Richelieu (TV series)
| Television series | |
|---|---|
| German title | Richelieu |
| Original title | Richelieu |
| Country of production | France and Germany |
| original language | French |
| year | 1977 |
| length | 52 minutes each |
| Episodes | 6th |
| genre | History , drama |
| Director | Jean-Pierre Decourt |
| music | Vladimir Cosma |
| First broadcast | October 13, 1977 (France) on BBC2 |
| German-language first broadcast |
May 17, 1978 on ARD |
| occupation | |
| |
Richelieu is a television series produced by Telecip Paris that first aired on October 13, 1977 and broadcast in France and Germany. Based on the biography of the same name (Paris, 1967) by Philippe Erlanger , it depicts the life of the great French cardinal and statesman. The series, written by Jean-François Chiappe and director Jean-Pierre Decourt, is true to historical facts despite all the exciting drama.
Episode guide
1. The rise of the falcon (L'Envol du Hobereau) (1590–1616)
Armand-Jean du Plessis, born on September 9, 1585, grew up as a sickly boy with his mother, Suzanne de la Porte, at Richelieu Castle in the poor county of Poitou after the early death of his father (1590) . At that time France was torn apart by wars of religion and aristocratic revolts. Insecurity and anarchy prevail in the country, and marauding gangs roam the area, murdering and pillaging. At an early age, Armand-Jean showed, in addition to his sickness and over-sensitivity, a quick perception and alert intelligence, which is why his mother sent him to Paris at the age of nine , where he was educated at the Collège de Navarre , the most exclusive but also the strictest educational institution of the time . In addition to grammar, logic and theology, the young Armand-Jean is also learning Latin, Greek and Hebrew.
At that time, the legendary and popular King Henry IV - a Huguenot who converted to Catholicism and whom Richelieu's father, Francois du Plessis, had already served - finally brought peace and prosperity to France. Heinrich sends his grand stable master , the Duke of Bellegarde, to the wealthy Grand Duke of Tuscany, Ferdinando I de 'Medici , in Florence, to ask for the hand of his niece Maria de' Medici on behalf of the king - a marriage for purely financial considerations. With the domineering Maria, Heinrich has 2 surviving sons - Ludwig and Gaston - and three daughters.
Meanwhile, the young Richelieu is completing his training as a nobleman and cavalier at the Academy of Monsieur de Pluvinel. There he also met Pluvinel's former pupil, later known as Père Joseph, François du Tremblay, who decided to become a Capuchin monk. Richelieu himself aspired to a military career, but was summoned by his mother to his native Poitou in the summer of 1607, because his younger brother Alphonse did not - as originally planned - take over the lucrative bishopric of Luçon, which the family had been entitled to for generations, but instead wanted to become a Carthusian monk. Without further ado, Richelieu decides to step in and become bishop himself. In a hectic hurry he completes a theology degree. In order to receive the dispensation, which is indispensable for a man who is only 21 years old, he travels to Rome beforehand, where he impressed Pope Pius V with his knowledge and phenomenal memory (he was able to repeat a sermon verbatim after hearing it once and one on the same topic new sermon improvised). Richelieu also confesses to the Holy Father that in his impatience to enter the service of the Church, he has submitted a forged baptism certificate in which he has made himself a few years older. The Pope, wrapped up in this diplomatically clever confession, forgives him for forging documents and prophesies: "Your ascent will be steep and you will become a great villain!"
After completing his doctorate in theology, Richelieu returned to the court of Henry IV, where he was denied a career due to the stubborn resistance of the courtiers and career makers. He believes that his genius has been misunderstood, falls into depression and decides "better to be first in Luçon than a third-class courtier in Paris". Back in Poitou, he actively took over the management of his diocese and put the local canons in their place. In the cathedral he exhorts the faithful to obey the authorities in order to restore order in the kingdom. For several years he tirelessly devoted himself to his spiritual studies and took care of the renewal of pastoral care in his diocese - the poorest in all of France, in which many adhered to the Reformed Huguenot faith. He hurries from village to village to give his priestly assistance to anyone in need of consolation and to set a good example for his priests. In this way he saves many Catholics from apostasy, but on the other hand struggles with his miserable financial situation.
Richelieu wants to force his luck and returns to the court in Paris. He approaches the king who is excited about the vanity and lust for power of his wife, Maria de 'Medici, who forced her coronation as queen on him. Henry confides in the Bishop of Luçon that he intends to set out on a campaign to Brussels three days after the coronation to attack the Holy Roman Empire and the deadly embrace of France by the House of Habsburg in Spain from the south, in the Netherlands from the north and to break through the empire from the east. His goal is a large "League of Nations" led by France. But just one day after Mary's coronation - on April 14, 1610 - the religious fanatic François Ravaillac put an end to these lofty plans of Henry IV with three fatal stab wounds, whose work of unification and renewal was suddenly interrupted. Instead of Heinrich's underage son Ludwig, his widow Maria de 'Medici took over the reign, and everything fell victim to abuse and corruption, the state was shaken to the core by favoritism and waste. At the head of the new camarilla is now the unscrupulous Concino Concini, a former croupier whom Maria had brought from Florence and whom she will soon appoint Marshal of France.
