Henri Arnaud was born at Die, in Dauphiny, in 1641. He was educated for the
Christian ministry, but, owing to the troubles of the period, betook
himself to a military life for a time. He entered the service of William
Prince of Orange, afterwards King William III. of England, who was regarded
at that time as the hereditary champion of Protestant interests in Europe,
and the determined opponent, as he afterwards proved, of the restless
ambition and persecuting tyranny of Louis XIV. of France. The Prince of
Orange thought highly of the military talents and the personal character of
Henri Arnaud, and promoted him to the rank of captain in his army. He
seems, however, to have reverted to the intention of his early life, about
the year 1684, inasmuch as we find him occupying the important post of
pastor at La Torre during the eventful year 1686, the year of the
revocation of the edict of Nantes. Amadeus II., goaded on by the
threatenings and entreaties of the French king, renewed the persecution of
his faithful Vaudois, by the publication of a severe edict in January, and
by the invasion of their territory in the April following. The Vaudois
defended themselves with such courage and success that, after ten hours'
fighting, the invaders were compelled to retreat as far as the temple at
Germano. The close of the day gave a respite to the enemy, and enabled
them to obtain reinforcements from Pinerolo. In this successful repulse of
the French and Piedmontese troops, and which resulted in the death or
wounding of 500 Frenchmen, Henri Arnaud played a conspicuous part. But when
subsequently the Vaudois were ready to confide in the faithless but
plausible proposals of Gabriel of Savoy, Henri Arnaud refused to trust
himself to the enemies of his country, and as his warnings were disregarded
he escaped to Switzerland. Here he was providentially preserved and
protected for a yet greater opportunity of service to the land and church
of his adoption. The promise of Gabriel of Savoy to the Vaudois, that if
they laid down their arms they should not be injured, either in their own
persons or in those of their wives and children, was shamefully
disregarded; therefore, after terrible sufferings in the summer and autumn,
several thousands quit their much-loved valleys, and cross the Alps in the
worst season of the year rather than abjure the faith of their fathers.
About two thousand six hundred of these exiles reach the hospitable city of
Geneva by the end of February, 1687. Later on some hundreds more were added
to their numbers. Beside Henry Arnaud, there was already at Geneva the
heroic Janavello. Deeply touched as were the exiles with the Christian
sympathy shown to them by friends in Switzerland and Germany, gratefully
impressed as they were with the efforts making for their settlement in
these hospitable countries, yet their thoughts would often revert to their
native valleys. They not only sighed over the remembrance of the pastures
where they had fed their flocks, but they also groaned for the temples of
God which had been broken down. For the voice of truth which was now
silenced in the land of martyrs and confessors, and simultaneously grew up
the hope and the desire of returning to the place which had been for so
long the home of their fathers. When Henri Arnaud found that this project
had the approval of the veteran Janavello, he repaired to Holland, to lay
the design before the Prince of Orange, who warmly entered into the design,
and promised substantial assistance towards its realization. After two
premature attempts and many difficulties, Arnaud, who was residing at this
time with his family at Neufchatel, made his arrangements so well that many
hundreds of the Vaudois succeeded in assembling in the forest of Prangins,
near the little town of Nyon on the shore of the lake Leman.
Between nine and ten o'clock in the evening of the 16th of August, 1689,
Arnaud gave the signal for embarkation by falling on his knees by the side
of the lake, and imploring in a loud voice the almighty and all-gracious
Being, who had been their helper in the past, to prosper their attempt to
regain their native valleys, and re-erect the standard of evangelical truth
on their own beloved fatherland. The patriot band set out in fifteen boats,
and having landed, the first detachment returned for those left behind.
Only three of the boats, however, made the second journey in safety, and so
some were not brought from the Swiss side of the lake. When Arnaud reviewed
his forces he found there were some 900 men who had safely crossed the
lake. A small band indeed for so great an enterprise; a very inadequate
force to contend with thousands of disciplined troops, and to overcome the
obstacles which would be raised by hostile populations through whose
territories they must pass; to encounter the fatigue of forced marches over
craggy precipices, along deep and dangerous defiles--in addition, to do all
this with but slender equipments of food and other necessaries. Still, no
one draws back. They have counted the cost. They deem the prize at which
they aim worthy of the risk they run. They are sustained by the
recollections of past deliverance. "Our fathers trusted in Thee, and Thou
didst deliver them; they cried unto Thee, and were delivered; they trusted
in Thee, and were not confounded," was the sentiment which sped them onward
in their arduous march. Nor did Arnaud neglect any suitable means of an
ordinary kind for ensuring success. He divided his 900 men into twenty
companies, organized with reference to their native communes; _e.g._,
Angrogna had three companies, with their captains; San Giovanni two, &c.
