The Last Love of Henry IV

Georges Vautier was a 19th-century French writer, a contemporary of Alexandre Dumas, about whose life little is known. His historical novel, The Last Love of Henry IV, is dedicated to one of the most colorful monarchs in French history-Henri of Navarre, better known as Henry IV. This monarch is remembered by the people as le bon roi Henri-"Good King Henry," who strove for peace and prosperity for his subjects. His image is celebrated in songs and legends, and his policies marked a transition to a more tolerant and pragmatic government.
However, Vautier's novel portrays Henry not only as a wise ruler but also as a passionate man, whose personal life was as turbulent as his public life. Historians mention more than fifty love affairs, but the most fateful was his final passion-for the young Charlotte de Montmorency, who had barely reached the age of fifteen. This forbidden love became intertwined with court intrigue, danger, and tragedy, characteristic of an era when power and personal passion constantly clashed.
"The Last Love of Henry IV" is not only a narrative of the king's final passion, but also a vivid portrait of the late 16th and early 17th centuries, when the greatness of the empire coexisted with the secret weaknesses of its monarchs.