Richelieu is back in Luçon - impatient, concerned about the grievances in the state and convinced that he could do a better job. Order is back in France, the streets are unsafe again. Richelieu is convinced that there is no justice without order. Then he receives a surprising visit from François du Tremblay - now Père Joseph, prior of the Capuchins and fanatical preacher of the crusade against the Huguenots. Since the Queen wasted the money from the war chest on the feudal aristocracy, the Estates General must be convened to approve new finances . Richelieu wants to run as a delegate of his diocese and stand against the weakening of the royal power. Père Joseph vows to support him in "becoming great and powerful." As a delegate, Richelieu gave his first speech at the final session in February 1615, which despite its overwhelming rhetoric was received ambiguously by the nobility - Concini blasphemed his "chatter", while the regent Maria de 'Medici seems quite impressed.
The corrupt wife Concinis and “milk sister” of the queen, Leonora Galigai, who had all posts, offices and pensions at court, became an indispensable advisor for Maria de 'Medici. With it, necromancers, astrologers, schemers and quacks find their way into the Louvre . When the regent complains to Leonora about the tight financial situation of the court, Galigai recommends Richelieu as an advisor, and the queen takes up the suggestion. A short time later, the Bishop of Luçon was appointed confessor to the Queen and Secretary of State and now finally moved to Paris. With a quotation from the Bible, which he put in front of his dissertation as a motto, he expresses his joy at this appointment: “Quis erit similis mihi? - Who will be like me? "
2. A Bishop in Hell (Un Évèque en Enfer) (1616–1624)
After his appointment as State Secretary and confessor to the Queen, Richelieu meets Père Joseph again, who has just returned from Italy and is now an advisor to the regent. In the Council of State, Richelieu is confronted with the Habsburg-friendly policies of Concinis and Maria de 'Medicis, while uprisings of the nobility and Huguenots rage in France and the young King Louis XIII. is treated like an underage child, humiliated and kept away from the affairs of state by his mother and her favorite Concini. The shy Ludwig only loves the hunt and shoots himself at his surroundings even more when he is married to the Spanish Infanta Anna of Austria. He only trusts his falconer Luynes, the guard captain Vitry and the crafty finance secretary Guichard Déageant. In this situation, Richelieu proposes a daring game to the Queen and Concini: Maria de 'Medici should offer her son Ludwig her resignation as regent. If the latter accepts it, he can easily be declared incapable of governing, and the power of the regent and Concinis would be consolidated. But if he refuses, the result would be the same. As expected, Ludwig refuses his mother's resignation, which in turn annoys the clique around the young king. Ludwig himself struggles with his powerlessness. He suffers from the lovelessness of his mother and her favoritism and mourns the times when Henry IV was still alive. He distrusts the camarilla around his mother, whom he also suspects of murdering his father. Richelieu knows about the hatred of the king as well as the people for Concini and advises Maria de 'Medici to drop her favorites. Meanwhile, Vitry, Déageant and Luynes decide together with the king to overthrow Concinis - and if necessary his death. Richelieu, who has secretly assured Déageant that he will inform him of everything that will be decided in the Council of State, is informed in an anonymous letter the night before the attack. The next morning, April 24, 1617, Concini was stopped by Vitry and other conspirators on his way to the Louvre and, when he tried to oppose his arrest, shot.
In this situation, Richelieu advises the desperate Maria de 'Medici to come to an agreement with the clique around her son and to offer her retreat to the provinces. In her address to Ludwig, written by Richelieu, she appeals to her son as a mother, and he grants her an honorable exile at Blois Castle on the Loire . Leonora Galigai, the queen's scheming favorite, is executed. In order to please the new rulers around the king, Richelieu first accompanies the Queen Mother to Blois in order to keep her under control. After trying to instigate another uprising from there, Richelieu is banished to papal Avignon by the king, who still hates him . Since Maria de 'Medici continues to forge her schemes against the king, and Ludwig's confidants see the Bishop of Luçon as the only one who can have a moderating effect on the Queen Mother, Père Joseph finally succeeds in the young monarch's resistance to a return from Richelieu to break. After a year of exile, he returned to Paris as the Queen's confessor, was able to bring about a reconciliation between Ludwig and his mother and hoped for a return to power. But Luynes, the king's favorite, entrusts all offices to his own relatives, which in turn leads to a rebellion of the nobility. In June 1620, the king crushed the insurgents who had fallen apart. Maria de 'Medici has to flee, as do her advisors - the Cardinal de Lavalette, Père Joseph and Richelieu. Luynes, however, dies after the siege of the Huguenot fortress of Montauban in the winter of 1621, and King Ludwig, who needs a strong hand by his side, not only gives his mother back her place on the Council of State, but she can also get him to join Pope Gregory XV . to use a cardinal's hat for their confessor Richelieu, to whom they owe their renewed reconciliation.