They were arranged to march in regular military order, having a vanguard,
centre, and rear, observing the strictest discipline. Beside Arnaud, there
were two other pastors with the little army, Chyon of Pont a Royans, in
Dauphiny, and Montoux of the Val Pragela. The first, however, was soon lost
to the expedition; for, having incautiously entered the first village they
reached in order to obtain a guide, he was taken prisoner, and detained at
Chambery until the peace. As soon as the army was ready to march, the
patriot band again sought the blessing of the God of their fathers. They
then set out in a southerly direction, passing through the little town of
Yvoire, and compelled Savoyard gentlemen and priests to accompany them as
hostages and guides. The alarm felt at first by the people through whose
villages they passed subsided when their orderly conduct became known, so
that after a time the peasants, with their ministers, were seen approaching
and watching the troops as they filed off, and even crying after them, "May
God be with you!" In some cases refreshments were also supplied, and
remuneration refused. However, a different experience awaited them as they
set out by a mountain path for Boege, a little town on the river Menoge, in
the province of Faucigny. Here the gentry made a great show of resistance,
and although they made them prisoners, together with 200 armed peasants
under the command of a quartermaster, yet the circumstance convinced Arnaud
that he must take precautions, otherwise the expedition would be greatly
hindered. Therefore one of the gentry of Boege was instructed to write a
letter informing the people of the next town that they were not to be
alarmed at the approach of the Vaudois, but to give them a free passage,
and supply them with provisions, for which they always paid. So they passed
on without very remarkable events, except privations and exposure to wet
and cold day by day, until, crossing the Arve, they reached Sallenches, at
the foot of the mighty monarch of European mountains, Mont Blanc. The sight
of the mountain seems to have severely tested the resolution of some of
Arnaud's followers, and it required all his skill and energy to inspire
them with courage to make the passage through the defile of the Bonhomme.
Indeed, the descent of the column was more hazardous than the ascent. To
accomplish this in many cases they were compelled to assume a sitting
posture, and slide down the face of the rocks. On the evening of the
fourth day the patriots reached the town of Sey, on the Isere, and met with
a good supply of provisions. On the evening of the fifth day Arnaud and his
colleague, Montoux, for the first time since they had started, lodged,
supped, and rested for three hours in peace. The next day they ascended
Mont Iseran, and resting at Maurienne in the evening, they ascended the
Mont Cenis the day after, and seized all the post-horses, to prevent the
news of their arrival being so easily communicated. From this point they
branched off in the direction of the little Mont Cenis, as being a less
frequented road, and spent the night very uncomfortably in the woods.
On the eighth day they left the valley of Jaillon, and would have proceeded
by way of Susa, crossing the Dora Riparia, but having unsuccessfully
attempted to dislodge a body of troops and peasants who commanded a portion
of that road, Arnaud decided on regaining the heights. This they did, but
not without much suffering and a loss of forty men, including two captains
and two surgeons. After this the Vaudois proceeded through the pass of
Touille, to the west, coming out by Oulx, still in the valley of the Dora,
but several leagues distant from Susa, and in the line now traversed by the
masterpiece of modern engineering, viz., the Mont Cenis Tunnel. Arnaud's
design was to cross the river by the bridge of Salabertrand, between Oulx
and Exilles, but learning from a peasant, of whom they had asked for food,
that an excellent supper was preparing for them, they understood it was
dangerous to remain. After taking refreshment, therefore, Arnaud renewed
the march, and discovered some thirty-six camp fires, and shortly after
the vanguard encountered the enemy's outposts.
As was the invariable custom, an interval of prayer preceded their further
advance, made under cover of the night. Approaching the bridge, they are
asked, "Who's there?" and answer, "Friends;" to which the enemy reply,
"Kill! kill!" emphasized by a tremendous fire for a quarter of an hour.
Arnaud, however, saved his men by commanding them to lie on the ground at
the first shot. Still they were in great danger, for a portion of the enemy
had got to the rear of the Vaudois, and so they were exposed from both
sides. Realizing their desperate position, a cry was raised--"Courage! the
bridge is won!" At those words Arnaud's men rushed headlong, sword in hand,
and with bayonets fixed forced the entrenchments of the enemy. Thus, by the
favour of God, 800 men, unaccustomed to war, and exhausted by fatigue, won
a victory over a body numbering some 2,500 troops, exclusive of those who
had attacked them in the rear, and the peasants who assisted in the fray.
