06 - Mazarin by Arthur Hassall

Step into the world of Giulio Raimondo, better known as Cardinal Mazarin, whose tenure as Richelieus chosen successor reshaped the landscape of 17th-century France. A master diplomat, Mazarin navigated the complexities of power while maintaining a close, possibly secretive relationship with the Queen-Mother, Anne of Austria. Together, they faced the tumultuous Fronde rebellion, emerging victorious with the strategic brilliance of military commander Turenne by their side. By the time of his death in 1661, Mazarin had not only upheld Richelieus ambitious foreign policy but had also elevated the young Louis XIV to the throne, establishing him as the absolute monarch of one of Europes most formidable nations. As historian Arthur Hassall noted, Mazarins legacy was built on patience, perseverance, and sagacity. (Pamela Nagami)

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Chapter six of Mazarin by Arthur Hassel. This LibriVox recording
is in the public domain recording by Pamela and Nagami
Chapter six the close of the Fronde sixteen fifty one
two sixteen fifty three. At the time of the celebration

(00:22):
of Louis the fourteenth majority September seventh, sixteen fifty one,
the king's council included Orleon, the Marquis of Chateauneuf, who
always hoped to be Mazarin's successor, Molais and la Vieuville,
superintendent of the finances, while Mazarin remained at brul Conde

(00:47):
with his brother Contis Nemour Rochefouco, and Biol was at Chantilli.
Already influenced by the Duchesse of Longeville, he had decided rebellion,
and the political situation of France seemed to favor his plans.
Oliver Cromwell, successful in England, was disposed to foment troubles

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in France, if not actually to seize some of her
northern ports. Spain was bidding for an English alliance in
the south. Conde was received with enthusiasm, and the families
of La Fort Laroche, Fouquet, La Tremoil and Roan embraced

(01:34):
his cause. Donjon, who held the fortress of Brouages and
was governor of LaRochelle, and who hoped to form La
Rochelle with Rey and Euleerent into an independent principality, supported him.
Condet's schemes were extensive. He proposed to carry the war

(01:55):
to the Loire to effect a junction with the Duke
of Nemours, who commanded troops in the north of France,
while Tourin Supreme at Stinney would march through Champagne and
perhaps occupy Paris. The crisis was serious, for France was
still split into a number of selfish, unpatriotic factions, while

(02:17):
the almost universal hatred of Mazarin was a serious obstacle
to the development of the tendency toward the triumph of monarchy.
At first, the Council showed unexpected vigor. On September twenty sixth,
sixteen fifty one, Louis the fourteenth and the Court left

(02:39):
Paris for Fontainbleau, and in October proceeded with a small
army into the province of Berris. Success attended the efforts
of the king's party in Saint Tonge, where our Cour commanded.
Cognac was relieved November and La Rochelle was seized. While

(02:59):
in Peris, the King occupied Bourge and established the royal authority.
The court then proceeded to Poitiers. By the end of
the year, a considerable step had been taken towards the
suppression of the rebellion. All danger from lower Poitiu had disappeared,

(03:19):
and Dounon had made terms with the court. Conde's hopes
of seizing La rochel and Saintane were defeated, and some
of his supporters urged him to make peace. Conde, however,
was more obstinate than ever in his determination to secure
his own supremacy. He handed over Bourg, a town in Guienne,

(03:43):
to Spain, and the King at once sent to Paris
a declaration depriving Conde of his governments and honors. He
endeavored to strengthen his position by means of new allies,
and made advances to Charles, the fourth Duke of Lorraine.
For eighteen years a duke without a duchy, this adventurer

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was always ready to enter into projects of any kind.
All danger from the union of Lorraine with Conde was however,
removed by the intervention of Mazarin, who dangled before the
Duke the hope of the restitution of his duchy as
a reward for his loyalty to Louis the fourteenth. Foiled

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by Mazarin in his designs upon the Duke of Lorraine,
Conde had also hoped to secure assistance from Oliver Cromwell.
Agents from the Prince proceeded to England, and it was
said that Englishmen were busy trying to persuade Bordot to
form a republic. Conde's envoys to Cromwell were carefully watched

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by Mazarin's spies, and there is no doubt that Mazarin
succeeded in inducing Cromwell not to support CONDEI at the
end of sixteen fifty one, that Prince could rely upon
Spain alone for help in his rebellion against the French monarchy.
On January twenty ninth, sixteen fifty two, Masaron, at the

