Jacqueline de Montbel d'Entremont
After her first husband's death, she converted to Protestantism and married Gaspard II de Coligny, who was later killed in the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre.
However, he placed two conditions on its presentation - "when she reaches marriageable age, Jacqueline must marry a Savoyard lord of identical rank and of Catholic religion.
The French court became a battleground between Protestant and Catholic factions until 30 June 1559, when Henry II of France died of wounds incurred at a joust he had organised in honour of his sister Marguerite's marriage to Emmanuel-Philibert, Duke of Savoy.
In his Histoire de la Bresse et du Bugey, Samuel Guichenon states that the marriage "had great difficulty in succeeding, since -as the countess Jacqueline was extraordinarily rich and powerful in estates - the Duke of Savoy, her natural prince, wished her to marry one of his lords.
Twelve years later, Jacqueline d'Entremont arrived at Henry II's court and took over from her mother as de Buttet's muse on her return from Brussels.
[6] Théodore de Bèze was then a Protestant minister in Geneva, famous for his conviction and eloquence - he converted the countess of Entremont to Protestantism and she went on to abjure Catholicism officially at the Duke of Savoy's high court.
Coligny was unenthusiastic about the match, feeling preoccupied by his campaigning, thinking that the twenty-three-year age-gap between them was too large and self-conscious about the major wound which he had received on 3 October 1569 at the battle of Moncontour against a royal force under the future Henry III (he had been shot in the face by the Rhingrave, though he had managed to fire back at point blank range and defeat him).
Even so, Bèze insisted in a letter to Renée of Ferrara: "Mme d'Entremont is a lady endowed with virtues and God's rarest gifts, and is one of the richest jewels of the land in which she lives".
However, he was unable to prevent Jacqueline's second marriage and contemporary chroniclers report that she "uniquely sensible of Coligny's merit, had resolved (if necessary) to sacrifice the most shining fortune for the sake of having him as her husband".
If I only regarded my contentment, I would be better pleased to come see you than to stay at court for many reasons that I will tell you... Several small peculiarities have occurred that I have omitted to tell you but which I shall tell you in person... And yet I pray that Our Lord will have in his holy guard you, my daughter, my sister.".
This proved to be expulsion from France and in mid-September 1572 twenty-five cavalrymen accompanied them to the château de Saint-André at Briord, where Jacqueline's mother was waiting.
"[10] However, Jacqueline refused to renounce her Protestantism, kept up a correspondence with the Protestants in Basel, received ambassadors from Geneva and on 15 January 1573 commanded the polemicist François Hotman to write a biography glorifying Coligny.
On 22 February 1573 Jacqueline and her Savoyard escort had got as far as col du Mont-Cenis, where they were surprised to learn that the Duke was awaiting them at Nice, to which he had been displaced.
This provoked general outrage and several ambassadors were sent by her mother and by the Calvinists - for example, on 7 October 1574 Henri, Prince of Condé requested that a special case be made for his aunt, stating "If you take pity on my aunt ... and wish to free her from captivity and the prison in which she is so strictly detained and return all her lands and her full liberty, you can be assured of receiving this thanks, that she shall bear herself with such modesty in subjection and obedience as she must, that you shall have no other occasion to complain of her.
Even after much manoeuvring and a journey to Turin and back, Jacqueline still refused to renounce her Protestantism in the forms insisted on by the Duke and the Catholic hierarchy.
She lost a major supporter when Margaret died in Turin on 15 September 1574 and finally renounced Calvinism on 7 April 1575, with the bishop of Nice François de Lambert receiving her back into the Catholic faith.
She took part in all the festivities and intrigues and gave birth to an illegitimate daughter in great secrecy in February 1578 - she was christened Marguerite after Margaret, the late duchess of Savoy.
The Duke died on 30 August 1580 and his son and successor Charles Emmanuel I redressed many issues with the neighbouring nations of France and Geneva.
Intrigues continued at the ducal court in Turin and Jacqueline was strongly suspected of secretly negotiating with Henry IV of France after his conversion to Catholicism and his coronation at Chartres on 27 February 1594.
She had been accused of sorcery and had been treated badly before, having been transported from the cruel prison of the Chateau de Montcallier to a crueler one, the Castle of Ivrea, where it is not lawful for her daughter to see her, write to her or receive news of her, and this only for having helped in my service without committing any felony against the said duke, as you will tell him, begging him, to have her delivered for my sake, and henceforth to live as a good neighbor and friend, as he wrote to me in a letter which the said Lullin presented to me.
Only thirteen years later, in 1601, Charles Emmanuel I was forced to cede Bresse, Bugey le Valromey and the country of Gex once and for all to Henry IV.
