Coligny << kaw lee NYEE >>, Gaspard de (1519-1572), was one of the ablest French statesmen during a troubled period of religious wars. He was born on Feb. 16, 1519, in Châtillon-sur-Loing, France. A member of a great noble family, he became a Protestant and assumed a commanding position among the Huguenots (French Protestants). Although he had the title “Admiral of France,” his reputation as a fighting man resulted chiefly from land battles. His influence with King Charles IX aroused the fear of the Duc de Guise and Catherine de Médicis. They caused the massacre of the Huguenots on St. Bartholomew’s Day, August 24, in 1572. Coligny was the first to be killed in the massacre.