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head of an army, joined the court at Poitiers. The
news of his return had caused great excitement in Paris,
where the Parliament on December twenty ninth put a price
on his head and decreed the sale of his invaluable library.
Two days after his arrival at Poitiers, Turin and Boulon

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also came to give their services to the royal cause.
In place of the principality of Sidon, which Richelia had
taken from their family, Mazarin had given them the duchies
of Chateau Tierri and Albres, with the counties of Evreux
and Auvergne and other domains. The value of Turin to

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the king's cause was At that time immense troops were
required for the defense of Catalonia, which had been abandoned
by Marson. One of Conde's adherents of fleet had to
be sent to Bartholona. But above all, the revoltan Anjou
required immediate suppression. Durets received his cardinal's hat. The council

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was rapidly reorganized. Chateaunuf, Mazarin's rival, retired, and in advance,
was then made into anjou. On the Loire, the frondeurg
had two armies, one under Beaufort, the other under Nemour.
At Jiagou on March twenty ninth, sixteen fifty two, they

(06:47):
were defeated by Tourain. The news of the defeat of
his forces brought Conde from Bordeaux to the Loire, and
on April first, at Blenau, he defeated the royal troops.
The arrival of Turin saved the Royal army from a
complete disaster. Condet writes, the Duke Domals had reached his

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mark and had annihilated one of the royal armies when
the fortunate intervention of Turin and his cool, boldness and
tactical skill changed the result of the day. But if
Conde had taken the offensive in his wonted fashion, he
might perhaps have overwhelmed Turin and found Louis the fourteenth

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on his hands. Instead of continuing the operations on the Loire,
Conde hurried up to Paris to win over the Duke
of Orleons and the Parlament. The capital was indeed incensed
against Mazarin, but the parliament was not prepared to oppose
the king, the declaration of whose majority had taken all

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power out of the hands of the Duke of or Leon,
as Mazarin had hoped. A national party was slowly being
formed among the bourgeoisie, who longed for peace and the
establishment of order. Unable to secure support from the well
to do classes, Conde turned to the mob and determined

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to stir up popular passions. This was all the easier
as Turin was close at hand with the king and Mazarin.
Had Mazarin adopted Tourin's advice and boldly entered the capital
and proclaimed the king, the war would probably have been ended.
But Mazarin, knowing how hated he was, decided to carry

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on negotiations and was supported in his decision by the
Queen Mother. Meanwhile, Turin, on May fourth, overthrew Conde's Spanish
forces at Etampes, and the effect in Paris of the
news of the defeat was considerable. Anarch he increased and
all government disappeared. The sudden arrival of the Duke of

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Lorraine with ten thousand mercenaries to relieve the town of Etampes,
then besieged by Turins, was a serious danger to the
royal army. Turine, however, by his sill, averted the danger
and the Duke retired to the frontier. Turin then advanced
on Paris, which during the next few months was the

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scene of disorder. Conde was encamped at Saint clud and
on July second, sixteen fifty two, the Battle of Saint
Antoine was fought. Persuaded by Mazarin and the young king
to attack before his preparations were complete, Turenne was at
first checked by his brilliant antagonist. When his guns had

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come up, the final arrangements were being made for a
decisive effort, but Mademoiselle de mont Proncier Mademoiselle, the famous
daughter of the Duke of Orleons, turned the guns of
the Bastille upon the royal army. While Conde's force was
admitted into Paris, scenes of violence at once took place,

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and on July fourth, the mob, encouraged by CONDEI and
his soldiers, set fire to the Hautel de Ville, where
the general Assembly of the city was sitting, and murdered
several of the councilors. This massacre of the Otel de Ville,
though immediately followed by the establishment of Conde's rule in Paris,

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was the death blow to the party of the Princes,
But for a time Paris was forced to submit to
a government which included Urleon as Lieutenant General of France,
CONDEI as commander in chief, Beaufort, Governor of Paris, and
Broussel provos. The monarchical party, however, daily gained strength in Paris.

