Part III : The Crown of Goodness : Chapter 7 : § 5.11-13

Chapter 7 : The Sixth Star or Splendour of the Crown of Goodness of the MOTHER OF GOD

She is a true model of generosity towards her children

Continuing our translation of the 1845 reprint of Fr François Poiré’s Triple Crown of the Mother of God (1643 French edition).

Notre Dame des Grâces, Cotignac (Poggi, 2020)

§ 5. The Gratitude of the Mother of God towards certain Kings, Queens and other Rulers

Louis XIII

 11   Long live our own dear Louis XIII, the Just, one of the best Kings in history and may his immortal memory surpass in its sweetness the most fragrant perfumes and the most enchanting melodies and harmonies. In him we truly find the courage of David, the wisdom of Solomon, the honesty of Ezechias and the piety of Josias.     

Like David, he received a promise from on high that he was to vanquish proud giants and crush rebellion and treachery beneath his feet. Placing all his trust in God, he overcame his own enemies and those of Heaven; and just as he caused the French name to be held in high esteem, so he lowered himself before the Majesty of the King of Kings, offering to Him the honour of all his victories. Like Solomon, he raised the reputation of his throne through his wisdom and revealed to everyone from his infancy how he was the Anointed and Beloved of the Lord. Like Ezekiel, he always walked in the presence of God, upright and with a pure heart, showing himself faithful and conformable to the divine will in all things to the utmost of his ability. Like Josias, he overturned sacrilegious altars and, at a time when wickedness seemed to be trampling everything under foot, he spread the true Religion and planted the standard of the Cross in many places.   

These are the fruits of the good upbringing he received from our own irreproachable Bethsabee, his dear mother, and from the virtuous Nathan whom the great Henry had given him as a spiritual father, after reaping himself the benefits of his wise advice. Dear to the hearts of both of them was their devotion towards the Queen of Heaven and Louis imbibed this as his mother’s milk. This made such an impression on him that from that moment on he chose her for his spiritual Mother, for his personal Bodyguard, for his chief Counsellor, for Directress of his undertakings, for Commander-in-Chief of his armies and for Sovereign Lady of his Realm. Those who have the honour of knowing him personally will be able to shed more light than others upon the tender feelings of his truly royal heart towards this Princess and the great pains he takes to advance her honour. It will surprise no one to learn that he makes a special gift to her of all that he owns, that every Saturday is for him like a feast day and that her principal solemnities are days which bring great joy to his heart. Putting all this to one side, however, I want to focus now upon his most recent action which came to pass after the whole of Christendom had been offering up their tearful prayers in their hour of need. It brought much rejoicing to men of goodwill but filled the hearts of the wicked with terror.        

 12   It was almost a century since heresy had made its first appearance in France and there was one rebel city so engulfed by its errors that there seemed little possibility of liberating it. At this point, however, God provided the peerless Louis the means of doing this to thanks to the perfidious behaviour of his greatest enemies. 

Everyone felt apprehension when news began to spread that on the 20th of July in 1627 that a fleet of more than six score English warships had appeared off the Île de Ré. The English had been persuaded by insidious promises given by the enemies of God and of the French King that the English Lions would take the place of the Fleur-de-lis in banners to be unfurled over strategic sites in France, proclaiming the triumph of the false Religion of England. It seemed that everything was in their favour : the powerful force they had dispatched, the intelligence they received from foreigners as well as traitorous Frenchmen, the lack of defensive preparation, and above all the fact that the King was bedridden with a serious illness. So many bad omens would have daunted the courage of anyone other than this invincible Monarch whose trust in God always shows itself most keenly when all seems to be lost. 

Whilst all this was going on, he prayed to the MOTHER OF GOD, his usual recourse in time of trouble, praying to Notre-Dame des Ardilliers not only for the recovery of his health but also for success in his affairs of state. He received a swift response to his prayers for on the very day of his dear Mother’s Assumption, he felt himself completely recovered from the second attack of tertian fever which had been troubling him. At the same time, those to whom he had given responsibility for dealing with the English attack showed that everything was now so well organised that it seemed clear that Heaven had taken a hand. From that moment onwards, after offering his thanksgiving, he placed the success of his campaign in the hands of the glorious Virgin and she led this so effectively that only someone incapable of human feeling would fail to be astonished. Anyone reading the daily updates about the defeat of the English would be forced to admit that Heaven was fighting at the Prince’s side and was performing almost as many miracles as events in this defensive action.      

