"In this territory that is only fourteen leagues long by eight leagues wide, there are more than four thousand
houses that have been burnt; a large part of the aforementioned land that was once fertile lies uncultivated,
due to a lack of draught animals, which have all been stolen, and also to a lack of labourers, who have slain
and massacred." This description by the inhabitants of Agenais in the late 16th century is striking, and could
describe the situation of many regions of France at that time. Decades of civil wars – which brought destruction,
looting and violence in their wake – combined with poor financial stewardship by the final Valois kings, had brought
the country to its knees. The progressive return of peace allowed Henri IV and his ministers to find a way back
to the economic prosperity of the "beau XVIe siècle" of
François I.
Although Henri IV's political will was very important to this huge task, the action of
Sully
was the determining factor.
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