[circlecity]

"You are also about a century early with the major massacre"

No, I got the exact year correct for the massacre of the Waldensians by the Catholic Church at Merindol (1545). The ground for this was laid in 1526 at the Synod of Laus where the Waldensians agreed to investigate the protestant movement. In 1532, after meeting with Swiss reformer William Farel the Waldensians adapted the beliefs of the Reformation Church. This prompted the bloody massacre by the Catholic Church.

[muawiyah]

That was then quickly overshadowed by the Religious Wars in France (and its various territories). A FAR LARGER massacre happened in the 1600s ~ and that's the one that's usually pointed to.

Remember, very important with European history ~ the further back you go the fewer people there are and it's not just a little drop off ~ it's huge.