The book deserves to establish itself as the standard account in English of this most complicated of centuries in French History. Sir John Elliott, Regius Professor Emeritus of Modern History, University of Oxford (of the last edition)
Map of France (1500).
Map of France (1585-98).
Preface to the Second Edition.
Preface to the First Edition.
1. France in 1500.
2. The Minority Rule of Charles VIII (1483-94).
3. Charles VIII and the Italian Wars (1494-8).
4. Louis XII, 'Father of the people' (1498-1515).
5. The Church in Crisis.
6. Francis I: The First Decade (1515-25).
7. The New Learning and Heresy (1483-1525).
8. Defeat, Captivity and Restoration (1525-7).
9. War and Peace (1527-38).
10. The Court and Patronage of Francis I.
11. Francis I: The Last Decade (1537-47).
12. The Absolutism of Francis I.
13. Henry II, the Victor of Metz (1547-52).
14. The Arts and Literature under Henry II.
15. Henry II: The Tragic Peace (1553-9).
16. France Overseas.
17. The Mid-Century Crisis.
18. The Failure of Conciliation (1559-62).
19. The First Civil War (1562-3).
20. The Fragile Peace (1563-6).
21. The Second and Third Civil Wars (1566-70).
22. The St Bartholomew's Day Massacres (1572).
23. Literary Responses.
24. Fraternal Discord (1573-83).
25. Henry III and his Court.
26. The Catholic League (1584-92).
27. The Triumph of Henry IV (1593-1610).
Conclusion.
Bibliography and References.
Glossary.
Genealogies.
Index.