In the meantime, the financial situation in France is still tense, and the finance minister, M. de la Vieuville, is booted out in this situation by Maria de 'Medici at the expense of the newly minted Cardinal Richelieus, who also ridicules Vieuville with his apt and sharp criticism. King Ludwig appreciates Richelieu's brilliant mind, but he still doesn't like him. Even with his young Queen Anna, he finds no consolation in his doubts whether he will choose the right counselor in Richelieu. Nevertheless, he brought the cardinal back to the Council of State on April 29, 1624 and appointed him First Minister of France on August 13. At his first meeting of the Council of State in his new role, Richelieu addressed the King with the words: “Sire! France must be governed in such a way that everyone recognizes that the king himself controls the fate of his country. In the future, things will be handled in such a way that the principle of order prevails in all areas of life. "
3. La Rochelle and Love (L'Amour et La Rochelle) (1624–1628)
Richelieu's primary goal as First Minister is to counter the encirclement of France by Spain and the Emperor and to put Habsburg on the defensive on all fronts. He seeks contact with all Protestant countries - the opponents of Spanish power - especially with England. That is why he energetically marries the sister of Louis XIII, Henriette-Marie , with the English heir to the throne Charles - and he is successful: One day the favorite of Charles I , the Duke of Buckingham, who has just been crowned king , appears at the court to escort Henriette to London. But Buckingham only has eyes for Anna, the beautiful, neglected wife of Louis XIII. Maria de 'Medici, however, as the daughter of Archduchess Johanna of Austria , is indignant about Richelieu's hostility towards the Habsburgs, and the king still mistrusts the cardinal. It is very advantageous for him that his niece Marie Madeleine is the Queen Mother's maid and can thus provide him with important information.
Buckingham's romance with Queen Anna, which they both present in front of all eyes, is the talk of the day in the whole country, outrags the righteous spirit of the French and is cause of bitterest anger and deep humiliation for King Ludwig. The Cardinal recommends Louis XIII to prevent any future meeting between Buckingham and the Queen - not least for political reasons. The king therefore decides that when accompanying Buckingham to Amiens, Anna and his mother will travel in a coach to Compiègne , while Henriette will take a different route with Buckingham. While Anna admits her affection for Buckingham during her last tête-à-tête , Richelieu politely but firmly points out to the Prime Minister of England that he does not want to visit Paris again, whereupon Buckingham threatens military intervention. Shortly thereafter, Richelieu was appointed general manager of shipping and commissioned an entire fleet. Only in this way would France have a chance of resisting England in a war, especially since the development of the French merchant navy worries the King of England, who wants to conquer a port on the French coast that is only too easy to conquer: La Rochelle .
At the time, the sea fortress of La Rochelle was the stronghold of the Huguenots, who had invincibly opposed the Catholic League in an almost century-old struggle. This prosperous city, ruled by a strong community and always loyal to the King of France, always opposed when its religious and political freedom was compromised. But the main cause of a new conflict between the king and the city is the Fort Louis - a fortress that was built directly outside the walls of La Rochelle during the last siege . When the king failed to abide by the provision of the Treaty of Montpellier of October 1622 to remove this fortress, this long-smoldering conflict broke out openly - the councilors of La Rochelle see their freedom and the right to their Reformed religion threatened.
In the Council of State, Richelieu hesitates to move against La Rochelle because France has lived in peace with the Dutch provinces since Henry IV and maintains the best connections to the Reformed German princes and the friendship of these powers is needed to maintain balance in Europe. Unlike Maria de 'Medici, the cardinal does not want to jeopardize these alliances by attacking La Rochelle and therefore relies on defensive action. The king suspects that Buckingham will first attack the fortress of Saint-Martin-de-Ré , the key to the defense of La Rochelle, and entrusts his childhood friend Toiras with the defense of this fortress. On June 27, 1627 Buckingham took advantage of the increasing tensions between Louis XIII. and La Rochelle and sets sail with a large fleet. His goals are: to conquer La Rochelle - England's gateway to the continent - to destroy his archenemy Richelieu and, weapon in hand, to fight free the way to the Louvre and Queen Anna. La Rochelle is said to be England's new Calais , which was ruled by English for over two hundred years. Buckingham's 6900 soldiers and 500 horsemen on 90 ships are compared to Toiras' only 200 foot soldiers and 700 horsemen. Buckingham hopes that as soon as he has conquered the island of Ré and its fortress off La Rochelle, the inhabitants of La Rochelle and all the Reformed France will rise and go to war by his side. Louis XIII however, continues to refuse to let Fort Louis grind - although the German Protestants and the King of Sweden would resent an attack on La Rochelle. Maria de 'Medici, on the other hand, does not understand Richelieu's strategy of exterminating the Reformed faith in France by tolerating it outside the borders so as not to risk foreign interference in France's affairs.
Toiras soon has to give way to the enemy superiority on the island of Ré and retreat to Fort Saint-Martin, where he is besieged by Buckingham's troops - although the two troop leaders try to outdo each other in Courtoisie . Buckingham, on the other hand, first has to show a win to be recognized in La Rochelle, where they are still waiting. Although they sympathize with the English, arm themselves to the teeth and mobilize all men of military age, they still remain within the framework of appropriate loyalty to the King of France and want to avoid any conflict with the French army. But the magistrate of La Rochelle observed with concern how the king's army was strengthened every day and put an iron ring around the city. When the Duke of Angoulême gave the order to fortify Fort Louis, the tension finally eased and the barrel overflowed on September 10, 1627: the gunners of La Rochelle started firing without orders, and the war began. The city council of La Rochelle asks Buckingham to support a garrison of 2,000 men, decides to mint its own coins with immediate effect, but nevertheless once again expresses its unwavering loyalty to the Crown of France.
