This book focuses on Henry IV of France as he is presented in selected works by Voltaire, Alfred de Vigny, Alexandre Dumas père, and George Sand. The book depicts King Henry from his earliest years until his assassination, and shows how Henry was a dominant figure in life and an overwhelming figure as a memory in the minds of his descendants and his subjects. Special mention is made of the St. Bartholomews Days Massacre, the conquest of the throne, the Edict of Nantes, the religious conversions, and the ladies and multiple offspring of King Henry. This book will be of interest to students of both nineteenth-century French literature and sixteenth-century French history courses, as a text or as a supplement.

Michael G. Paulson is a retired professor of language and history. He received a B.S. from Kutztown University in 1967, an M.A. in French from Florida State University in 1968, an M.A. in history from the University of Central Arkansas in 1983, and a Ph.D. in French and Spanish from Florida State University in 1973. He has taught at South Dakota State University, the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, Muhlenberg College, Kutztown University, and the University of Miami. He is the author of several papers, articles, and books.