Why were so many Huguenot nobles in Paris in August 1572?

In August 1572, a large number of Huguenot nobles were in Paris to attend the wedding of Margaret of France to the Huguenot leader Henry of Navarre.1

This marriage was intended by Catherine de’ Medici to serve as a diplomatic gesture to seal the peace between Roman Catholics and Protestants following years of religious civil war. Because the wedding was a major state event, it drew the leaders of all parties to the capital.123

Tragically, this gathering of Huguenot leadership in Paris provided the setting for the Massacre of St. Bartholomew’s Day. After an unsuccessful assassination attempt on the Huguenot leader Gaspard II de Coligny, Catherine and other court members feared a Huguenot uprising. Consequently, they plotted to eliminate the Huguenot leaders who remained in the city for the wedding festivities.14