All France wants for Christmas is their Bourbon back.

Henry IV was an impetuous, selfish double-dealer. He was a Huguenot, and had fought against the Catholics in the Wars of Religion that were tearing France apart.  But in 1589 he turned on his family and converted to Catholicism, just so he could become King.  And then he turned again, and in 1598 issued the Edict of Nantes, which guaranteed religious freedom for the Huguenots.  The result was a spirit of cooperation between all faiths, and a powerful new France, united under one King.

And mon dieu, what a King!  Men referred to him as “le bon roi (the good king)” for his wisdom, women called him “le vert galante (the gallant green knight)” for his dashing good looks, and everyone agreed he was “Henri le Grand.”  He lent his name to a style of architecture, and France’s first national anthem was the “Marche Henri IV.”  But it’s his LAST name that became truly legendary. His full name was Henry Bourbon, and he created a dynasty that would last for centuries.  Henry had six children, and they married into the royal families of Europe (even today there are Bourbon monarchs in Spain and Luxembourg.)  His grandson was Louis XIV, who spread the Bourbon empire around the world.  As far away as America, you can find the Bourbon dynasty in a bottle of Kentucky whiskey, on a street sign in New Orleans, and on the jersey of a Dominican relief pitcher for the World Series champion Cincinnati Reds.

But for Henry, however, the end came too soon.  In 1610, while attending the coronation ceremony of his second queen, he was assassinated.  He was embalmed and laid to rest in the Royal Basilica at Saint-Denis.  And that did not guarantee him a happy ever-after.  During the French Revolution, his tomb was ransacked, he was decapitated and his remains were scattered.  France became a democracy and turned its back on its royal past.  The Bourbon legacy was discredited. And its founder was lost.

Skip forward to the present.  France’s power has eroded.  Its pride has suffered.  Many French may be yearning for their former days of glory.  When suddenly, this week, on the 400^th anniversary of Henry IV’s death, their wishes have come true.  A team of scientists just released the results of their examination of an embalmed head recently found in a private collection.  Using radio carbon dating, examining the head for scars and features, and even by smelling the embalming fluid in the nostrils, the scientist have made a determination: they have found the head of Henry Bourbon, Henry IV, grand king of France.

Vive le roi!