Global InformationCardinal Richelieu information
His Grand Eminence The Duke of Richelieu COHS | |
|---|---|
 Cardinal de Richelieu by Philippe de Champaigne, 1642 (Musée des Beaux-Arts de Strasbourg) | |
| First Minister of State | |
| In office 12 August 1624 – 4 December 1642 | |
| Monarch | Louis XIII |
| Preceded by | The Marquis of Ancre Vacant (1617–1624) |
| Succeeded by | Jules Mazarin |
| Governor of Brittany | |
| In office 17 April 1632 – 4 December 1642 | |
| Monarch | Louis XIII |
| Preceded by | The Marquis of Thémines |
| Succeeded by | Queen Anne |
| Grand Master of Navigation | |
| In office 1626–1642 | |
| Monarch | Louis XIII |
| Preceded by | The Duke of Montmorency |
| Succeeded by | The Marquis of Brézé |
| Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs | |
| In office 30 November 1616 – 24 April 1617 | |
| Monarch | Louis XIII |
| Preceded by | Claude Mangot |
| Succeeded by | The Marquis of Sillery |
| Secretary of State for War | |
| In office 25 November 1616 – 24 April 1617 | |
| Monarch | Louis XIII |
| Preceded by | Claude Mangot |
| Succeeded by | Nicolas Brulart de Sillery |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Armand Jean du Plessis 9 September 1585 Paris, France |
| Died | 4 December 1642 (aged 57) Paris, France |
| Resting place | Sorbonne Chapel |
| Alma mater | College of Navarre |
| Profession | Clergyman, statesman |
| Cardinal, Bishop of Luçon | |
| Metropolis | Bordeaux |
| Diocese | Luçon |
| See | Luçon |
| Appointed | 18 December 1606 |
| Installed | 17 April 1607 |
| Term ended | Before 29 April 1624 |
| Predecessor | François Yver |
| Successor | Emery de Bragelongne |
| Orders | |
| Consecration | 17 April 1607 by Anne d'Escars de Givry |
| Created cardinal | 5 September 1622 by Pope Gregory XV |
| Rank | Cardinal-Priest |
| Personal details | |
| Previous post(s) |
|
| Signature |  |
| Coat of arms |  |
| Styles of Armand Jean du Plessis de Richelieu | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Reference style | His Grand Eminence |
| Spoken style | Your Grand Eminence |
| Informal style | Cardinal |
| See | Luçon |
Armand Jean du Plessis, 1st Duke of Richelieu (French: [aʁmɑ̃ ʒɑ̃ dy plɛsi]; 9 September 1585 – 4 December 1642), known as Cardinal Richelieu,[a] was a French statesman and prelate of the Catholic Church. He became known as l'Éminence rouge, or "the Red Eminence", a term derived from the title "Eminence" applied to cardinals and from the red robes that they customarily wear.
Consecrated a bishop in 1607, Richelieu was appointed Foreign Secretary in 1616. He continued to rise through the hierarchy of both the Catholic Church and the French government, becoming a cardinal in 1622 and chief minister to King Louis XIII of France in 1624. He retained that office until his death in 1642, when he was succeeded by Cardinal Mazarin, whose career he had fostered. Richelieu became engaged in a bitter dispute with Marie de Médici, the king's mother, and formerly his close ally.
Richelieu sought to consolidate royal power and restrained the power of the nobility in order to transform France into a strong centralized state. In foreign policy, his primary objectives were to check the power of the Habsburg dynasty (reigning notably in Spain and Austria) and to ensure French dominance in the Thirty Years' War of 1618–1648 after that conflict engulfed Europe. Despite suppressing the Huguenot rebellions of the 1620s, he made alliances with Protestant states like the Kingdom of England and the Dutch Republic to help him achieve his goals. However, although he was a powerful political figure in his own right, events such as the Day of the Dupes (French: Journée des Dupes) in 1630 showed that Richelieu's power still depended on the king's confidence.
An alumnus of the University of Paris and headmaster of the College of Sorbonne, Richelieu renovated and extended the institution. He became famous for his patronage of the arts and founded the Académie Française, the learned society responsible for matters pertaining to the French language. As an advocate for Samuel de Champlain and New France, he founded (1627) the Compagnie des Cent-Associés; he also negotiated the 1632 Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye under which Quebec City returned to French rule after English privateers took it in 1629. He was created Duke of Richelieu in 1629.
Richelieu is known as the inventor of the table knife. Annoyed by the bad manners that were commonly displayed at the dining table by users of sharp knives (who would often use them to pick their teeth),[6] in 1637 Richelieu ordered that all of the knives on his dining table have their blades dulled and their tips rounded. The design quickly became popular throughout France and later spread to other countries.[7]
Richelieu has frequently been depicted in popular fiction, notably as the lead villain in Alexandre Dumas's 1844 novel The Three Musketeers and its numerous film adaptations.
- ^ "Richelieu". Collins English Dictionary. HarperCollins. Archived from the original on 29 July 2019. Retrieved 29 July 2019.
- ^ "Richelieu, Duc de". Lexico UK English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 20 March 2022.
- ^ a b "Richelieu, Cardinal". Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English. Longman. Archived from the original on 6 October 2019. Retrieved 6 October 2019.
- ^ "Richelieu". The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (5th ed.). HarperCollins. Retrieved 29 July 2019.
- ^ "Richelieu". Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary. Retrieved 29 July 2019.
- ^ Downie, David (2017). A Taste of Paris: A History of the Parisian Love Affair with Food. New York: St. Martin's Press. p. 93. ISBN 978-1-25-008295-4. Retrieved 23 June 2023.
In Richelieu's day it was common for everyone, especially the quarrelsome menfolk, not merely to disdain the forks and napkins bequeathed by Henri III, but to pick their teeth at table with their knives – or stab tablemates. Richelieu abhorred coarseness and petty violence, especially if it stained his table linens.
- ^ Long, Tony. "May 13, 1637: Cardinal Richelieu Makes His Point". Wired. Archived from the original on 15 May 2022. Retrieved 14 April 2022.
Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).