Cardinal de Richelieu
Cardinal de Richelieu, (1585-1642). French politician and churchman. He rose to power as an adviser to Marie de’ Medici, the mother and regent of Louis XIII of France. In 1624 he became chief of the royal council; later, as Louis XIII’s chief minister, he was virtual ruler of France. During the Thirty Years War he aligned France with the Protestant powers to try to reduce the power of the Habsburgs in Europe. He also strengthened royal power at home by ruthlessly crushing the Huguenots and the nobility.
