the French sent troops, and the last thirteen years of the war—the bloodiest—were essentially a struggle between the Habsburgs and the Bourbons, the two great Catholic dynasties of Europe.48 Historians of this period commonly point out that religious motives are not the only ones at work in fuelling these wars. As J. H. Elliot comments, whether or not these are in fact ‘Wars of Religion’ depends on whether you ask a Calvinist pastor, a peasant, or a prince of this period.