Final answer:
Henry IV converted to Catholicism before being crowned to unify France, which was divided by religious conflicts between Catholics and Protestants. His conversion and the subsequent Edict of Nantes ensured the liberty of conscience and worship for the Huguenots, leading to stability in the kingdom.
Step-by-step explanation:
Before Henry IV was crowned king of France in 1594, he decided to convert to Catholicism in order to secure the allegiance of the great majority of his subjects. The strife and civil unrest in France characterized by the religious conflicts between Catholics and Protestants during the late 16th century necessitated a unifying figure. Despite being a Protestant, Henry IV converted to Catholicism, the religion of the majority in France, eventually issuing the Edict of Nantes in 1598, which provided the Huguenots, French Protestants, with the liberty of conscience and worship, thus bringing stability to France.