Which minister did the most to preserve and enhance royal authority in France 1610-1715?

Authors Avatar

Daniel Lovell

Which minister did the most to preserve and enhance royal authority in France 1610-1715?

        During their respective reigns, Louis XIII and Louis XIV had many ministers. Some of whom were detrimental to the advancement of their royal authority over the kingdom and others who had a generally positive effect on royal authority. This essay will look at the three main ministers, Richelieu, Colbert and Mazarin. These ministers are regarded as having the biggest impact on the two Louis’.

        We do not look at the other ministers, as they appear in minor roles; none of them, on a grand scale make a massive contribution to the state of affairs in France. This is why they are only occasionally referred to in this essay.

        Richelieu came into power in 1624, and it was the turning point of Louis XIII’s reign. Richelieu made a substantial contribution to royal authority, and he first did this by solving all the problems that his predecessors had left for him. Richelieu was greatly admired among much of the country, and this brought a certain harmony to the country, which other ministers, such as Mazarin cannot claim to have done.

        Richelieu was held in high regard by two powerful factions in France, the dévots and the français. This is because the dévots regarded heresy as the chief enemy of the state. Richelieu was a Cardinal and therefore this faction did not have to worry about him being a heretic. The français were mainly concerned with Spanish imperialism and Richelieu did a lot to allay their fears. This increased royal authority because it meant that Louis had more loyal supporters who he could count upon for help in wars and also be confident in knowing that they would not start a war themselves. Internal conflict was something that plagued the ministers after Richelieu because they were unable to please the general population in the same way that Richelieu could.

Join now!

        At first Richelieu appeared to adopt a policy of outright hostility towards Spain and when trying to damage them with the help of England and the Dutch, encountered his first problem. He was getting a lot of trouble, internally from the Protestants, so he adopted an abnormally pro-protestant policy, which no other minister was wiling to do. This was a brave move, but eventually collapsed in on itself and he had to adopt a more cautious line. This lowered the nation’s royal authority, because it leads the Protestants to believe that if they put some pressure on the king, ...

This is a preview of the whole essay