While leading the light cavalry during the defence of Metz he was captured, and held for the next two years, until his mother in law Diane de Poitiers paid his ransom.

Aumale served the crown throughout the first war, repeatedly trying to besiege Rouen without success, before the main royal army arrived with sufficient force to subdue the town.

Aumale continued to fight in the second and third civil wars, but was repeatedly unable to stop incursions into France by German reiters in favour of the rebels.

With Metz occupied, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor now offered his response, beginning a large scale siege of the city, which was under the military leadership of Aumale's brother Guise.

With the duke of Alba moving to set up his forces against the city, Aumale, who was present in his capacity as colonel-general was dispatched with the light cavalry to harass and stymy his efforts, to delay the full investment of Metz.

Diane ensured that Aumale's heavy ransom would be provided, paying the Margrave of Brandenburg 60,000 livres in 1554 to secure her son in laws release from captivity.

Having recently received reinforcements from Henri, Brissac made an attack on the town of Volpiano however sickness overcame him and he ceded command of the siege to Aumale.

As in years previous, many ambitious young nobles flocked to the siege lines to participate in the victory, including Condé, Nemours and Enghien.

[31] Meanwhile the Imperial army delivered a crushing blow to a French force under Anne de Montmorency, constable of France and the king's favourite at the battle of Saint-Quentin.

[34] Guise settled on conquering siege of Calais as a way to restore French honour and gain a strategic advantage, a city which had been in English hands since 1347.

[37] He was further provided with a temporary lieutenancy giving him military command in Picardie, an office he would make use of from May to July of that year, working in concert with Jacques d'Humières.

Marshal Saint-André, favourite of the deceased king, was tasked with heading to Tours with 200 horse, so that he might suppress any disorder related to the rebellion in that city.

Elbeuf and Aumale worked in tandem with Bouillon and Jean d'Estouteville, seigneur de Villebon in organising the nobles that were gathering in the province, ready for transportation.

With Catherine de Medici and Antoine of Navarre taking the lead for the young Charles IX of France, the Guise recognised there was little place for them in the new government.

Such a policy was intolerable and in combination with the increasing presence of open Protestants on the conseil privé which left little space for the Guise, the family decided once more to depart court.

The matter of discussion was Christian doctrine, Württemberg being a Lutheran, a version of Protestantism not practiced in much of France but more of interest to Lorraine in terms of bringing about a reconciliation of the two faiths than Calvinism.

[52] Withdrawing from the siege in June, Aumale brought his forces to the main royal army under Guise which was facing off in a stalemate with Condé near Orléans.

[53] As a result the army was divided into four, with Aumale to deal with Rouen, Saint-André to seize Lyon, Montpensier to head south to Guienne and the main body under Navarre to confront Condé.

[60] Hoping to aid his brother, Guise instructed for recently recruited German mercenaries to be directed from the Loire where they weren't required to reinforce Aumale outside the city.

Riez provided the epistle of Saint James for the duke to listen to, one denounced by Martin Luther as an 'epistle of straw' and ensured Guise defended the Real presence.

Aumale and Lorraine acted as the leaders of the ultra Catholic faction at court, holding the role until the young Henry I, Duke of Guise reached his majority.

[67][65] Alongside Aumale's role representing his nephew's interests at court, it was also his duty to act as governor of Champagne during the young princes minority until he reached adulthood.

[75] However later in his time at Moulins the eldest Guise brother Lorraine was forced by the king to exchange the kiss of peace with Coligny, Aumale for his part refused to acknowledge the Admiral.

[76][77] With civil war resumed in 1567 after the failure of the Protestant Surprise of Meaux, Aumale was again tasked with defending the frontier against attempts to reinforce Condé's army, which was investing Paris, with German reiters.

Neither would be successful, the crown little desiring to see such an important office held outside the royal family again, instead Anjou was made lieutenant-general of the kingdom, giving him equivalent authority over the army.

[81] In the following civil war, after the abortive Peace of Longjumeau Aumale was for a third time entrusted with protecting the border against attempted mercenary incursions.

Nemours and Aumale attempted with great urgency to stop him joining forces with the main Protestant body under Coligny, however they failed in their task and Zweibrücken outmaneuvered them, capturing La Charité on 20 May allowing him to link with the rebels.

[87] After the crushing royal victory at the Battle of Moncontour in which the main Protestant army under Coligny was annihilated, Aumale and Marshal Biron were tasked with chasing down several of the routed columns.

[91] After the attempt on Coligny's life on 22 August 1572, the situation in Paris deteriorated fast, as the Protestant nobles threatened to take justice into their own hands against those they held responsible, namely the Guise family.

[95][96] The party of assassins meanwhile, now finished with Coligny's residence, proceeded to their next target, Gabriel de Lorges, Count of Montgomery the former captain of the Scots Guard who had accidentally killed king Henri II in 1559.