Edict of Versailles
The Edict of Versailles (French EDIT de Versailles ) was a Louis XVI. enacted on November 29, 1787 Edict of Tolerance in favor of the non-Catholic population. It brought especially the Huguenots while some civil rights, but not the free exercise of religion or the complete legal equality.
Prehistory
Louis XIV had revoked the Edict of Nantes in 1685 by the Edict of Fontainebleau. This Catholicism was strengthened as the state religion, while the Calvinist religion was in fact prohibited. If you think you did not want to bend, was followed. Many Huguenots converted under strong pressure from the government to Catholicism. In addition, there was mass emigration particularly in the Netherlands, Switzerland and some German territories. With the emigration of skilled workers was accompanied by a weakening of the French economy. Within the country, the Calvinist confession could continue to live in secret. In 1762, the last time a Protestant pastor was sentenced to death.
In the wake of the Enlightenment, the idea of religious tolerance towards minorities made progress. Voltaire was one of the first, in 1763 publicly arguing for tolerance. Various personalities like Anne Robert Jacques Turgot, baron de l' Alder, Guy -Jean -Baptiste Target, but especially Chrétien -Guillaume de Lamoignon de Malesherbes and the speaker of the surviving Protestants in France, Jean -Paul Rabaut Saint -Étienne urged that the legal situation of the Huguenots to improve.
Even if the legal restrictions remained, the Protestants were still many places tolerated. The Parlemente had already been decided in the case law in practice in the direction of religious tolerance, in that the government took this later only. On the reform policy of Étienne Charles de Loménie de Brienne in the pre-revolutionary period included not only the tax and budget policy, but rather the legitimacy of the government of actions depended in as many policy areas.
Content
Rabaut had the goal originally the enforcement of full legal equality. Also, services should be allowed to be held again in churches. The exclusion of Protestants from all public offices should have an end. Quite that far, as requested by some of the king and his government did not want to go. After all, part of the coronation oath to eradicate heresy.
The text consisted of 37 items. In an appendix, the charges have been established, which had to be paid by the Huguenots in Catholic priest or state officials for certain services.
The key messages were: Article 10: The Catholic religion was the state religion. Art.11: Public Protestant worship remained prohibited. Art.12: Protestants were allowed to establish no they repräsentatierende organizations. In addition, the assets of emigrant Huguenots remained confiscated. Also remained penal laws which were directed against some new converts, exist.
The new thing was that the Protestants marriages and deaths register and smell legalize it. This could happen when the Catholic priests or royal officials. The investment of own cemeteries was now possible. The Edict of Toleration granted so that only a civil recognition. This entailed property and inheritance law. Weddings could be closed and the offspring were legitimate and rechstfähig. Were granted religious freedom or access to public office.
Compared with the Edict of Versailles, the tolerance patent of Joseph II was much further from 1781. After all, the monarchy had to admit indirectly that the revocation of the Edict of Nantes had been a mistake.
Malesherbes had provided that all non-Catholic population groups should benefit from this policy. The imprecise wording " Exclusions" apart, however, was not related to the Jews and Lutherans in administrative practice. Therefore, the Edict primarily affected the Calvinist Huguenots.
The edict was registered by the Parliament on 29 January 1788, it was therefore valid. The complete legal equality happened in the wake of the French Revolution since 1789.