Richelieu was only waiting for the cannonade on September 10th, because now La Rochelle is the side that started hostilities. From now on he has only one goal: to return La Rochelle, the center of the Huguenot rebellion, to the hands of its king. Richelieu and Louis XIII. set off immediately, while Maria de 'Medici takes over the reign again during the absence of the King of Paris, since Anna of Austria is out of the question for this task, not least because of her feelings for Buckingham. Ludwig and Richelieu personally take command of the siege of La Rochelle and the king slowly begins to gain confidence in his First Minister. Meanwhile, a soldier managed to swim from Fort St. Martin to the royal camp and informed the King and Richelieu that if St. Martin did not get help within five days, Toiras would have to surrender due to lack of ammunition and provisions. Thereupon Richelieu submits a plan to His Majesty how St. Martin can be liberated: On the evening of October 7th, a French flotilla breaks the blockade off the island of Ré and in a daring coup rescues the crew of Fort St. Martin from certain starvation. The soldiers can eat their fill again and find a new will to win.
At the beginning of winter, the situation of the enclosed fortress of La Rochelle deteriorated. Discouragement and despondency spread among the population - especially when Buckingham's army was driven from the island of Ré at the beginning of November and sailed back to England defeated - although the city lords still spread the hope that the English only wanted to arm themselves and then with many ships would return to their liberation. On behalf of Louis XIII. Richelieu, however, has his niece Anna of Austria request that Buckingham use her influence to dissuade him from attempting to take La Rochelle again, which she refuses.
Buckingham now regrets having hesitated too long with his attack. But before his fleet appears again in the spring of 1628 in front of La Rochelle to relieve the starving city, Richelieu and his king are already one move ahead of their adversary: To deny the English any access to the bay and around La Rochelle from the sea To seal it off, they have a huge dam built across the strait to Fort Louis, and to protect the dam against storms, it is reinforced with the planks of the wrecked oldest French warships. In this desperate situation, Admiral Guitton proposes in La Rochelle that an assassin could be hired to assassinate the cardinal, but this plan is rejected again.
In the meantime, the king travels to Paris again to raise new money for the high costs of the siege, leaving Richelieu, who now enjoys his full confidence, the sole command. The cardinal even sold his personal belongings to feed the royal troops, but was saddened that all of this was done to starve a few fanatics he would rather convince. While Admiral Guitton is being elected as the new mayor of La Rochelle, Maria de 'Medici criticizes her former protégé Richelieu at the king's office in Paris by accusing him of inaction during the siege. Ludwig is only annoyed about this. In relation to her daughter-in-law Anna, Maria also remarks that Richelieu had used herself just as Buckingham had used the young Queen of France - but both men only had power in mind.
In this critical situation Buckingham was stabbed to death on August 23, 1628 in Portsmouth by the fanatical Puritan John Felton . But as much as this death suits Richelieu, it appears to him as a warning: “Those who are very high up, also fall very deep.” Shortly afterwards, an envoy from the La Rochelle council called for the autonomy of the city as a condition for surrender, the retention of all rights and unrestricted trade. Richelieu is ready to negotiate the last two conditions, but refuses any autonomy. As agreed, a tambour marches towards the city wall with a drum roll to announce the cardinal's readiness to negotiate, but is shot by a boisterous shooter on the wall. The fanatical mayor, Admiral Guitton, is initially delighted because it avoids a “lazy compromise”. But even Lord Lindsey's weak English fleet, which has now arrived, cannot help the city, whose situation is becoming increasingly hopeless. After all, hunger in La Rochelle is stronger than any religious zeal and will to resist. In the end even the courage of the iron mayor Guitton breaks, who surrenders on October 27, 1628 - after almost a year of siege when only a fifth of the population is still alive - and Richelieu is able to hand over the unconditional surrender of La Rochelle to the king. Louis XIII wants to severely punish the city for its rebellion, but the cardinal appeals to his goodness, wisdom and justice, reminding him that the citizens of La Rochelle have never ceased to feel subject to the King of France - what a greater honor it could be give for the king rather than the city returning to the true faith and giving up the autonomy guaranteed by the Treaty of Montpellier? The king then orders bread to be baked for the population so that they do not have to move into a starving city, and expresses the hope that La Rochelle will then only have good people.
While Mayor Guitton goes to prison, Richelieu's thoughts are again far removed from la Rochelle and turned to world politics. In his eyes he did not defeat La Rochelle but London and proved that France is a great nation - for even the heretical inhabitants of La Rochelle are loyal subjects of their king, and that is the true defeat of England, where the king rules, whereas he rules in France. This is how La Rochelle agreed France. Just one day after Louis XIII. has left the defeated city, meanwhile a storm smashes the dam built by Richelieu like a toy.