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The reaction steadily went on, and in August the Parliament
was ordered by the king to proceed to Pontoise in
order to remove all cause of irritation and to propitiate Paris. Mazarin,
on August nineteen, voluntarily left the kingdom a second time.
Conde's last excuse for rebellion was gone. The departure of

(11:31):
Mazarin placed the princes in a difficult position. On August
twenty second, they declared to the Parliament that they were
ready to lay down their arms on certain conditions. They
were to be confirmed in their honours, dignities, and governments,
and to be allowed to keep in their employ the
troops which they had raised. At the same time, they

(11:54):
prepared to continue the civil war and sent a pressing
appeal to the Spaniards and to the Duke of Lorraine
for assistance. Mazarin, who accused the Duke of Lorraine of
having broken his engagements with him, at once advised an
energetic opposition on the part of the royal troops to
the Lorrainers. For a time, however, it seemed that the

(12:18):
royal cause was threatened with very real danger from its
foreign enemies. Considering that the cause of Conde was not hopeless,
the Archduke Leopoult, governor of the Spanish Netherlands, ordered Fuen
Saldagna to lead a Spanish force into France to effect
a junction with the Duke of Lorraine, who was simultaneously

(12:40):
advancing and to march on Paris. But the Spaniards were
only half hearted and were content to leave the parties
in France to continue their Intestine struggles. On Touren's approach,
Fuen Saldagna fell back to the frontier and besieged Dunkirk. Meanwhile,

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the Duke of Lorraine, with from nine thousand to ten
thousand men, was marching on Paris. His plan was to
occupy the heights of Villeneuve Saint George, unite with Coronde,
and overwhelmed Turin's small army. Turin, however, anticipated the Duke
and during the month of September in command of Villeneuve

(13:22):
Saint George, held in check the Lorrainers as well as
Conde's forces. Had Turin been boldly attacked, he would in
all probability have been defeated by his more powerful enemies,
but Conde, perhaps through illness, showed no decision, and Lorain,

(13:42):
a mere adventurer, had no liking for a pitched battle.
The Bourbon monarchy was once more saved from imminent danger.
Early in October, Lorenz's army disappeared and that of Conde
did nothing but the The results of the unpatriotic conduct

(14:02):
of the princes were far reaching. The country round Paris
had been devastated, and the devotion of a portion of
the bourgeoisie and peasants for their allies gave way to
a desire for a settled government and protection from devastation
and disorder. In fact, the hatred felt for the Lorrainers

(14:26):
was such that the Duke could only, at great risk
visit Paris. On October twelfth, he narrowly escaped being murdered
by the mob. A more serious result of the continuance
of the civil strife was the loss of Dunkirk. The
Spaniards had wisely pushed on their operations against the town

(14:47):
with vigor, and in August had increased the number of
their troops. The French fleet had been scattered by Blake,
the English admiral, and Dunkirk capitulated on September sixteenth, having
already retaken Gravelin and Mardike. The Spaniards had every hope

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of continuing their successes. It is impossible, wrote Mazarin, to
prevent these misfortunes if the French continue to act against France.
The cause of the princes was, however, rapidly declining. Montrent,
their principal fortress in the center of France, was lost

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to them early in September. During that month between the
rival forces of Turin and Lorraine, negotiations were proceeding, all
of which lay in the direction of the triumph of
the monarchy. There was no reason for prolonging the period
of unrest, and all classes in Paris agreed to urge

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the king to return the parliament. The merchants the artisans
were united on this point, and the Cardinal direc was
found among a deputation to Saint Germain to beg Louis
to enter his capital. On October thirteen, the Duke of
Lorraine led his forces away, and Conde shortly afterwards retired

(16:15):
with a small force to join the Spaniards. On October fourteenth,
Beaufort was removed from his post of Governor of Paris.
The way was now prepared for the return of the Court,
and on October twenty first, sixteen fifty two, Louis entered
Paris amid a scene of wild enthusiasm, and amnesty was

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at once passed for all the events which had occurred
since February sixteen fifty one, and all decrees during that period,
including those attacking Mazarin, were annulled or Leon retired to
Blois and ceased to be of any political importance, and
his daughter Mademoiselle was exiled to Saint Fargo. The duchesses

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of Montbason and Chatillon were also compelled to leave Paris,
and Chateaunuf was ordered to retire to Berris. On October
twenty second, the day after the return of the Court,
Louis held a li de justice and forbade the Parliament
of Paris to take any part in affairs of state. Beaufort,

(17:28):
Brussel and nine other prominent members of the parliament were banished,
and it was seen that no effective resistance was possible.
The Bastille was next secured, and on December nineteenth Durets
was arrested and imprisoned in Vancenne. As far as Paris

