François de Coligny d ' Andelot François d ' Andelot de Coligny ( 18 April 1521 , Châtillon - sur - Loing - 27 May 1569 , Saintes , Charente - Maritime ) was one of the leaders of French Protestantism during the French Wars of Religion . The son of Gaspard I de Coligny , he was the younger brother of Odet , cardinal de Châtillon and Gaspard de Coligny the admiral . Life . Italian Wars . He first gained military experience in the Italian Wars , and so distinguished himself at the battle of Ceresole ( 1544 ) that Louis de Bourbon , still comte d ' Enghien at that time , knighted him on the battlefield . In 1547 he was made inspector - general of the infantry , and commanded the French troops sent to Scotland to defend the rights of Mary , Queen of Scots ( until 1559 , queen - consort of France ) . When war broke out again in Italy , he returned , marching to Parma and getting trapped in the city when it soon afterwards came under siege . Taken prisoner during a sortie , he was taken to the castle of Milan , where he remained until the treaty of Vaucelles in 1556 . Conversion . In prison , he read books obtained for him from outside and confirmed the doubts about Catholicism which he had already derived from conversations with French Protestants . On his return to France , he replaced his brother Gaspard as Colonel - General of the infantry and , at almost the same moment , war was declared against Spain . In charge of getting a relief column to Gaspard , who was defending Saint - Quentin , he found himself trapped there , but managed to prolong the siege and only surrendered when overwhelmed by the vast enemy numbers penetrating the city through the gaps they had blasted in the walls , when any resistance would have been useless . He succeeded in escaping the Spanish camp and rejoined the French army besieging Calais , where he acted so bravely that , according to Brantôme , Francis , Duke of Guise ( who was no friend of François ' s ) stated that all he needed to conquer a world of places were Andelot , Strozzi and [ Antoine ] d ' Estrées . When Andelot returned to Paris , the Guises , jealous of his favour with king Henry II , blackened his name by reporting certain discourses he had had on religion . The king called Andelot before him and , on receiving confirmation from him that he had made these discourses , flew into a rage , arrested him and had him taken to the castle of Melun , where he remained until his uncle , constable Anne de Montmorency , got him bail . François d ' Andelot was the first of the Châtillon family to take on the Protestant reforms , and one of their most zealous defenders . He founded a Calvinist church in Vitré which , from 1560 , was provided with a resident pastor . It was Coligny d ' Andelot who brought his brothers over to the Protestant side , and they always remained very united despite the lack in Andelot , otherwise a valiant and able captain , of Gaspard ' s prudence and moderation . Wars of Religion . When the first War of Religion broke out , he was among the first to join Louis I de Bourbon , prince de Condé , named leader of the Protestant faction . François ' s position as colonel - général was confiscated and re - allocated to the duc de Randari . Despite suffering from a fever at the time , he fought at the battle of Dreux in 1562 . The following year , he defended Orléans when it was besieged by the troops of Francis , Duke of Guise . The siege was only raised when the Duke was assassinated . Thanks to his efforts , peace was re - established , but he was ill and unable to participate in the siege of Le Havre in 1563 , where Catholics and Protestants joined forces against English troops . Andelot , the Prince de Condé , Gaspard de Coligny and Guyonne XVIII de Laval were considered the instigators of the 1567 " surprise de Meaux " , an unlucky attempt by the Huguenots to arrest king Charles IX and the queen mother , Catherine de Médici . The Protestants took up arms again , and François d ' Andelot directed the siege of Chartres . He then retired into his lands in Brittany and , as he little trusted the queen ' s promises , raised fresh troops . These he led into Anjou , where he remained , ready to restart the war . He crossed the River Loire , penetrated into the Saintonge , captured several towns , and fought at the battle of Jarnac , where he gathered up part of what was left of the Protestant army after its retreat from Saintes . Seized by another violent fever , he died on 27 May 1569 . His fellow Protestants attributed his death to poison , suspicions which may have arisen from the quip of the chancellor de Birague that this war would be ended not by arms but by cooks .