The forgotten battle of the Île de Ré: for Catholics as well as for Huguenots, a “priority area to defend”

Endowed with the status of a "foreign country" and privileges, a strategic military site, the island found itself at the heart of a conflict between the great powers engaged in the Thirty Years' War. In 1625, while the ships of the King of France destroyed the La Rochelle fleet, the Huguenot leader Soubise fled

What is the connection between the Alpine region of Valtellina and the Île de Ré? Neither wine nor salt. The link is not gastronomic but geopolitical. In the ^17th century, these two distant territories were at the heart of clashes between the great powers of the time.

A brief reminder of the facts. Between 1620 and 1626, during the Thirty Years' War, the Austrian Empire and Spain fought over the Protestant valley in northern Italy. On the Atlantic side, the extension of the province of Aunis also occupied a strategic position. Along with its larger neighbor Oléron, Ré ensured the defense of the surrounding ports, including those of Brouage and La Rochelle, strongholds of maritime traffic.

Richelieu was not the last to notice the importance of the two islands to the kingdom. Oléron was full of wheat, cattle, and wine. Ré, whose salt had made its fortune, had ports and landing stages necessary for the navy. So much so that if the English had taken possession of them simultaneously, "it would have been difficult to prevent them from retaining these two islands, which helped each other," wrote the cardinal.

At the beginning of Louis XIII's reign, the islands' strategic role grew under the influence of the Huguenot presence and pressure from Spanish and English troops. Bourgeois and merchants were inclined to Calvinism, while peasants remained loyal to Catholicism.

"The denominational divide also divided the island geographically," note Benjamin Deruelle and Indalecio Alvarez (1). "Protestantism mainly affected the south of the island, while Catholicism remained the majority in the northern part. The main Protestant communities were then established in Saint-Martin, La Flotte and Ars, while others, smaller ones, were found in both Sainte-Marie and Loix."

Perhaps it would have been more accurate to speak of the Îles de Ré. At the beginning of the ^17th century, this piece of land at sea was in fact made up of three parts, "still poorly connected to each other," describe the two authors. "The south of the island only joins the north by a thin strip of sand, the Isthmus of Martray, while the Île de Loix is separated from it by a channel."

The existence of a Reformed community constitutes a permanent threat to the French crown, which fears an alliance between La Rochelle and England, with its very ancient ties. The Île de Ré is therefore for Louis XIII and his Red Eminence a sort of "zone to be defended as a priority." Moreover, since the Middle Ages, it has enjoyed the status of a "foreign country" and legal, military, and commercial privileges granted in return for the population's participation in its protection. The people of Ré are thus exempt from customs duties on a portion of their harvests and trade, from armed service outside the island, and from "hosting external garrisons without their consent."

This administrative bulwark was not infallible. By the time the Huguenot revolt was brewing again, the Île de Ré had already experienced nearly a dozen foreign landings since the ^14th century! One can imagine a certain weariness among the people of Ré when Catholics and Protestants successively claimed possession of their land. They witnessed the comings and goings of Benjamin de Rohan, known as Soubise, according to his victories and defeats.

Commander of the town of Saint-Jean-d'Angély, the latter experienced a first setback against Louis XIII in 1621, at the head of the Huguenots of Poitou, Brittany, and Anjou. A year later, he repeated the feat by seizing several territories in the West, from Olonne to Oléron via the Île de Ré. The adventure was cut short, once again. But the baron was stubborn. On January 7, 1625, Soubise landed again on Ré. The king's patience was running out: he dispatched the Admiral of France, Henri II de Montmorency. The royal troops landed at Gros-Jonc (Les Portes) and on September 16, on the "plain" of Ars, inflicted a severe beating on the rebels. Moreover, the next day, the French fleet, supported by Dutch ships, annihilated the La Rochelle fleet.

Soubise fled to England. Stubborn, he nevertheless prepared his return, this time with the support of Buckingham.

Next up: The Siege of St. Martin, Buckingham's Last Map.