by Simon Black
Sovereign Man
Late in the evening of October 17, 1534, a small group of protestant activists swept across the five biggest cities in France, posting anti-Catholic propaganda posters all over town in major public squares.
The activists even managed to brazenly nail one of their posters to the bedroom door of King Francis I, himself a Catholic.
(There were even rumors that the activists slipped their literature into one of the King’s pockets as he slept.)
Francis was furious. He had always been tolerant of protestants in his country and allowed people to worship freely… at a time when religious tolerance was quite rare in Europe.