Richelieus anti-Hapsburg foreign policy combined with his domestic policy of taming the nobility, laid the foundations for royal absolutism and the rise of France as a major power. Discuss

Richelieu and the Rise of France as a Major Power

The greatness of France was made manifest in the late 17th century during the reign of Louis XIV , also known as Louis the Great , the Grand Monarch , the Sun King . Earlier , in the century , the treaties of Westphilia and Pyrennes , instigated largely by France granted it the spoils of the Thirty Years War in the form of land removed from Spain and Germany . While this ended the Austrian dream of ruling Europe and the world , on the other hand , it established France as

the greatest military power in the continent . All Europe imitated French fashions from his court at Versailles to the gilded dome of the Invalides which two centuries later would become the tomb of Emperor Napoleon . It was a time of artists and - Moliire , Racine , Boileau , La Fontaine Bossuet - all noted for their dignity , their measure , their elegance . It was the point of perfection of the Classical Age .1 Yet , it thrived only because the king allowed it to thrive as it was during the reign of Louis XIV that the monarchy of France led absolutely

The king had not always been all-powerful . Just a century ago , the reigning kings had to contend with the opposing force of French nobility for reasons driven by greed and religion . Sides had to be taken between the Guises who were Catholics and the Bourbons who were Protestants , and also known as the Huguenots . The religious differences served as pretext for political quarrels . The reigns of the kings were short . Henry II served for only 12 years before being killed in a jousting accident . His three sons succeeded him one after the other who altogether served a mere thirty six years . The last of them , Henry III was assassinated Then , his successor , the Bourbon Henry of Navarre or Henry IV was murdered in 1610 by a Catholic fanatic . Louis XIII became king . The greatest triumph of Louis XIII rule was his appointment of Richelieu in 1924 as his chief minister . It was Richelieu who had

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1 Albert Guyrard , The Story of France ' in The Book of Knowledge 1965 ed

laid the foundations that allowed his son , Louis XIV to govern as the absolute ruler of France , the most dominant force in the continent . 2

Louis XIII was still a child when his father was killed . His widow took over as Regent but was easily swayed by the conspiring nobility . It did not take long for the French nobles to once more plunder the state and quarrel among themselves . Soon , however , Henry IV 's true successor began to show his mettle . This was Cardinal de Richelieu . He was very different from Henry who was shrewd , kindly , tolerant and won people with his smile . Cardinal Richelieu , on the other hand , could not smile His whole life was a triumph of inflexible will . King Louis XIII , when he came of age , had the good sense to recognize the greatness in Richelieu and let...