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was concerned, the Fronde movement was over. The return of
Mazarin was, however, absolutely necessary. The foreign policy France demanded
his presence. The relations of the government of Louis the
fourteenth with England, Germany and Italy required careful handling, and

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French interests abroad were suffering through the absence of the cardinal.
The Spaniards had in October regained Barcelona and Cassale, and
had secured the alliance of the Duke of Mantua. Oliver
Cromwell's attitude had become so threatening that Mazarin had persuaded

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Anne of Austria, in spite of the opposition of Henrietta Maria,
to recognize in December the English Commonwealth and to send
Bordeaux as ambassador to London. France was also in continual
danger from invasion on her eastern border, where Cronde had

(18:54):
in November seized Chateau Porcion, Rotell sent Menorou, barleduc Linis
and the town of Commerci. In December. However, Mazarin succeeded
in bringing reinforcements to Turennes, and barleduc Linis and Commercis

(19:15):
were easily regained by the French. Mazarin was now ready
to accede to the wishes of the Queen Mother, the King,
and Serveillan and to return. On January twelfth, sixteen fifty three,
Chateau Porcion was retaken by the French, and at the
end of the month Mazarin left the army and proceeded

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to Sooissin. On February third, sixteen fifty three, in company
with the King, who had met him some miles outside
the city, Mazarin entered Paris. The state of the finances
required Mazarin's immediate attention. On January second, sixteen fifty three,

(20:01):
La Vieuville, the superintendent of finance, had died, and Nicholas
Fouquet immediately applied for the post. Other applicants appeared, Servian
Molai and LeTellier. Mazarin came to a characteristic decision. Richelie
had laid it down that it was impossible for two

(20:24):
men mutually jealous to appropriate state funds. Masarin resolved to
put into force this opinion. On February seventh, sixteen fifty three,
Serrion and Fouquet were nominated jointly to the post. Till
Servion's death in sixteen fifty nine. There were thus two

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superintendents of finance in undertaking, in addition to his duties
as Procureur General the responsibilities of this new office. Fouquet
was in barque upon a dangerous, if lucrative course. The
finances were in a hopeless condition. The social and political

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upheaval caused by the Fronde had not yet subsided. The
struggle with Spain still continued. All the avenues to new
loans were closed. The practical bankruptcy of the government in
sixteen forty eight had destroyed its credit, and no one
could be found willing to lend money. Only through the

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personal credit of Mazarin or of Fouquet could the state
induced men to lend money. Such a method of raising
loans had obvious disadvantages. Public and private money became involved
in extraordinary confusion, and many loopholes for adverse criticism soon appeared. Colbert,

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who had the management of Mazarin's private estate and who
aspired to a high position in the state, had already
quarreled with Fouquet and was his declared enemy. Though he
continued to warn Mazarin. The minister found that Fouquet's ability
to raise money from rich capitalists was invaluable. At first, however,

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the system of having two superintendents did not work well,
and it was not till after a change had been
made at the end of sixteen fifty four that men
lent willingly. Mazarin's success had been largely due to the
military qualities of Turin, to the support of his subordinates,

(22:35):
to the loyal aspirations of the bourgeoisie, and to the
divisions among the nobles. It was important to unite all
parties around the throne and to end the war. Turin
was deservedly covered with honors, and to the House of
Bouillon were given the duchies of Albre and Chateau Tierre

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and the counties of Auvigne, Evrejisaure. In sixteen sixty the
Marshal was given the title of Grand Captain to distinguish
him from the other generals. Mazarin, like Richelie, preferred to
employ men of the middle class, and though he recognized
the value of such men as Nicola and Basil Fouquet,

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who were respectively Superintendent of the Finance and head of
the police, he had more confidence in the honesty of
LeTellier Abel, Serveillan e Lyons and Jean Baptiste Colbert. To
these men, Mazarin gave honors and titles freely, and not
infrequently valuable emoluments. He was wise in doing so. It

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was by the aid of this devoted band of councilors
that he was able to establish his power, win over
the nobles, keep the parliament and clergy in order, and
conciliate the bourgeoisie. With the bourgeoisie of Paris. Mazarin soon
cultivated excellent relations. The obligations of the government were recognized,

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order was as far as possible preserved in the streets,
and literary men were paid to praise both king and minister.
Mazarron was fully cognizant of the power of the press,
and till his death numerous writers received pecuniary assistance from him.

