The information he got was that the Queen had prevented a Coup. And indeed, maybe she had. For many years Geneva had been the nerve center of efforts to spread reform in France and members of the royal family had encouraged this. At the other end, the Guise were stirring up things, and working with the Spaniards. The Crown was sort of in the middle. The daggers were out for people on either side. England avoided much of this because of the centralization of power in the Crown. In France, the Crown was compromised by the youth of the Dauphin when Henry II got himself killed in a tournament. The lack of a strong hand in France was evident. Not until Henry of Navarre was able to establish a royal dictatorship did things get better.