The defeated lost six hundred of their men, besides twelve captains and
other officers; the victors, only fifteen killed and twelve wounded. Their
hostages, however, took advantage of the battle and escaped, with the
exception of six of the oldest. Apart from the successful repulse of the
troops intended to obstruct their journey, this splendid victory at the
bridge of Salabertrand gave to the conquerors military stores and other
booty. Arnaud's men would have been glad to have rested, but prudence bid
them not to linger. So, having destroyed so much of the spoil as they were
unable to appropriate, they set forward. The explosion of the enemy's
powder, set on fire by the Vaudois, mingled with their own shouts of
triumph and the notes of their trumpets, as with exulting hearts they
renewed their march, exclaiming, "Thanks be to the Lord of hosts, who hath
given us the victory over all our enemies." However great as was their joy,
so great had been their labours that twenty-four of their number were so
overpowered by fatigue that they fell asleep on their moonlight march
through the valley of the Dora, and were captured by the enemy, so that
these twenty-four added to the forty previously lost in the passage of the
Jaillon, diminished the full measure of their satisfaction. Still they
press forward, and as the light of another day dawns upon them (the ninth
of their journey and the Lord's Day) they had climbed the summit of Mont
Sci, and from it looked with beating hearts upon the peaks of their own
loved mountains. Indeed it was only the valley of Pragela (a district
closely associated with their own in faith and worship until his so-called
Christian majesty banished the profession of the gospel from its
boundaries) that interposed between them and the object of their march. On
this Pisgah top Arnaud gathers his men around him, and beneath the roof of
heaven and amidst the walls of surrounding mountain slopes, glistening with
the brightness of the rising sun, pours out the psalm of glad thanksgiving,
and offers the prayer of the contrite heart.
On Tuesday, August 27th, 1689, the brave Vaudois, who had crossed the lake
of Geneva only eleven days before, now set foot in the first village of
their own territory, viz., Balsille, at the north-west extremity of the
valley of San Martino. This was indeed a solemn moment, recalling the
successful labours of the past and suggesting the difficulties and
anxieties of the future. Arnaud would doubtless examine minutely into the
condition and number of his men, and as he did so painfully consider the
losses he had sustained, reducing the patriot band to about seven hundred
men. This review is necessary in order to explain the otherwise sanguinary
character of the determination to refuse all quarter to the troops which
attacked them in their endeavours to regain possession of their native
valleys. Hence the Vaudois put to death the guard on the Alps of the Pis,
and at Balsille; this was the greatest number they did so treat. From
Balsille Arnaud led his men into the valley of Prali, and subdivided his
army into two divisions. On reaching the hamlet of Guigot, they rejoiced to
find their temple still standing, and purging it of the superstitious
ornaments introduced by the Papists, these seven hundred patriot warriors
laid down their arms and sang the 74th Psalm--
"Hast Thou cast us off for ever?
Will Thine anger no more cease?
Shall Thy people never, never
Dwell again, O Lord, in peace?
Oh, behold the desolation!
See Thy holy place defiled!
Scattered is Thy congregation,
And Thy sanctuary spoiled.
"Rise, O Lord, in might victorious,
Rise and give Thy people aid;
Come, O come in triumph glorious,
Overwhelm Thy foes dismayed.
Circled with a thousand wonders,
Girt with all Thy power and strength,
Mid ten thousand thousand thunders
Save, redeem Thy own, at length!"
They also sung the 129th Psalm, and then Arnaud, taking his text from some
verses of the latter psalm, spoke to them, and exhorted them to endure
hardness as good soldiers of Jesus Christ. The memories of the place as the
scene of the martyrdom of the pastor Leydet, who was barbarously put to
death near this spot by Papists who overheard him singing psalms, would
tend to deepen their emotion and fill their souls with firmer resolves to
dare and die for faith and fatherland.
Their courage soon found employment in dislodging a body of 200 troops who
were entrenched at the ports of San Guliano. These men contemptuously dared
them to the fight, shouting, "Come on, varlets of the devil, we occupy all
the passes, and there are three thousand of us!" The Vaudois accepted the
challenge, and at a single charge drove them from their trenches and
captured all their stores, a very valuable acquisition to the conquerors.
Moreover they slew thirty-one of the fugitives, and lost but one of their
own number. Following up their successes, they besieged Bobbio, and drove
away those who had dispersed its rightful and former occupants. After this
they hold a solemn conclave for devotional and deliberative purposes. M.
