The French Wars of Religion is the term used for a period of civil war from 1562 to 1598 between French Catholics and Protestants, commonly called Huguenots. Estimates suggest between two to four million people died from violence, famine or disease directly arising from the conflict, which also severely damaged the power of the French monarchy. Fighting ended in 1598 when the Protestant Henry of Navarre converted to Catholicism, was proclaimed Henry IV of France and issued the Edict of Nantes, granting the Huguenots substantial rights and freedoms. However, this did not end Catholic hostility towards Protestants in general or him personally, and his assassination in 1610 led to a fresh round of Huguenot rebellions in the 1620s.

Tensions between the religions had been building since the 1530s, exacerbating existing regional divisions. The death of Henry II of France in July 1559 initiated a prolonged struggle for power between his widow Catherine de' Medici and powerful nobles. These included a fervently Catholic faction led by the Guise and Montmorency families and Protestants headed by the House of Condé and Jeanne d'Albret. Both sides received assistance from external powers, Spain and Savoy supporting the Catholics, while England and the Dutch Republic backed the Protestants.

Moderates, also known as Politiques, hoped to maintain order by centralising power and making concessions to Huguenots, rather than the policies of repression pursued by Henry II and his father Francis I. They were initially supported by Catherine de' Medici, whose January 1562 Edict of Saint-Germain was strongly opposed by the Guise faction and led to the outbreak of widespread fighting in March. She later hardened her stance and backed the 1572 St. Bartholomew's Day massacre in Paris, which resulted in Catholic mobs killing between 5,000 and 30,000 Protestants throughout France.

The wars threatened the authority of the monarchy and the last Valois kings, Catherine's three sons Francis II, Charles IX, and Henry III. Their Bourbon successor Henry IV responded by creating a strong central state, a policy continued by his successors and culminating with Louis XIV of France who in 1685 revoked the Edict of Nantes.