Jeanne d’Albret was born on January 7, 1528, in the small kingdom of Navarre, located between France and Spain. Her parents, especially her mother Queen Marguerite, were supporters of reformed writers, teachers, and theologians. Marguerite also offered shelter for the Huguenots (French Protestants) when the king of France started to persecute them.
When she was a child, Jeanne was brought by her uncle, King Francis I of France, to be raised in the French court as a Roman Catholic.
When Jeanne was around 13 years old, her uncle wanted her to marry Duke Wilhelm of Cleves to help bring about an alliance. Jeanne did not want to marry the duke and drew up protests stating that she was being forced against her will into the marriage. In the end, she had to be carried up the aisle to the altar. After the wedding, Jeanne’s mother refused to let her live with the duke until she was older, and King Francis agreed, freeing Jeanne to return to Navarre, where she was instructed in the Protestant faith. A few years later, Duke Wilhelm ended his alliance with France, and as the marriage was no longer politically expedient, the king arranged with the pope to have it annulled based on Jeanne’s written protests.
In 1548, Jeanne was willingly married to Antione, Duke of Vendome. A few years later, Jeanne’s parents died, and she and Antoine became the Queen and King of Navarre. Although her parents had supported the Protestant cause, they had not made many changes in Navarre and never officially left the Catholic church; Jeanne was the one to change Navarre into a Protestant kingdom. In 1560, she made an open profession of the Reformed faith, and made Calvinism the official religion of Navarre. She started on a series of reforms, starting by banning Roman Catholic rituals from the kingdom. She destroyed or renovated Roman Catholic churches, convents, and monasteries, and kicked all priests and nuns out of Navarre. She also had the New Testament translated into Basque and encouraged literacy programs so everyone could read the Bible for themselves.
The Roman Catholic Church did not take these reforms lightly, especially Catherine de Medici, the wife of Henry II, the new king of France, who wanted to “free” France from Protestantism. She also wanted Navarre as part of France and decided to get to Jeanne by coaxing Antoine back to the Roman Catholic faith. Antoine spent much time at the French court, in part because of his position as a French aristocrat, but also because he had a Catholic mistress in Paris, Louise, who helped Catherine influence Antoine. In 1562, Antoine publicly declared himself a Roman Catholic and ordered Jeanne to do the same “for the good of the country” (which was at the time dealing with uprisings from Huguenots). Jeanne refused to renounce her faith and was eventually forced to leave Paris and flee to Navarre, leaving her son with Antoine.
In Navarre, Jeanne continued her reforms. She was encouraged by her correspondence with other reformers, including Calvin. She used the money from the former Catholic buildings and lands to build Protestant churches, open a seminary, and start schools for both girls and boys. She also managed to get her son away from the French court by visiting and then gaining permission for him to accompany her part way home. They then fled to Navarre, where she was able to teach him reformed doctrine and to prepare him for his future role as king.
During this time there were several attempts on Jeanne’s life, as well as plots to force her to return to the Roman Catholic church, but God protected her through them all. Pope Pius IV excommunicated her and declared her a heretic. He wanted her kidnaped and brought before the Inquisition, and threatened to have her land confiscated by any Catholic monarch who wanted to take it, but he backed down when even France and Spain protested the papal interference in Navarre (fearing that it would be a bad precedent).
Jeanne was concerned about the safety of the Huguenots in France; she also knew that if Protestantism was destroyed in France, Navarre would be at greater risk from both France and Spain. She joined the Huguenots at La Rochelle where they had gathered in preparation for what would be the Third Civil War in the French Wars of Religion. Jeanne encouraged the troops in the face of discouragement and losses, and stayed with them until they were able to gain enough victories to force a peace settlement. She played an important role in negotiating the Peace of Saint-Germaine-en-Laye, winning more religious freedoms for the Huguenots.
Not long after this, in June of 1572, Jeanne became ill while in Paris preparing for her son’s wedding. She died a few days later.
We see in Jeanne a woman who was dedicated to her faith and to helping other believers gain safety to worship. She lived in a dangerous time and place, being surrounded on all sides by stronger Catholic nations, and under pressure from the Roman Catholic church, the French, and her husband to deny the truth, but through it all she trusted God and held firm to the faith and God used her to save many believers.
We also see how God was working in her life. He allowed a political “marriage” to get her away from the French court and home where she could learn about the true faith. He also put her place as the ruler at a time when Navarre needed someone strong enough to protect the Protestants in the area and to not give in under pressure, and someone who could prepare her son to take over after her death. God was faithful to protect Jeanne from her enemies until her job was done, and then took her home only months before the worst massacre of Protestants that France saw, sparing her from that sorrow. The life of Jeanne d’Albret is a testimony to God’s grace and faithfulness in the life of one of His children.