Montoux, Arnaud's colleague in the pastoral office, addressed them, and
then Arnaud himself read the following oath, which was solemnly agreed to,
viz., "God, by His divine grace, having happily reconducted us to the
inheritance of our fathers, there to establish the pure service of our
holy religion, ... we, pastors, captains, and other officers, swear and
promise before the face of the living God, ... neither to separate nor
disunite while God grants us life, even should we have the misfortune to be
reduced to three or four.... And to the intent that union, which is the
soul of our affairs, should remain inviolable among us, the officers shall
swear fidelity to the soldiers, and the soldiers to the officers, promising
together to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ to deliver, if possible, our
brethren from the cruel woman of Babylon, and with them to re-establish and
maintain his kingdom till death, and observe all our lives with good faith
this present ordinance." As I stood upon this consecrated platform
(Sibaud), April 11th, 1871, I not only felt richly rewarded for the steep
climb, from which the good pastor of Bobbio sought to dissuade me, but I
gained an enlarged view of the wonderful power of the gospel of Christ in
ennobling and constraining the souls of these valley men to such deeds of
daring and suffering. If, as I firmly believe, the gospel teaches that
willingness to do and suffer for Christ is the evidence of our belonging to
Him, how luminous and abundant are the title-deeds of the Vaudois to be
reckoned "not least among the churches of God." May the spirit of the oath
still survive, and the day come when every one of those who inhabit the
locality shall be as true to the gospel of the grace of God as Arnaud and
his brave troops!
After this solemn convocation, and sundry additions to their military
organization, an attempt was made by Arnaud to rescue Villaro from the
Papists as Bobbio was rescued. At the first the enemy fled, some across the
Pelice, and others to the convent. While the Vaudois were closely pressing
them in this last-named retreat, their own position was turned by the
arrival of a large body of troops. These troops, 12,000 in number, drove
back the Vaudois to Bobbio, and threatened to exterminate them all. Eighty
made good their escape over the Vandalin by scattering themselves in all
directions, and afterwards rejoining the main body. Montoux, the assistant
pastor, being thus separated from his friends, was captured by the enemy,
and detained a prisoner at Turin until the peace. Arnaud three times gave
himself up for lost. Three times, with six of his men, he betook himself to
prayer; and three times the Lord sent him deliverance. At last he escaped
to the same mountain ridge where the eighty previously dispersed awaited
his arrival.
The check received at Villaro led Arnaud to retire from the inhabited parts
of the valley of Lucerna to the mountain heights, from which they could
attack detachments of troops at favourable intervals, and to which they
could betake themselves for safety in spots difficult of access, and easily
defended by a small number against large bodies of troops. These mountain
recesses, indeed, play an important part in the history of the Vaudois
generally, as well as in the exploits of Janavello and Arnaud in
particular. One of our sweetest English poets has beautifully apostrophized
the feelings of the brave valley men in the following exquisite lines:--
"For the strength of the hills we bless Thee,
Our God, our fathers' God!
Thou hast made Thy children mighty
By the touch of the mountain sod,
Thou hast fixed our ark of refuge
Where the spoiler's foot ne'er trod;
For the strength of the hills we bless Thee,
Our God, our fathers' God.
"The banner of the chieftain
Far, far below us waves,
The war-horse of the spearman
Cannot reach our lofty caves.
Thy dark clouds wrap the threshold
Of freedom's last abode;
For the strength of the hills we thank Thee,
Our God, our fathers' God.
"For the shadow of Thy presence,
Round our camp of rock outspread;
For the stern defiles of battle,
Bearing record of our dead;
For the snows and for the torrents,
For the free heart's burial sod;
For the strength of the hills we bless Thee,
Our God, our fathers' God."
It was chiefly on the heights above Sibaud, the slopes of the Vandalin, La
Vachera, and Mont Cervin, that they carried on their predatory and
guerrilla warfare. At one time they attacked 600 men, killed one hundred,
and lost only four. But they suffered almost incredible privations. Their
food oftentimes consisting of only wild fruits, raw cabbages, and other
vegetables uncooked. Occasionally they met with better fare; _e.g._, being
at Prali for two days they cut down all the corn in the neighbourhood, and
ground it at the mills in the place. Nor did they forget their duties as
Christians in the midst of all these hardships. Arnaud administered the
holy communion to the troops who were with him, as well as to those in
retreat above Bobbio. The retreat of the Piedmontese troops under the
command of the Marquis de Parelle, enabled the Vaudois to keep in
possession of the valley of San Martino, and to lay up a stock of corn,
grapes, chestnuts, apples, and walnuts. The flying camp also were able to
capture some convoys of provision, so that they could look forward to the
winter (this was now Sept. 16th) without much fear as to supplies. The
Vaudois were now in three divisions; the larger part in the valley of San
Martino, another body next in number who were scouring the valley of
Angrogna, and the third and smaller division at Serre de Cruel over Bobbio.
