Matteo said:
This list is not about all the Valois kings (1328-1589) but only about some of the Valois Angoulème (starting in 1515 with Francis I).
What you said is true. However, I think he only points out the last Valois kings because the other Valois monarchs, except for Charles VIII (who died in a pretty stupid accident by the way), all lived pretty long compared to them.
Matteo said:
In your short list, I would choose Francis II since he was the husband of Mary Stuart, which would be very interesting if they had male children. I would like to have a french-scot personal union. This could mean an edict of religious tolerance for the two kingdoms 20 years earlier.
If you want to look at a TL working on that scenario, have a look at Thepistron6000's
A more personnal union: it's a very interesting and well worked timeline.
That said, I am skeptical on the idea that François II would bring religious tolerance given that the Guise were strong in court during his reign... Do not forget that they would also be the Queen's family in this scenario (the Duke of Guise was Mary's uncle).
Space Oddity said:
He deserves it. No, he wasn't actually a cross-dressing homosexual--but when virtually every faction sees you as devious and unreliable, regardless of their religious and political stances--well, it says something.
You can be seen as devious and unreliable because you switch sides... Something you will inevitably have to do when you try to keep a balance between Catholic and Protestant parties like Henri III tried to do during his reign.
jakewilson said:
Charles IX, though not for him, rather so that young Henri can have a longer run on the Polish-Lithuanian throne.
Not sure this would be a good thing for the Poles: Henri hated the time he spent there... Why would he have fled Poland when he got the chance otherwise?
Emperor Constantine said:
Wow no love for Charles IX? I mean I get why, the whole St. Bartholomew's Day massacre but he was the only male Valois of the last generation to father children, a girl with Elisabeth of Austria and a bastard boy. Francois supposedly wasn't able and Henri III's wife Louise had an early miscarriage, rendering her sterile (at least that seems to be the consensus).
Honestly, I'm not sure we would want Charles IX to live longer: he didn't took the St. Barthélémy very well and it supposedly worsened his already weak health OTL. Plus, he would be seen by the Protestants as the Devil given the slaugther, and they would never accept him as King. Yes, he could save the dynasty because his wife wasn't sterile, but he would still go through a rough time.