4. The scandal of Saint Martin's Day (L'Esclandre de la Saint Martin) (1628–1630)
With the La Rochelle victory, Richelieu can finally turn to foreign policy. Soon there was a dispute over the succession in the Duchy of Mantua and finally a bitter war of succession between France, the Emperor and Charles Emanuel I , the Duke of Savoy . Richelieu is primarily concerned with conquering the two strategically important fortresses Casale and Pinerolo and thus breaking the lines of communication between the Holy Roman Empire and the Spanish possessions in northern Italy. In the middle of the victorious advance in Savoy, a terrible epidemic breaks out in northern Italy. The French regiments melt down to a third. While Richelieu is doing everything he can to prevent the military and political collapse, King Louis XIII falls ill. in the summer of 1630 in his headquarters in the middle of the epidemic area from a mysterious ailment with a high fever. On top of that, since Richelieu left Paris, a powerful fronde has formed behind him again , including influential circles of the nobility such as the great seal keeper Michel de Marillac and his brother Jean-Louis de Marillac , the Marshal of France. They all want to blame Richelieu for the war and the resulting impoverishment of the people. The real head of this conspiracy, however, is the Queen Mother Maria de 'Medici, who heads the State Council in the Louvre on behalf of Ludwig, who is ill in his camp, and is indignant at the meetings about Richelieu's policy, to whose bitter enemy she has since become because she is him envious of his successes and never forgave his anti-Spanish politics. In this situation there was a first meeting between Richelieu and the papal legate Giulio Mazarini, who, contrary to his mandate as negotiator of the Pope, expressed his understanding and even his secret approval of his policy to the cardinal. Richelieu cannot foresee that this Italian will one day be his successor and, as Cardinal Mazarin, the mighty Prime Minister of Louis XIV .
On September 22nd, Louis XIII's condition suddenly deteriorated. In the house of Richelieu's brother Alphonse in Lyon , in the presence of his mother and his wife, he fell ill with a high fever. Maria de 'Medici is already planning to marry her younger son Gaston to Queen Anna after Ludwig's death in order to improve relations between France and the House of Habsburg, and to have Cardinal Richelieu von d'Alincourt, Duke of Villeroy, arrested while the great seal keeper Marillac even offers to kill his Eminence with his own hands. Richelieu's niece Marie Madeleine fears for his life if the king should die and asks him to flee to nearby papal Avignon, but her uncle refuses to run away before the death of his sovereign.
Suddenly and completely unexpectedly, the king's condition improved after an intestinal ulcer had ruptured. Although his mother and wife immediately try again to get Richelieu to dismiss, Louis XIII. the “best man France has ever had” - at least until a treaty with Emperor Ferdinand II is signed. Père Joseph and the special envoy Brûlart de Leon have been negotiating with him for some time in Regensburg , on the one hand to secure possession of the conquests in Savoy and on the other hand to separate the emperor and the electors . The emperor signs the treaty under the following conditions: that the king of France does not prevent the electors from electing his son as his successor and that he no longer supports the reformed princes - and above all the Swedish king Gustav II Adolf - with money to fight against him, the emperor. Père Joseph accepts these conditions, but in return demands that the powerful imperial generalissimo Wallenstein be recalled . The emperor promises to do so and also promises not to rush to Spain's aid and to accept the French occupation of the fortresses of Casale and Pinerolo. Secretly, however, Père Joseph informs his colleague Brûlart that he has already agreed with the electors that they will not elect Ferdinand's son as his successor, and that he has already reached an agreement with Wallenstein regarding his retreat and that he has definitely made an agreement with the King of Sweden continue to support financially.
After Louis XIII. Having recovered and Richelieu has re-established his position by regaining royal confidence, Père Joseph and Brûlart travel to Regensburg again - this time aware of their strength and that their calculations have paid off and knowing that the emperor has no choice but to make peace . Ferdinand II. Demands as a condition again that Ludwig XIII. expressly obliged not to support the Swedish king or the reformed German princes either with money or with arms deliveries. Père Joseph signs the contract, but points out to the emperor that it is only legally valid once it has been signed by the king and the Council of State. In the Council of State, however, Richelieu is against signing the treaty because, in return for Casale, Pinerolo and Susa in Piedmont and its claim to Mantua , France would have to surrender Savoy and break its alliances with Sweden and the German Reformed. Against the accusation of the large seal keeper Michel de Marillac that the cost of their financial support and the other war expenditures only brought hardship and misery to the country, Richelieu leads the security of France into the meeting. Surprisingly for everyone, Maria de 'Medici supports Richelieu's position, whereupon the king decides not to sign the Treaty of Regensburg, but to accept the agreement drafted by Signore Mazarini regarding Casale and Pinerolo, but not to conclude a peace treaty, but to open new negotiations consist.
In the coach on the way back to Paris, Maria de 'Medici replied to Richelieu's question about the reason for her support in the council that she shared his opinion, although she no longer valued him as a person because he had moved away from her - what however, he denies. Maria feigns longing affection for him, and when the king asks Richelieu about his agreement with the Queen Mother after returning to the Louvre, which is being renovated, the latter says that there is complete harmony again. Louis XIII however, irritates him with his answer: “You are mistaken, Your Eminence.” And in fact Maria de 'Medici gets upset with Michel de Marillac about the cardinal's wickedness and lust for power, to whom she owes everything. She accuses him of wanting to marry his niece Marie Madeleine - who was forced upon her as a lady-in-waiting - to her younger son Gaston and decides to fake indisposition on the following Saint Martin's Day in order not to have to see Richelieu.