This last detachment destroyed the convent of Villaro lest it should be
turned into a fortress. They pulled down the popish church at Rora, reduced
the village to ashes, and brought away much spoil. However, as soon as the
Piedmontese soldiers were able to cover the mountains with troops they
retaliated by setting on fire the Vaudois asylum at Serre de Cruel. The
Vaudois resisted, and did much execution; but at last, terrified by the
numbers of their adversaries, they forsook their new fortifications at
Pausettes and Aiguille, leaving behind them all their winter stores. They
were pursued from rock to rock, obliged to hide in the most loathsome
caverns, and to subsist almost without food, which was procured only at the
peril of their lives. Nothing but a special Providence kept them from
entire destruction, and enabled them to rejoin the main body of their
friends in the valley of San Martino. The French troops engaged in thus
hunting the Vaudois in the month of October were commanded by M. de
l'Ombraille, and, with the Piedmontese under Parelle, covered all the
villages and passes excepting a few small hamlets and byways. Hence the
position of the patriots was one of great danger. Some deserted, and
perished miserably by the enemy. A council was held at Rodoret. Divisions
of opinion arose, and ruin seemed at hand. At this critical moment Arnaud
summoned them to prayer. After this he exhorted his companions to sacrifice
their own views for the common good, and advised a retreat upon Balsille.
This they happily consented to, and the same night they were on their way
to the spot. The dangers of the road may be supposed from the circumstance
that much of it had to be passed on their hands and knees, and from the
fact that when the Vaudois afterwards saw the places by daylight they were
filled with horror.
We shall not be able to realize the good Providence which befriended them
at this time unless we consider for a moment the exact position of their
new retreat. The chief group of houses in the village of Balsille is close
to a torrent at the foot of the mountains in the extreme north-west of the
Val Martino. A stone bridge, close to which is a mill, unites the two parts
of the village lying eastward, at the foot of the steep rocks of
Guignivert, which rises towards the west, and is thickly wooded at its
base.[E]
From this natural wall a rock projects against the river and over the
dwellings, forming quite a natural fortress. It was supplied with water by
three fountains. On this rock, then, the Vaudois determined to await the
enemy, instead of fleeing from mountain to mountain as they had previously
done. To this end they excavated, threw up entrenchments, made covered
ways, and executed a series of defences in harmony with what might have
been the suggestions of a skilful military engineer. They had three lines
of defence within the fortifications on the lower rock, and then, on an
eminence yet higher, they constructed a little fort, with triple
entrenchment, and lastly, overlooking all, they posted a watch to give
notice of the least movement of the enemy. In addition to this they
repaired the mill at the foot of their fortifications. During this Arnaud
preached twice a week and conducted daily prayer. The Vaudois had only been
a few days at their work, when the French battalions, unable to meet with
them at Rodoret, followed them down the valley, having already surprised
their outposts at Passet, though without inflicting loss. On the 29th of
October the enemy surrounded them with troops from Friday to Sunday. They
also tried to force the bridge, but were compelled to retreat, leaving
sixty men killed and as many wounded, while the Vaudois had not lost a man.
In the month of November the French captured one of Arnaud's men, who had
gone to nurse a sick friend, and in spite of the entreaties of the judge
at Perouse, a Roman Catholic, the commandant, De l'Ombraille, insisted on
his execution. They made no further assault upon the castle, but having
burnt all the houses, farm buildings, corn stacks, &c., they retired,
telling the Vaudois "to have patience, and they would return after Easter."
They were now comparatively free in their movements, and felt intensely
thankful to that gracious Father who had preserved them through so many
dangers, and given them, to retain possession of, the land they had come to
reclaim. They were about 400 strong, exclusive of that division which had
fixed itself on the mountains of Angrogna, and the two little bands which
still found a refuge in the wilds of the glen Guichard, or among the rocks
overhanging Bobbio.
The question of food made them anxious. But that God who had so wonderfully
provided for them in the past, had made as remarkable provision for this
necessity. A fall of snow had covered the corn which had ripened in
September, but was left standing in the fields by this circumstance. Thus
hidden from the enemy, a sudden thaw revealed the treasure thus mercifully
laid up for these patriot warriors. In addition to the corn, strong
detachments made requisitions on the valleys of Pragela and Queyras, and so
obtained supplies of butter, salt, wine, and other provisions. A sad
incident of the winter arose from the condition of one of those little
parties, whom the chances of war or some imprudence separated from the main
body. A band of twelve, concealed in a cave behind L'Essart, near Bobbio,
were obliged by hunger to come out for provisions. On returning, they
thought they had been tracked in the snow, and so decided to betake
themselves to a new place of refuge in La Biava. Scarcely had they set out,
however, than they discovered 125 peasants in pursuit of them. They threw
down their baggage, and having reached a commanding height, poured down
such an effective volley that their assailants sought a truce, and
acknowledged twelve dead and thirteen wounded, though not one of the
Vaudois was the least hurt. Their victory did not, however, relieve them
for long. Although their refuge was secure, the extreme cold made it
untenable, and they were compelled to seek a milder climate. Saddened by
suffering, and resolved to protect themselves, they met on their way an
armed band. Assuming that they were enemies, they fired and killed one of
the party, when, to their great grief, blended with unutterable joy, they
discovered that they were brethren. With tears in their eyes they embraced
each other, and found the safety and succour they had almost despaired of
in the castle at Balsille.
