Richelieu, Armand Jean du Plessis, duc de (Cardinal Richelieu) (ärmäN` zhäN dü plĕsē` dük də rēshəlyö`), 1585–1642, French prelate and statesman, chief minister of King Louis XIII, cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. Consecrated bishop of Luçon (1607), he was a delegate of the clergy to the States-General (1614). In 1616, through the favor of the king's mother, Marie de' Medici Marie de' Medici (mĕd`ĭchē)
..... Click the link for more information. , he became a secretary of state. He went into exile with Marie after the king freed himself from her influence with the aid of the duc de Luynes Luynes, Charles d'Albert, duc de (shärl dälbĕr` dük də lüēn`)
..... Click the link for more information. . The death (1621) of Luynes and the reconciliation of Louis XIII and Marie restored Richelieu to favor. In 1622 he was made cardinal, and he became chief minister in 1624. The growing jealousy of Marie and the great nobles endangered his position, and in 1630 Marie supported a conspiracy against Richelieu. She was unable to win the king's support, however, and was exiled. Richelieu then had full control of the government. His domestic policy aimed at consolidating and centralizing royal authority, which had as its corollary the destruction of the power of the Huguenots and the great nobles. The Huguenots Huguenots (hy
`gənŏts), French Protestants, followers of John Calvin .
..... Click the link for more information. were humbled by the capture of La Rochelle (1628); the peace of Alais (1629) ended their special political privileges—without, however, denying them religious toleration. Conspiracies of the nobles, who invariably found a figurehead in the king's brother Gaston d'Orléans Orléans, Gaston, duc d' (gästôN` dük dôrlāäN`)
..... Click the link for more information. , were rigorously suppressed. In foreign affairs, Richelieu reacted against Marie de' Medici's pro-Hapsburg diplomacy in favor of the traditional French anti-Spanish and anti-Austrian policy. To this end he strengthened the army and the navy, made alliances with the Netherlands and the German Protestant states, and subsidized Gustavus II Gustavus II (Gustavus Adolphus), 1594–1632, king of Sweden (1611–32), son and successor of Charles IX.
Gustavus's excellent education, personal endowments, and early experience in affairs of state prepared him for
..... Click the link for more information. of Sweden against the Holy Roman Emperor in the Thirty Years War Thirty Years War, 1618–48, general European war fought mainly in Germany.
There were many territorial, dynastic, and religious issues that figured in the outbreak and conduct of the war.
..... Click the link for more information. . In 1635 he formed an active alliance with Sweden and Bernhard of Saxe-Weimar Bernhard of Saxe-Weimar (săks`–wī`mär, zäks`ə-vī`mär)
..... Click the link for more information. , and France entered the Thirty Years War. Although Richelieu died before the peace was signed (1648; see Westphalia, Peace of Westphalia, Peace of, 1648, general settlement ending the Thirty Years War . It marked the end of the Holy Roman Empire as an effective institution and inaugurated the modern European state system.
..... Click the link for more information. ), the terms agreed to were in general conformity to his aims. In France, the war resulted in heavy taxation; this, combined with Richelieu's poor management of finances, depleted the treasury and caused dissatisfaction with his rule. Overseas, however, he encouraged commercial capitalism, organizing companies to trade in the Indies and Canada. He was a patron of the arts and the founder of the French Academy. Among his literary works are his memoirs (1650) and the Testament politique (1688, tr. 1961).
..... Click the link for more information. , he became a secretary of state. He went into exile with Marie after the king freed himself from her influence with the aid of the duc de Luynes Luynes, Charles d'Albert, duc de (shärl dälbĕr` dük də lüēn`)
..... Click the link for more information. . The death (1621) of Luynes and the reconciliation of Louis XIII and Marie restored Richelieu to favor. In 1622 he was made cardinal, and he became chief minister in 1624. The growing jealousy of Marie and the great nobles endangered his position, and in 1630 Marie supported a conspiracy against Richelieu. She was unable to win the king's support, however, and was exiled. Richelieu then had full control of the government. His domestic policy aimed at consolidating and centralizing royal authority, which had as its corollary the destruction of the power of the Huguenots and the great nobles. The Huguenots Huguenots (hy
`gənŏts), French Protestants, followers of John Calvin ...... Click the link for more information. were humbled by the capture of La Rochelle (1628); the peace of Alais (1629) ended their special political privileges—without, however, denying them religious toleration. Conspiracies of the nobles, who invariably found a figurehead in the king's brother Gaston d'Orléans Orléans, Gaston, duc d' (gästôN` dük dôrlāäN`)
..... Click the link for more information. , were rigorously suppressed. In foreign affairs, Richelieu reacted against Marie de' Medici's pro-Hapsburg diplomacy in favor of the traditional French anti-Spanish and anti-Austrian policy. To this end he strengthened the army and the navy, made alliances with the Netherlands and the German Protestant states, and subsidized Gustavus II Gustavus II (Gustavus Adolphus), 1594–1632, king of Sweden (1611–32), son and successor of Charles IX.
Military Achievements
Gustavus's excellent education, personal endowments, and early experience in affairs of state prepared him for
..... Click the link for more information. of Sweden against the Holy Roman Emperor in the Thirty Years War Thirty Years War, 1618–48, general European war fought mainly in Germany.
General Character of the War
There were many territorial, dynastic, and religious issues that figured in the outbreak and conduct of the war.
..... Click the link for more information. . In 1635 he formed an active alliance with Sweden and Bernhard of Saxe-Weimar Bernhard of Saxe-Weimar (săks`–wī`mär, zäks`ə-vī`mär)
..... Click the link for more information. , and France entered the Thirty Years War. Although Richelieu died before the peace was signed (1648; see Westphalia, Peace of Westphalia, Peace of, 1648, general settlement ending the Thirty Years War . It marked the end of the Holy Roman Empire as an effective institution and inaugurated the modern European state system.
..... Click the link for more information. ), the terms agreed to were in general conformity to his aims. In France, the war resulted in heavy taxation; this, combined with Richelieu's poor management of finances, depleted the treasury and caused dissatisfaction with his rule. Overseas, however, he encouraged commercial capitalism, organizing companies to trade in the Indies and Canada. He was a patron of the arts and the founder of the French Academy. Among his literary works are his memoirs (1650) and the Testament politique (1688, tr. 1961).
Bibliography
See biographies by R. Lodge (1896, repr. 1970) and C. Burckhardt (tr. 1940); studies by F. C. Palm (1922, repr. 1970), C. V. Wedgwood (1949, rev. ed. 1962), G. R. R. Treasure (1972), E. W. Marvick (1983), and J. Bergin (1985).
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