When the king went to the Palais du Luxembourg , his mother's residence, the next day to inquire about her condition, she tried again to get her son to dismiss his first minister and shortly afterwards Marie Madeleine left the room when she enters she begins to curse them in the most desolate ways and throws them out. Richelieu now also enters the Palais du Luxembourg, where he first meets Marillac, who had previously canceled a visit to him on the pretext of being ill. The cardinal, who had already been warned in this way, met his completely stunned niece shortly afterwards, who told him about the scandalous behavior of the Queen Mother and her expulsion. Richelieu calms her down and sends her home, then through a secret passage (fortunately he once followed the construction of the palace down to the smallest detail and therefore knows it very well) directly into Maria de 'Medici's room, where he and her meets the king. Maria now begins to insult the cardinal violently and foully, while Richelieu humbly kneels before her with tears in his eyes and asks her for forgiveness. Ludwig feels himself and the dignity of the crown deeply and most embarrassingly offended by the abusive behavior of his mother. When Maria gives him the choice between her and his first minister, and Richelieu then humbly asks the king to dismiss him, Louis XIII sends him. out and, embarrassed, leaves after him his mother, who already feels like a “winner”. While the king is setting off for Versailles with Monsieur Saint-Simon , his mother has invited Michel de Marillac, the Duc d'Epernon and all her other friends to the Palais du Luxembourg to celebrate her “victory” over Richelieu with her. Louis XIII but sees his mother's behavior as "the greatest disgrace that has ever been inflicted on the crown" and as the deepest insult to his dignity.
Richelieu can already see his overthrow and subsequent assassination by the mob. His servant Desbournais and his niece are hastily packing their belongings in order to flee to Le Havre via Pontoise . Then his friend, Cardinal de Lavalette, tries to calm him down and tells him to stay, because “If you give up the game, you lose!” Immediately afterwards, the Comte de Tourville enters and brings Richelieu a message from M. Saint -Simon to visit the King at Versailles for a clarifying discussion. Fearful, the First Minister sets off. Shortly afterwards, M. Saint-Simon brought the great seal keeper Marillac in the midst of the celebrating guests in the Palais du Luxembourg, also ordering Louis XIII to go to Versailles immediately. Marillac leaves in the firm belief that he will be appointed Prime Minister by the King. But he experiences a nasty surprise when his coach is stopped by royal musketeers and he has to hand over the seals of the Dauphiné , as well as Navarre and France, which are brought to the king. In contrast, Richelieu is received by the King with the words: "Your Eminence, I have in you the most loyal and most affectionate servant in the world!" At the request of the Cardinal to accept his resignation, since it does not give rise to the rift between the King and wants to be his mother, says Louis XIII: “I am more obliged to the state than to my mother. Continue to be my loyal servant, who you always have been, and I will protect you from the intrigues of your enemies to the best of my ability. ”Meanwhile, the Duke d'Epernon in the Palais du Luxembourg receives the from a musketeer in the presence of Maria de 'Medici Orders to leave Paris immediately. The same order overtook the Duke of Bellegarde in the bathroom - along with the news that Marshal de Marillac had been beheaded that morning. This day goes down in history as the “day of the bruised” .
Shortly afterwards, Richelieu told his niece Marie Madeleine and his friends Père Joseph and Lavalette that he had unsuccessfully asked the king for leniency for Marillac and that Maria de 'Medici had left for her cousin, the governor Isabella, on his recommendation for exile in the Spanish Netherlands is. Père Joseph, on the other hand, reports that Emperor Ferdinand II has been in great trouble since the end of hostilities with France through the Treaty of Gerasco, because even if Wallenstein is now fighting for him again, Ferdinand fears the troops of the Swedish king. Richelieu can now proceed to free France from the clutches of the Habsburgs.
5. The Fatherland in Danger (La Patrie en Danger) (1630–1638)
In order to be prepared for the great conflict with Spain and Habsburg, Richelieu kept France as long as possible from all warlike ventures. Although the king showered the cardinal with all honors and even made him duke, the first minister gradually grew to become the most hated man of his age because of his brutal tax policy. This hatred is passed on from the people to those who work closely with them.
When Richelieu fell ill again, he sensed the danger of an attack by Spain, whose power he saw growing weaker - while that of France was growing - and so the time for military success was running out. In this situation, the peace-loving governor of the Spanish Netherlands, Isabella, died on December 1, 1633, and King Philip IV in Madrid did not appoint a successor for a long time. Richelieu's aim is to secure France by extending it - preferably through clever negotiations - to the borders of ancient Gaul , that is, the Spanish Netherlands, Lorraine , the Free County of Burgundy , Savoy, Roussillon and Cerdagne.
With the advance of the Swedish King Gustav II Adolf, who was financially supported by France, into the southern German lands, the Thirty Years' War reached its climax. To stop the Swedes, Emperor Ferdinand II calls back his best - and richest - general, Wallenstein. The generalissimo knows, however, that neither the favor of the moment nor the success will prevent him from being dismissed a second time, and so he commutes for a long time between the fronts, negotiating with the enemy and even drawing betrayal of the emperor and empire Consideration. Père Joseph visits Wallenstein in his camp and tries to persuade him to form an alliance with France by promising him the support of the French king for the crown of Bohemia. But when Gustav Adolf moves against Dresden, Wallenstein does not hesitate to go into the field for the emperor against the Swedish king , and in the battle of Lützen the "Lion from Midnight", as Gustav Adolf is also called, is killed. When Wallenstein then ended the fighting, Ferdinand II sensed betrayal and issued a power of attorney for General Matthias Gallas to arrest Wallenstein dead or alive. The emperor's captors reach the generalissimo in the citadel of Eger and kill him. Richelieu sees the end of Wallenstein as a warning to all minions and men with extraordinary abilities.