During the winter months messages were sent to induce the Vaudois to
withdraw from their native land. To this Arnaud sent suitable replies, and
also strengthened the fortifications in the only part which had been left
open by the river side.
On the 1st of May, 12,000 Piedmontese troops and 10,000 French, making a
total of 22,000 troops, under the command of Catinat, surrounded Arnaud's
retreat. A body of horse soldiers concealed themselves in the neighbouring
woods, but were received with so effective a discharge of shot as to
inflict great loss. The main body of the assailants drew up to the foot of
the rock, but had to make a rapid retreat, with severe loss both in dead
and wounded. After this an engineer, having surveyed the approaches to the
castle through a glass, ordered a picked corps of 500 men to advance in
that direction, supported by some 700 peasants of Pragela and Queyras, for
the purpose of destroying the fence of trees and palisades constructed by
Arnaud. Their attack was covered by the fire of 700 men, drawn up in line
of battle. But all was in vain; the fortifications were impregnable, and
the Vaudois, taking advantage of their confusion, poured down upon them
with such vigour that only ten or twelve men escaped. The commander and two
sergeants who remained by his side were taken prisoners, but not a single
Vaudois was injured. The enemy retreated in great confusion, and Arnaud,
assembling his men for thanksgiving and prayer, spoke so powerfully that
both pastor and people, officers and men, were affected to tears. On
searching the bodies of the slain, a number of popish charms were found,
vainly used as preservatives against the attacks of men who were supposed
to be in league with the evil one.
Catinat, like the Marquis de Larcy, in the affair of the bridge at
Salabertrand, was so mortified at his want of success, that he declined to
head another assault against the Vaudois, therefore he entrusts the command
to the Marquis de Fequieres. This new attack, on the 10th of May, deprived
Arnaud and his men of the privilege of the Holy Communion, which they had
desired to partake of on Whit Monday. The day following that on which the
enemy's vanguard was observed, de Fequieres formed his men into five
divisions, and completely invested the Vaudois stronghold. Finding the
discharge of musketry useless, he planted a cannon, loaded with balls
weighing eight pounds, on the Mont Guignivert, exactly opposite to La
Balsille. He then hoisted a white flag, and afterwards a red, signifying
that unless the besieged asked for peace that no quarter would be granted.
They had previously refused to surrender, on the ground "that they looked
to the aid of God to protect them in the heritage of their fathers, but
that if it were otherwise, they would not yield while life lasted."
The day following a breach was made, and an assault directed to three
different points. The attacking columns were covered by a furious
cannonade, and yet, wonderful to relate, none of the defenders were struck.
However, the lower entrenchments had to be abandoned, and M. de Parat, the
French prisoner, put to death, he acknowledging the necessity of the
sentence. Indeed, a crisis had come. Balsille could not be defended much
longer. The watch on the summit had been driven away by the enemy
commanding the opposite rocks. Happily the darkness was coming on, and by
its aid one means of safety was looked for, viz., flight. But when the
Vaudois looked out upon the glare of the enemy's camp fires their hearts
almost sank within them. And the French, on their part, were joyfully
anticipating their speedy destruction. But He who had so often fought for
Israel only permitted them to be reduced to such straits that they might
learn afresh how completely He was on their side. The camp fires, having by
their light revealed a possibility of escape through a frightful ravine,
were extinguished, so far as service to the enemy was concerned, _by means
of a thick fog_! So under cover of this shield of the Almighty the devoted
band, led by Captain Poulat, a native of Balsille, let themselves down by
an opening in the rocks. The journey was one of great difficulty. Branches
of trees and projecting ledges of rocks were used to assist the descent,
which was chiefly made in a sitting or sliding posture. Nor could the
fugitives altogether escape the neighbourhood of the French patrols, so
closely were they posted to the castle. One of the Vaudois, using his hands
to save himself from falling, let drop a kettle he was carrying, which by
its rolling down excited the notice of the sentinel, who at once gave the
challenge, "Who goes there?" But as the kettle made no reply, the men
passed on, Arnaud humorously relates. After descending the precipitous
sides of Mont Guignivert, the Vaudois directed their steps southward
towards Salse. It was now two hours after the break of day, and they were
cutting steps for themselves in the snow. A portion of the enemy's watch
discovered that they had escaped, and gave the alarm. Very quickly the
enemy pursued them in their journey, first of all for rest at Salse, then
on to Rodoret. Finding this, the Vaudois betook themselves to the summit of
Galmon, where they halted, and Arnaud reviewed his men. The sick and
wounded were sent to a declivity to be tended by the surgeon of M. Parat,
under a strong guard. The main body passed the night in the wood of
Serrelemi. A fog fortunately rising, enabled them to advance to a hamlet
called La Majere, where a shower of rain gave them a much-needed supply of
water. On the 17th of May, 1690 they had a sharp skirmish in the village
and churchyard of Pramol. They killed fifty-seven, and captured the
commandant, from whom Arnaud learnt that in three days Victor Amadeus would
have to decide as to the question of continuing his alliance with France,
or of uniting with England and other European states against Louis XIV.
