The Pope Who Celebrated a Massacre

A medal for a massacre. A Te Deum for thousands of deaths. A celebration that still shocks centuries later.

On this day in history—11 September 1572—Pope Gregory XIII ordered Rome to give thanks for not one, but two "victories": the Catholic triumph over the Ottomans at Lepanto and the mass slaughter of French Protestants during the St Bartholomew’s Day Massacre.

In this episode:

• The shocking papal reaction to the St Bartholomew’s Day Massacre
• The political and religious tensions behind Gregory’s “thanksgiving”
• Why he linked the massacre with the naval victory at Lepanto
• The commemorative medal and what it tells us about 16th-century propaganda
• Gregory XIII’s surprising legacy—from calendar reform to Jesuit patronage

To some, it was divine justice. To others—then and now—it was unthinkable.

Watch next:
The St Bartholomew’s Day Massacre – https://youtu.be/1DmTMXr0TcQ
The Gregorian Calendar - https://youtu.be/VRz98plSjqk

Like, subscribe, and ring the bell for more daily deep dives into Tudor and early modern history.

#OnThisDay #StBartholomewsDay #Lepanto #GregoryXIII #TudorHistory #Reformation #CounterReformation #ClaireRidgway #GregorianCalendar #HistoryDebate #ReligiousHistory #EarlyModernEurope