In June 1634, the brother of the King of Spain, the Cardinal-Infante Don Fernando, was appointed regent of the Spanish Netherlands, which suddenly changed the political landscape in Central Europe. Philip IV has forbidden his brother to take direct action against France, but allowed him to attack its allies. Don Fernando therefore wants to unite his Castilian and Brabant troops with the emperor's army and destroy the Swedes once and for all. On August 25th his troops unite with those of the emperor under General von Gallas and three days later prepare the army of the Duke of Weimar, the Swedes and the Protestants a crushing defeat in the battle of Nördlingen . Richelieu now proposes to his king to increase the pressure on Spain and the emperor by marching the Swedes against Lorraine and Alsace , instigating intrigues against the Spaniards in Italy and making pacts with the Dutch rebels and the Swedish regent Axel Oxenstierna to divide the Netherlands between the United Provinces and France. When the elector of Trier, Philipp Christoph von Sötern , who is both the vassal of the emperor and the king of Spain, made a pact with Richelieu (he had already placed himself under the protection of France in 1632), Don Fernando had him arrested by order of his brother . Since it would be too damaging to France's reputation to accept the arrest of one of his wards with impunity, Richelieu has no choice but to take up the gauntlet and do what he has tried to avoid for 15 years: war on Spain and the emperor to explain.
On May 19, 1635, the herald of the coat of arms of France, Jean Gratiolet, appeared in front of the Palais des Cardinal-Infanten in Brussels, in accordance with the old tradition, to the formal declaration of war by Louis XIII. to deliver. Since Don Fernando does not take note of the declaration, Gratiolet pegs it to the border post between France and the Holy Roman Empire. Don Fernando is convinced that the French will receive them as liberators from their - as he believes - despised King and his hated First Minister. And after initial successes, the troops of the King of France are really being thrown back all along the line. There is nothing they can do to counter the vigor, discipline and strength of the Spanish army, which is marching towards Paris. While the French are holding up well in Italy, Lorraine and Alsace, the capital is suddenly threatened. When the councilors of Corbie handed over the keys of their city to the Cardinal-Infante and the Spaniards soon stood in front of Compiègne , Richelieu suggested that Louis XIII. withdraws south of the Loire , while Cardinal Lavalette is to negotiate with the Swedes and Saxe-Weimar about their attack in the rear of the Spaniards. However, the king refuses to leave Paris and orders the general mobilization of the population. The people respond enthusiastically, but blame Richelieu for the war. He sees himself wrongly accused of being a scapegoat, but Père Joseph is able to motivate him to openly lend a hand, spade in hand, for the defense of Paris. His willingness to work is well received by the population, and the mood is turning in his favor. In the State Council, the cardinal decides that all mayors who hand over their cities to the enemy without a fight should be sentenced to death, all nobles who do not go to war should be deprived of the title of nobility and every soldier who surrenders should become a galley convict . No loot should fall into the hands of the enemy in combat areas, which is why all mills and ovens there must be destroyed.
Since Corbie acts as the supply center for Don Fernando, Louis XIII decide. and Richelieu to regain this key position. The scorched earth tactic and the siege of Corbie finally pay off: Don Fernando gives up the city, and the loss of Corbie is the signal for the army of the Emperor and his Spanish allies to retreat down the line: In Italy , Lorraine, Flanders and Burgundy. The uprising of the people triumphs over the invaders, and Richelieu's France has passed its test.
The war continues beyond the borders - especially in front of the imperial fortress Breisach , which has been besieged for weeks by Bernhard von Sachsen-Weimar , the ally of France, in order to finally cut off the imperial troops from the Spanish. During this important phase of the war, Père Joseph fell seriously ill. Instead of traveling to Alsace himself to assist the siege troops with his advice, he is soon dying. In the presence of Richelieu and Mazarin, the herald of the coat of arms Gratiolet brings the news of the conquest of Breisach the day before (December 17, 1638), just as Père Joseph took his last breath. With the death of the "Eminence Gray", Richelieu loses his "most loyal, sincere and selfless friend and advisor."
6. The Whims of Fate (Les Caprices de la Providence) (1639–1642)
Even in the last years of his life, Richelieu demanded superhuman sacrifices from the French. The population groans under the tax burden and can only be held down with force and tough measures, which is why the First Minister covers the whole country with a dense network of agents and police spies. While King Ludwig XIII. fears that France will plunge into the abyss and counts on negotiations with Spain to give the people peace and tax breaks, Richelieu - who feels that his strength is weakening and he is running out of time - wants to fight on to win Lorraine.
Since King Ludwig is lonely and unhappy, Richelieu's niece Marie Madeleine suggests that her uncle find a new favorite for the monarch. This is soon found in the epic, beautiful Henri d'Effiat Marquis des Cinq Mars. The son of a marshal of France, thanks to the cardinal's patronage, he rose to the position of captain of cloaks and grand maître de la cloakroom at a young age, the best-dressed gentleman of Paris and setting the tone in all questions of fashion and good taste. When the king and Cinq Mars finally get closer after some time, one ponders for a long time which office and which dignity would be appropriate for the new position of the insatiable Marquis de Cinq Mars. Finally, Richelieu had the idea of appointing him the king's chief steward - a position that at that time was still occupied by Bellegarde, who had fallen out of favor with the king and had been banished to the deepest provinces. While Cinq Mars enjoys being at the center of a large society that admires him, Louis XIII wants him. but all to yourself, which is why Richelieu spends much of his time settling disputes and reconciliation between the king and his favorite.
