party stopped its journey in Firenze, forbidden from travelling further. Meanwhile emissaries from the ligueur duc de Mayenne assured the Pope that Henri would not convert to Catholicism and that if he did it would be a simulacrum.

In July 1593 Henri abjured Protestantism and became a Catholic. Many Catholics however suspected his conversion was cynical or invalid. To this end Henri redoubled his efforts to gain absolution from the Pope. He was supported in this effort by the Tuscan and Venetian ambassadors in Roma who faced off with the Spanish Papal ambassador who sought to convince the Pope to continue the fight. From late 1592 the Venetian ambassador had convinced Clement military and financial support towards the Catholic ligue was playing into the hands of the Spanish. The Pope remained determined though not to receive Gondi and Pisani, and upon receiving word of Henri's adoption of Catholicism considered declaring the Catholics who received him schismatics. He was talked out of this by the Venetian ambassador on the grounds it would accelerate French Gallican sentiment. The reason for the Pope's refusal to see the two envoys was, according to a 'well connected' priest due to his fear of the Spanish reprisals he would be inviting if he were to take such a step. Henri resolved to send a new diplomatic mission, led by a man that the Pope could not refuse to see, the Italian Catholic the duc de Nevers. In November 1593 the Pope agreed to receive the duc de Nevers, however only in his capacity as a private person and not as a representative of Henri IV. Even after this meeting the Pope remained firm, declaring Henri could not be absolved as he 'persisted in his errors'.

Having stayed in northern Italia since his arrival in late 1592, Pisani returned to France in early 1594. During his stay he had felt useless.

During the crisis of the Croquant rebellions, armed peasant bands rose across much of southern France. Henri resolved that he must employ a gentle hand to defuse their greiviances. He opined to the lieutenant-general of Haute-Auvergne, that if he came down harshly on the movement, it would entail further damages. In the Limoges the rebel peasants numbered around 12-15,000. While working towards the disarmament of this group, a band of nobles charged into the peasants in June 1594, killing many. The sieur de Boissise arrived sometime after this and promised a reduction of the taille (the land tax). He then undertook a siege of the château de Gimel which was held by some rebel lords. A little while later in October Pisani arrived with a military force and undertook a limited expedition. Maréchal de Matignon then continued the work of ending the rebellion peaceably, and worked to avoid prosecution of the Croquant ringleaders to this effect. However in 1595 the heat of the conflict would rise again and there would be a battle before the Croquant leadership submitted, soothed further by tax relief Henri ordered in 1596 and 1599.

With 'surprising youthfulness', Pisani fought alongside the king at the royalist victory of the battle of Fontaine-Française in 1595.

The aged marquis was granted the honour in 1596 of raising the eight yea rold prince de Condé in the Catholic faith after Henri received absolution from the Papacy. At this time the prince was the heir to the French throne, though he would not remain such. He settled with the young prince at Saint-Germain-en-Laye. The governor found himself in conflict with the prince's mother Charlotte-Catherine over the choice of tutor for the prince. While she favoured Joseph Justus Scaliger for her son, this was opposed by Henri who hated Scaliger. He favoured Nicolas Lefèvre, a man whose religious disposition suited Pisani. The hatred between the princesse de Condé and Henri exasperated Pisani, who was fundamentally a man of the king.

On 21 May 1596 Pisani wrote his will. He expressed his desire to be buried in the cathedral of Saintes. His non domestic property was to go to his wife as well as the usufruct of his French properties. Meanwhile his daughter would enjoy possession of the French territories.

Henri established Pisani as the sénéchal (seneschal) of Poitou and as the colonel-général de la cavalerie légère italienne (colonel general of the Italian light cavalry).

Pisani died on 7 October 1599 at Saint-Maur near Paris. He was succeeded as governor of the prince de Condé by the ligueur comte de Belin who got on far better with the princesse de Condé.

Pisani's widow received support from Pisani's network of friends.

Henri III's sécretaire Jules Gassot spoke very highly of the marquis de Pisany. In his estimation Pisani was an unusually excellent lord. The sécretaire described his ascetic lifestyle, with preponderance for vegetables and 'clear water'. In addition to this virtue, Pisani was a 'devout Catholic' who was also devoted to royal service, and acted with honour and virtue.

Notes

^α The sieur de Longlée was not technically ambassador to España but rather a diplomatic agent.

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