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Being till sixteen fifty nine involved in a war with Spain,
Mazarren was unable in accordance with Colbert's wish to found
trading companies and generally to encourage the growth of a
merchant marine. With the parliament, Mazarren's relations were on a
more delicate footing, and it was more difficult to conciliate

(24:52):
the lawyers than to win over the citizens. For many years,
the parliament had been the sworn foe of the Cardinal,
who had done his best to curtail its exaggerated claims
and absurd pretensions by the lavish uthed subribery. However, Mazarin
won over to the royal side many of the members

(25:15):
of the parliament, and he procured the nomination of Pompon
de Bellievre as President in succession to Mola, who retired
in March sixteen fifty three. The efforts of Bellievre, who
was supported by Nico la Fouquet, the Procureur General, had

(25:35):
beneficial effects, and the latent opposition of the parliament to
the government did not cause Mazarin much anxiety. With the
clergy and religious orders, the Cardinal had little difficulty. The
supporters of the government were liberally rewarded, the Cardinal Antonio

(25:56):
Barberini becoming Bishop of Poitier in sixteen fifty seven Archbishop
of France. The religious orders, such as the Franciscans and
the Jesuits, were for the most part devoted to the
royal cause, and Mazarin found their support useful during his
contests with his old enemy innocent the tenth. The nobles

(26:21):
after sixteen fifty two gave Mazarin little trouble. Vanquished and
guilty of treason, they hastened to make abject submission to
the government. La Porte gives amusing instances to illustrate the
rapidity of the conversion of the upper orders. Tou lament,
he says, dze tuto a larenequetute la france ette Mazarine,

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And in describing the manner in which the crowd did
reverence to the cardinal, he says, gi vienre relegieu quiss
prosternadd' von louis a vecton milite cougieur creuell surre le
vere Boin. Mazaron had experienced the value of the support
of the fickle noblesse, and he had for a long

(27:09):
time past determined to consolidate his power and firmly to
establish his influence by bringing about marriages between his nieces
and members of the principal families in France. His policy
was in a way somewhat similar to the family settlement
policy of some of the plantagenets. In sixteen fifty one,

(27:31):
the Duke of Mercoeur, the eldest son of the Duke
of Mondame and one of the leading nobles in France,
had married l'au Romanchini. From the year sixteen fifty, Mazarin
had wished to marry another niece to the eldest son
of the Duke of Bouillon, so as to remove the
irritation of the Duke and his brother, Marshal Turin, owing

(27:55):
to the loss of Suddon by their family. On August nine,
sixteen fifty two, the Duke of Boullion died, and later
his son, the young Duke god Fois Maurice de la Tour,
married Maria Anna Mancini, the youngest of Mazarin's nieces. Anna

(28:16):
Maria Marte Noozzi had a varied career. Mazarin had intended
that she should marry the Duke of Candal, the son
of the Duke of Epernon, but the Duke was unwilling
to make what he regarded as a meis alliance, and
Anna Maria Martinozzi in February sixteen fifty four married the

(28:36):
Pace of Conti. On May sixteen fifty three, there arrived
from Rome in company with Mazarin's two sisters Madame Mancini
and Martinozzi, three more nieces, Maria Ortensia and Maria Anna,
together with their brother Philip Mancini Wor These suitable marriages

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were arranged. Ortensia in sixteen sixty one married the Duke
of Mayre, the nephew of Richelia, who became the Duke
of Mazarin and one of the heirs of the Cardinal.
In sixteen fifty seven, Olimpia Mancini married Ugene of Savois,
Count of Suoissan, and became the mother of Prince Eugene,

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so famous in the Spanish Succession War. By these marriages,
Mazarin secured a hold on several of the noble families
in France. At the beginning of sixteen fifty three, the
only great houses which were openly hostile to him were
those of Aureon Conde, La Trimoils and Arcour. The Count

(29:51):
of Arcour, the head of the fourth branch of the
House of Lorraine, had entered into treasonable relations with the
Emperor and had threatened to hand over to him the
important town of Breisach, But Mazarin's diplomacy came to his
aid and Arcours was induced to submit Orleon and his

(30:13):
daughter were now powerless. The influence of Conde was destroyed,
and La Tremoil, who was governor of Charleville, was won
over by means of the Duchesse of Chevreuse. The governors
of strong places in the north of France had already
proved their fidelity, and the governors of the principal provinces

