1227: The Siege of La Rochelle

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🗓️ 28 October 2025

⏱️ 19 minutes

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Summary

October 28, 1628. After 14 months, French Huguenot rebels open the gates of La Rochelle and surrender to King Louis XIII.

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0:31.0	Thank you. It's September 10th, 1627, on the city walls of La Rochelle, France. A young artillery officer makes his rounds inspecting the battery of cannon under his command.
0:37.2	Around him, gunners load powder and sight down the barrels, inspecting the battery of cannon under his command. Around him, gunners load
0:38.6	powder and sight down the barrels, readying their weapons. An army is camped outside the city
0:43.6	walls, but the citizens of La Rochelle aren't facing foreign invaders. They're going up against
0:48.8	their own king. For the past 60 years, France has been torn apart by religious conflict.
0:55.0	The majority of the country, including King Louis XIII, is Catholic, but many of his subjects have embraced the Protestant Reformation.
1:02.0	These Huguenots, as they're known, have waged a long struggle for religious freedom.
1:07.0	But now, after many years of fighting, the city of La Rochelle is their last holdout,
1:12.5	and the King's army has come to capture it. The artillery officer on the walls has just completed
1:17.9	his inspection when a messenger races up to him. Breathless, the courier delivers the orders from
1:23.4	the Huguenot commander. They are to open fire on the Royal Army. The officer nods.
1:29.1	He takes a glowing taper and holds it to the nearest cannon's touch hole. The first shot is
1:34.3	then followed by a thunderous barrage as cannon after cannon erupts along the wall,
1:39.0	but the young officer doesn't flinch. This is what he's been waiting for. The battle has begun.
1:48.1	The defenders of La Rochelle are determined to resist King Louis XIII, but though their city
1:53.8	is the last Huguenot holdout in France, its defenders are not completely alone. Across the
1:59.7	channel, the Protestant King of England has promised
2:02.3	them support, and they'll need it. For 14 long months, disease and starvation will wear away
	...

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