Arnaud, who by his former intimacy with the Prince of Orange, now William
III. of England, was well acquainted with European politics, at once saw
how important was this news, and awaited the result with corresponding
anxiety.
The day after (Sunday), whilst Arnaud and his men were on the heights of
Angrogna, two messengers, sent by General Palavicini, announced the
decision of Victor Amadeus, and offered terms of peace in his name. The
sudden pleasure of such a communication, after nine months of hardship,
toil, and fighting, might have been too much for these poor persecuted
ones, had it not been tempered with doubts as to its truthfulness. But
gradually events confirmed their hopes, and scattered their fears.
Provisions were sent to Arnaud's men. The ministers, Montoux and Bastie,
with others who had been confined at Turin, now hastened to meet their
brethren. Everywhere they seemed treated with confidence; and, in
conjunction with the Duke's troops, they made several successful attacks
upon the French.
One of Arnaud's men having captured a courier carrying despatches for the
King of France, Palavicini, commander-in-chief of the troops of Piedmont,
was ordered to bring Arnaud with him into the presence of Amadeus. The
latter received the Vaudois deputation most graciously, and expressed his
desire that they should be henceforth friends, assuring them "that if they
hazarded their lives in his service, he also would hazard his for them."
In proof of this cordial reconciliation, Amadeus conferred the rank of
colonel on the brave Arnaud, the chieftain of the Vaudois. He also granted
permission for the families of the banished ones to return to their
valleys, and decreed the restoration of their ancient possessions. Early in
July Arnaud hastened to Milan to meet the refugees from Switzerland and
Germany, who with wives and children set out for their native valleys,
aided even by the kind help of those who, like the Elector of Brandenburg,
had given them shelter at some expense in his dominions, but who now made
fresh sacrifices to gratify the longing of their hearts.
Victor Amadeus was faithful to his promise, and not only allowed the exiles
to return to home and faith, but he also consented that some who under the
severity of trial had abjured their faith should be allowed the privilege
of returning to their first and purer creed. In return for this kindness,
as well as in strict conformity with their own patriotic and pious
principles, the Vaudois greatly assisted the Duke of Savoy in his war with
France, is the testimony of Botta in his _Storia d'Italia_. The Count of
Saluzzo also testifies "that they hastened to join the Marquis de Perelle,
_who had not long before attacked them_, and that their skirmishes cost the
enemy, whom they drove from Lucerna, more than a thousand men." Beauregard,
in his "_Historical Memories of the House of Savoy_," says, that "_the
barbets_, by their bravery, made themselves formidable to the French;" and
with regard to the siege of Coni, mentions with special praise the services
of a troop of "eight hundred Vaudois, under the command of a chief
celebrated among them." This chief, no doubt, was Arnaud; but whilst he was
anxious that they should render to their prince every possible help in a
military point of view, the latter sought to carry out his intention of
restoring the Vaudois to their property; but there were great difficulties
in the way.
By the edict of May 23rd, 1694, the ancient rights of the Vaudois are
acknowledged, and the persecuting decrees of January and April, 1686,
revoked. The pope, Innocent XII., tried to invalidate the decree, but the
Senate of Turin confirmed the edict of their sovereign, and prohibited the
bull of the pope.
So, all the prospect seemed fair, and the Vaudois, so long and cruelly
persecuted, might hope for an era of prosperity; for the time and means not
only to cultivate their desolated vineyards, to lead their flocks again to
pasture on their mountain slopes, and rebuild their thatched homesteads,
but also to restore the pure worship of their own and their fathers' God.
But, alas! "put not your trust in princes" was a sentiment which might have
been graven deeply on the memory of the all-confiding, all-enduring
Vaudois.