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such as Longueville in Normandy, La Mairee in Brittany, mercur
in Provence, a Pernon in Burgundy, Lo Pitale in Champagne,
and Las de Guierre in d'auphine, were allowed in protesting
their loyalty. By his skill and moderation, Masarin had thus

(30:55):
conciliated the bourgeoisie, reduced the parliament and clergy to obedience,
and won over the French nobles. Having by this policy
strengthened his position in Paris, Mazarin was able still further
to use his power in the interest of the peace
of the kingdom and devote his attention to crushing all

(31:17):
the resistance in the southeast and west of France. Having
accomplished the pacification of provincial France, he was then in
a position to turn with renewed vigor to the task
of carrying out military operations against Spain and of bringing
the war to a conclusion. On learning that Mazarin had

(31:39):
returned to France, the partisans of the princes in Provence
met and resolved to take up arms. The Parliament of
x however, declared them rebels, and the Count of a Lais,
the governor, was arrested and imprisoned. In his place, the
Duke of Mercur was appointed, and in May sixteen fifty

(32:00):
two he was formally installed as governor of Provence. For
upwards of a year, Mercur steadily pursued a consistent policy. Toulon, Tarrascon,
Sisteron and Saint Tropez resisted the royal authority and had
to be reduced by force of arms. Other difficulties were

(32:22):
rapidly settled owing to the good relations subsisting between Mercur
and the inhabitants, and by the end of sixteen fifty
three Provence was pacified. In Burgundy, the difficulty was less Apernand,
who had succeeded Conde as governor, submitted, and Belgarde, which

(32:43):
was besieged in May of sixteen fifty three, yielded in June.
In Guienne, the state of things was far more serious
than in any other part of France, and the resistance
to the royal authority was determined. In Bordeaux, princes and
parliament and people were united in hatred of Mazarin. Democratic

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views were widely held and confident in their own powers
of resistance, and buoyed up with hopes of foreign aid,
the inhabitants prolonged the war till the end of July
sixteen fifty three. Conde, in undertaking in sixteen fifty to
his famous journey to the Loire and then to Paris,

(33:25):
had left the government of Bordeaux in the hands of
his brother Conti, who was advised by a council which
included the Duchess of Longville, Marson and Linnay. Disorder soon
broke out in Bordeaux. The parlement fell into two divisions,
the minority known as the Little Frond, favoring moderate views,

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while the majority, united with the extreme section of the
people known as the Orme or Ormists. Conti had the
weakness to support an attack upon the moderate party of
the parlement. Civil war ensued and Bordeaux fell into the
hands of the demagogues, whose actions recall those of the

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Jacobins in seventeen ninety three and seventeen ninety four. These
internal dissensions favored the progress of the royal arms. On
the retirement of the Count of Arcour from the command
of the army, the Duke of Candal, son of Epernon
was appointed. As soon as the royal authority was established

(34:33):
in Paris, Mazarin took energetic measures to suppress the revolt
in Guienne. The growth of a royalist party in Bordeaux
was encouraged. The Duke of Vendme, with a fleet, appeared
at the confluence of the rivers Guarna and d'ardoigne, and
the Count of Dognon, governor of Bourrages, made terms. His

(34:56):
defection was a fatal blow to the cause of the
Princes of Bardol, Attacked from within and without, the Orchhme
gradually realized that no help from either Spain or England
was possible. Conti negotiated secretly with Mazarin, and at length
a treaty was signed. On July thirty first, sixteen fifty three,

(35:20):
the Dukes of ren domen Condal entered Bordeaux. Marson Lenay
and other partisans of the princes were allowed to depart
and measures were taken to assure the tranquility of Bordeaux.
Only the leaders of the Orme were executed. Conti himself
married one of Mazarin's gifted nieces, and the Duchess of Longville,

(35:42):
the evil genius of the House of Conde, made her
peace with her husband, and on his death adopted a
religious life in Paris. Was, however, not deceived by the
appearances of loyalty in Bordeaux. He had rightly gauged the
character of the inhabitants of the southwest of France, and

(36:03):
knew that the treaty lately made had only covered up
the flame and not extinguished it. He ordered Van Domencandal
to take careful precautions against future outbreaks, and when a
Spanish fleet appeared in November sixteen fifty three at the
mouth of the Gironde, it met with no support. Thus

(36:26):
was concluded the long struggle of the Frond. Over all France,
the royal authority had asserted itself. Internal disorder was rapidly
disappearing before the almost complete extinction of Conde's faction as
a power in the state. Henceforward, the French nobles were