In the course of 1640 a strong opposition to the King and his First Minister was formed again, headed by the towering figure of the Comte de Soissons , Count of Bourbon, who enjoys a legendary reputation in France. In the free principality of Sedan he gathered all the rebellious nobility of France. This new fronde is determined to rid the world of Richelieu and his followers, and Cinq Mars is secretly one of its allies. At the Battle of La Marfée , the rebel army and the king's troops face each other for the first time, and Soissons defeats the royals, but dies from a pistol shot himself under unexplained circumstances. Due to a careless remark by Cinq Mars to Richelieu before the battle, in which he assured the cardinal that he could protect him from Soissons, the First Minister knew about the betrayal of the royal favorite. When the Marquis then - with excessive self-overestimation of himself - hopes to be appointed Duke and to marry the beautiful Princess Maria de Gonzaga, who defends the interests of the Spanish party at court, he is bitterly disappointed by Richelieu: The First Minister forbids such an improper mesalliance between an upstart and a princess of royal blood and thus incurs the irreconcilable hatred of the Marquis de Cinq Mars.
In the spring of 1641 the King left Saint Germain and went back to the front - this time to the Spanish border in Roussillon, where the French troops had been operating for a year with varying degrees of success. After six months, Catalonia on this side of the Pyrenees and Roussillon - initially without Perpignan - has been conquered. Cinq Mars, who accompanies the king, intrigues unsuccessfully with the king against Richelieu, but receives an order from Ludwig to write to the Spanish court in order to get an idea of the peace negotiations between Richelieu and Madrid. On the way to the royal camp, Richelieu learns of a conspiracy by the clique around Cinq Mars, Gaston d'Orleans (the king's brother) and Queen Annas with the Spanish court to overthrow the First Minister. When Richelieu arrives at the king's encampment, he is said to be stabbed to death by the traitors in the king's tent. But the cardinal has been warned when entering the tent of Louis XIII. only in armed company and brings him the news of the Catalan uprising in Barcelona against the Spaniards and the election of Louis as Count of Barcelona.
In order to be able to provide the king with proof of the conspiracy, Richelieu uses the children of Queen Anna - the four-year-old Dauphin Ludwig and the two-year-old Duke of Anjou - to put them under pressure. When the king received the irrefutable evidence of the conspiracy surrounding Cinq Mars, his brother and his wife, he - deeply saddened and hurt - had to order the arrest of his favorite, who was staying in Lyon, but secretly ordered the commanding officer of the Musketeers, Treville, to open a city gate to allow the fallen favorite to escape. But since the servant dispatched by Cinq Mars in Lyon cannot find the gate, the favorite goes to sleep and thus does not escape his arrest - to the painful disappointment of Louis XIII. As always, however, the king triumphs over the man Louis: On September 12, 1642, Cinq Mars and his friends are brought to justice in Lyon, and on the same day the judges pronounce the death sentence, which is carried out only five hours later.
After the death of Cardinal de Lavalette in Rivoli (1639) and that of Queen Mother Maria de 'Medici in exile in Cologne (July 1642), Richelieu's last former companions also disappeared. Together with Mazarin, who was appointed cardinal the year before, and with his niece Marie Madeleine, the already seriously ill First Minister continued to work until he was completely exhausted. When the already bedridden cardinal receives a visit from the king and queen, he bequeathed the monarch his cardinal's palace , which from now on will be known as the Palais Royal , also a diamond-set chalice and a silver cupboard, and the queen eight tapestries. He entrusts his family members to the protection of the king before bidding him farewell in the comfort of leaving France at the height of his glory. When Mazarin reported to Queen Anna shortly afterwards that Richelieu - knowing that the king would not live long either - entrusted her with his inheritance and asked him to stand by the future regent's side, he was able to confirm that France was through the newly won provinces of Artois, Cerdagne, Roussilon and Alsace are better protected than ever before and also dominate the French West Indies , Canada , Senegal and Madagascar .
On his deathbed, Richelieu testified to his niece that he had never had any enemies other than those of the state, and that of all people he loved and respected her most. Then he sends her out because she shouldn't see him die. Cardinal Richelieu died on December 4, 1642 with the words "in manus tuas, domine" ("in your hands, Lord").
reception
"The six-part miniseries" Richelieu "'about the French cardinal (1585–1642) was extremely successful when it was first broadcast and even more than satisfied historians because of its realism. Director Decourt paints an unadorned picture of the statesman with all his dichotomies, good and bad qualities. The outstanding portrayal of Pierre Vernier depicts Richelieu as a slightly neurotic intelligence villain. No usual cloak and sword adventure, but high-quality historical entertainment, the quality of which is ensured thanks to 25 main actors, over 900 supporting roles and external shoots at original locations. There is also a first-class soundtrack by star composer Vladimir Cosma and nice guest appearances by popular German actors such as Maria Wimmer, Hans Caninenberg, Alexander Kerst, Werner Kreindl or Jan Hendriks. "
DVD edition
On October 7, 2011, a German-language edition of the series was released on 3 DVDs.
Web links
- Richelieu in the Internet Movie Database (English)