Victor Amadeus was persuaded by the crafty Louis XIV. to forsake his allies
in the war against France, and become again a vassal of the proud and
perfidious French king. And therefore, while he remains true to the
engagement to protect the ancient inhabitants of the valleys against their
inveterate persecutor, he makes a secret treaty (1696) by which, firstly,
intercourse between the professors of the reformed faith in France and
Savoy is prohibited; secondly, French soldiers enlisted in the Vaudois army
are no longer allowed to remain in the service of the duke; thirdly,
refugees from France were to be expelled the valleys.
This crafty device of the mean and cowardly French king resulted in the
banishment of seven of the most valuable Vaudois pastors, viz., Montoux,
the companion of Arnaud, five of their colleagues, natives of Pragela or
Dauphine, and _Arnaud himself_! It was indeed with a heavy heart that the
brave and trusted leader, the tried and sagacious counsellor, the devoted
and accomplished pastor of the Vaudois, left for ever those churches in
whose service he had wrought such exploits, and on whose behalf he had
dared death in a thousand shapes and suffered almost incredible privations.
His only consolation, and without it, hero as he was, Arnaud might have
died from grief, lay in the mighty fact, that he had been privileged to
accomplish a work inferior to none in the annals of history. With a motive
infinitely higher than that of Zenophon, his exploits as a soldier are
equal in skill, endurance, and bravery to his; while, as regards results,
the contrast is still more favourable to Henri Arnaud's work.
The Greeks, it is true, were brought back to their country, but remained
mercenaries to the last, while the Vaudois both regained their homes, and
succeeded in replanting the standard of their faith so firmly under the
favour of Almighty God that never since has it been in such danger of
extinction as Arnaud delivered it from.
"Since then 'abide the chosen race
Within their ancient dwelling place,'
Since then 'upon each Alpine height
Truth sits enthroned in Rome's despite.'"
Some 3,000 French Protestants withdrew with Henri Arnaud from the valleys.
Their first resting-place was Geneva, which twelve years before had so
charitably welcomed the persecuted Vaudois. Arnaud reached Geneva August
30th, 1698, and speedily sought a place of habitation for his brethren. The
Duke of Wurtemberg provided a home for these victims of the cruelty of
Louis XIV. in a place to the west and north of Stuttgardt. On this occasion
the exiles had no hope of returning, and they settled down in their new
abode and called their rising settlements by the names of their former
villages in the valleys of Perosa and Pragela. The Duke of Wurtemberg
treated these people with every kindness. As regards church matters and
education they carried out their own home arrangements, assisted by funds
from England. In a colony, Schoenberg, near Duerrmenz, Arnaud passed the
remainder of his life. He declined the pressing offer of our King William
III. to take the command of a regiment in the English army. Having led the
Vaudois once back to their native soil, and established them in their
earthly Goshen, his only desire now was to lead the flock entrusted to his
care amid the green pastures of the gospel upward to the heavenly Canaan.
He died on the 8th of September, 1721, having reached the goodly age of
four score years. He was twice married, and left behind him three sons and
two daughters.
Within the humble precincts of a temple built with walls of clay, and a
bell, whose sound was never heard beyond the cherry-trees of the village,
gratitude and respect have assigned a place of honour to the mortal remains
of this truly great man. The ashes of Henri Arnaud lie beneath the
communion table. An engraving suspended below the pulpit gives the features
of the hero of San Germano of Salabertrand and the Balsille.
While on his tombstone is the following Latin inscription:--
"Beneath this Tomb lies
HENRI ARNAUD,
PASTOR AND ALSO MILITARY COMMANDER OF THE
PIEDMONTESE VAUDOIS."
In the centre of the monument--
"Thou seest here the ashes of Arnaud, but his achievements,
labours, and undaunted courage none can depict. The son of
Jesse combats alone thousands of foreigners; alone he terrifies
their camp and leader. He died September 8th, 1721, aged lxxx."
FOOTNOTES:
[E] A modern traveller thus graphically describes the place as he saw it in
1854:--"And now came in view the glorious Balsille, springing from the bed
of the Germanasca, and its successive wooded aiguilles rising like
pinnacles up the steep roof of a Gothic cathedral.... Around it gape
fearful ravines, each with its headlong torrent, separating it from the
grand heights of the d'Albergian on the north, and the mount Guignivert on
the south; whilst it is attached to the summit of the Col du Pis on the
west. The peaks of Balsille are fringed with pines, but the rocks
themselves are so pointed and broken that they resemble tops of pines on a
Titan scale. There are four principal peaks, and so the mountain has been
named Quatre Dents." The term chateau, or castle, used in this narrative
was applied to a kind of grassy platform at the top.