Amboise conspiracy The Amboise conspiracy , also called Tumult of Amboise , was a failed attempt by Huguenots in 1560 to gain power of France by abducting the young king Francis II and arresting Francis , Duke of Guise and his brother , the Cardinal of Lorraine . It was one of the events directly leading up to the Wars of Religion that divided France from 1562 to 1598 . Background . At the death of Henry II in 1559 , the Protestants of France looked forward to a relaxation of stringent policies against their religion , but the young king , Francis II , retained his father ' s policy . Among the king ' s advisors were his wife ' s uncles , Francis , Duke of Guise and Charles of Guise , Cardinal of Lorraine , who through their niece exercised great influence with the King . Plot and preparations . A group of provincial aristocrats decided to take matters into their own hands , by kidnapping the King and arresting the brothers Guise . Chief among the conspirators was Godefroy de Barry , seigneur de La Renaudie , of Périgord . La Renaudie gathered round him like - minded Huguenot gentlemen representing various regions of France : Charles de Castelnau de Chalosse , Bouchard d ' Aubeterre , Edme de Ferrière - Maligny , Captains Mazères , Cañizares , Sainte - Marie and Lignières , Jean d ' Aubigné ( father of Agrippa d ' Aubigné ) and Ardoin de Porcelet . Paulon de Mauvans , whose brother had been executed , rallied the Huguenots of Provence at Mérindol , 12 February 1560 , promised 2 , 000 men and sent 100 to Nantes . Gaspard de Coligny , later also a leading Huguenot , discouraged the nobles of Normandy from involving themselves in the plot . Leading Protestant " bourgeois " of Orléans , Tours and Lyon were apprised of developments . Under the circumstances , increasingly specific rumors of the plot reached the Cardinal of Lorraine well ahead of time . On 12 February a detailed report was received through Pierre des Avenelles , a lawyer of Paris . On the 22nd , the Guises decided to transfer King and court from Blois to the château of Amboise , a more defensible site , and strengthened the castle ' s defenses . The conspirators delayed their plan of action from 1 March to the 16th , but the first of the plotters ' contingents arrived in the village early , and were quietly arrested from 10 March . The tumult . On 17 March 1560 , the conspirators , led by La Renaudie , attempted to storm the Château . Though the court was thrown into panic , the plotters ' forces were easily defeated . La Renaudie , caught on 19 March , was drawn and quartered and his flesh displayed at the gates of the town . In the presence of King and Queen , La Renaudie ' s followers - between 1 , 200 and 1 , 500 - were also killed and their corpses hung on iron hooks on the façade of the Château and from nearby trees ; others were drowned in the Loire or exposed to the fury of the townspeople of Amboise . The early colonist of Brazil , Nicolas Durand de Villegaignon became actively involved against the Protestants , and participated in the repression of the Amboise conspiracy . Aftermath . Louis of Bourbon , Prince of Condé , a prince of the blood was arrested on the suspicion of having been the architect of the plot but was released due to a lack of conclusive evidence . During the events he had preserved a distance from the plot but had stood at the ready at Orléans , " le capitaine muet " , the " silent captain " of the plotters ' correspondence . He was one of the principal leaders of the Wars of Religion . The Edict of Amboise in 1563 ended the first phase of the French Wars of Religion .