Amongst other things, it may be noted that the first help arrived on the very day when he received communion in the Church of Notre-Dame, (which was on the eve of the day which was critical for the defence of French territory). This was to be the beginning of the happy outcome, news of which would spread throughout the whole of France. On the last journey he made, the army found itself in some difficulty but help came to him just as soon as he asked for it from her who sees his tears just as she hears his words. He later went to receive communion in Notre-Dame des Vertus and all Paris saw him emerge from the Louvre with his rosary in his hands and his heart on fire with devotion. He made this pilgrimage (which is a good league) on foot, with deep feelings of piety and trust in the Queen of Heaven and the Protectress of France. These feelings increased during Holy Communion and many members of the Court shed tears at the sight. It was not long afterwards before the consequences made themselves felt. 

With Heaven fighting alongside the King, his enemies took flight and forced to withdraw in shame, after enriching our troops with their spoils, staining the ocean red with their blood, and covering the island with their dead bodies. His Majesty wished to make known the identity of her (after God himself) through whose help he had won this victory,, and he sent forty-four of the enemy’s flags to Notre-Dame de Paris. These had been taken from them on the feast of St Martin, Patron and Tutelar of France. These were received with so many acts of thanksgiving and marks of public rejoicing that you would think in this one day people were remembering all the victories gained by France over the English in similar encounters. 

 13   The Mother of the God of hosts was to extend her favour still further. Humanly speaking, it was impossible to extirpate the heresy without bringing down the pride of the arrogant Babel which served as its stronghold. Accordingly, the Holy Mother armed the King’s heart with the patience needed for a siege that was to last thirteen months[1].

She supplied ideas for encircling the enemy which will seem incredible to posterity when looking back upon them with the calmness of hindsight. She frustrated any attempts by the enemy to rally their troops and scattered their reinforcements arriving by sea. In the end, she brought to nothing the best laid plans of those determined to disturb our peace. In 1628, on the very day when she is honoured in the Church with all the Blessed in heaven, she led the French into the enemy citadel and vanquished the rebels. They were forced to beg for mercy from him whose just punishment they deserved and to cry out: “Long live the king!” in the same places where they had hundreds of times previously insulted and offended him. This is how France sees her glorious Monarch today, honoured with palms and laurels. The proud and boastful city of La Rochelle, mocking with its towers and bastions the armies of so many great Kings, will henceforth be nothing more than a simple township. The forts which should have stood for centuries have gone and the simple peasant now ploughs his furrow over the site. By good fortune, it fell into the hands of Mary, the Conqueror of cities, and perhaps it will in future find glory in being known by the name of Mary’s town rather than by the baser names that its pride and insolence might have deserved for it.   

 

Our noble Prince had no sooner set foot in the city than, in order to show his gratitude, he ordered the construction of a beautiful church dedicated to the Holy Virgin under the name Notre-Dame de la Victoire. He refused to leave until the first foundations had been laid and he himself had set in place the first stone with his royal hand.  

May it please our warrior Princess to continue protecting the armies of this great Prince so that we may soon see wicked heresy cast out and the French people reunited in the sincere profession of one faith and in faithful obedience to one King.

Footnotes

[1] The siege of La Rochelle (1627-28). 

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The Virgin of Tenderness. >12th century.

SUB tuum præsidium confugimus, Sancta Dei Genitrix. Nostras deprecationes ne despicias in necessitatibus, sed a periculis cunctis libera nos semper, Virgo gloriosa et benedicta. Amen.

Totus tuus ego sum

Et omnia mea tua sunt;

Tecum semper tutus sum:

Ad Jesum per Mariam.

© Peter Bloor