(36:48):
no longer a danger to the state. They were employed
in warfare or at the court, but had no opportunity
of becoming great local magnates. Hence forward, the Parliament of Paris,
shorn of its political functions, was forced to confine itself
to its judicial duties and to bow before the strong

(37:11):
will of Louis the fourteenth. Henceforward, the principal government offices
were filled by men who had sprung from the bourgeois
class or from that of the lesser nobles, men such
as Colbert, Serion, Lyon and Letelliers. Mazarin had successfully carried

(37:33):
out and completed the work of Richelie. The great nobles
had forfeited all claim to confidence. Their selfishness, incapacity, and
want of patriotism had been fully illustrated during the period
from sixteen forty eight to sixteen fifty one, and Mazarin

(37:56):
was fully justified in crushing forever the las last efforts
to introduce feudalism into government. Having destroyed the two frands,
and having re established order and the authority of the king,
Mazarin was called upon to give to the reorganized monarchy
the force necessary to conquer its external foes. From sixteen

(38:21):
fifty three to sixteen fifty nine, Mazarin successfully accomplished that
task and placed the French monarchy at the head of
the nations of Europe. His first duty was to drive
the Spaniards from Champagne, to attack them in Italy and Catalonia,
to take from them the seaports of Flanders, and finally

(38:45):
to compel them to make peace. It was not until
the Peace of the Pyrenees was signed in sixteen fifty
nine that Mazarin's work was accomplished. Throughout these years, Mazarron
had exhibited diplomatic qualities of a high order. Richelia would

(39:06):
probably at certain epics have acted in a more decided
manner that at the end of sixteen fifty after Hotel,
Mazarin should have immediately adopted energetic measures to establish his
position as incontestable. He ought, also, after the campaign on
the Loire in sixteen fifty two, to have taken Turin's

(39:28):
advice and advanced boldly on Paris and proclaimed Louis the
fourteenth king. Instead of such decisive action, he preferred negotiations,
which caused the Battle of Saint Antoine and anarchy in
Paris for some months That Mazarren's position was peculiarly difficult.

(39:48):
Is evident throughout these years the Spanish War proved of
great assistance to Conde and hampered the royal cause. Fortunately,
Spain did not as a general of special merit, and
as soon as Tourin's period of treason ended, all serious
danger to France was over. Though the loss of Dunkirk

(40:10):
in September of sixteen fifty two was sufficient evidence of
the disastrous effects of Conte's rebellion. In addition to the
Spanish alliance, the influence of French women upon the course
of the civil wars added to Mazarin's responsibilities. The Duchesse
of Longville was answerable in great part for the rising

(40:32):
in Normandy in sixteen fifty one and for the treason
of Turin. She also threw all the weight of her
influence on the side of rebellion. When Conde, at the
time of the king's majority, was still hesitating, she continued
at Bordeaux to support Conti in sixteen fifty three in
defying the royal power. Hardly less important was Mademoiselle de Montponcier,

(40:59):
who took so notable a part in the Battle of
Saint Antoine, the mother and wife of Conde, both acted
energetically against Mazarin, and the Duchesse of Chauvreuse was alternately
his enemy and his ally. The influence of women during
the period of the Frans proved to be uniformly disastrous

(41:22):
to the interests of France and vastly increased Mazarin's difficulties.
The memoirs of Madame de Moutteville and of durets teem
with illustrations of the truth of this statement. Richelia, it
can hardly be doubted, would have long before sixteen forty eight,
suppressed the parliament and exiled his foes. Mazarin failed to

(41:47):
foresee the seriousness of the storm which began to gather
round him from the very moment of his accession to power,
and when the storm broke, he hesitated to take drastic measures.
He believed in negotiations and diplomacy, and eventually his diplomacy succeeded.

(42:08):
Though stern measures of repression would have brought the struggle
to a speedy end and saved France in infinity of suffering,
it is impossible not to admire the resolution and perseverance
shown by Masarin time was on his side, and slowly
but surely events turned out as he had anticipated. The

(42:30):
reaction in favor of the royal power steadily grew, and
all the elements of disorder were, one by one eliminated.
He had continued the work of Richelia, and by the
end of sixteen fifty three had arrived at the goal
of the ambition of his predecessor. But he preferred devious

(42:51):
paths to Richelia's stern and rapid methods. End of Chapter
six