FRANCE. 
724 
to the command of the Englilh fleet, endeavour to force 
his way into the-harbour of Rochelle. The mole, firmly 
founded and llrortgly fortified, refilled and repelled the 
utmoft weight of his attacks. Hopelefs of fuccefs, he 
fleered back his courfe to England. The laft fparkofen- 
liiufiafm, which had fo long infpired the miferable inha- 
btants of Rochelle, expired with the fignal of his retreat. 
Not until his fails were loft to their view, did they con- 
fent to furrender ; and Come idea may be formed of the 
miferies they had endured, finceof fifteeen thoufand per- 
fons who had originally been fluit up in that city, four 
thoufand alone furvived the fatal effects of famine, fa¬ 
tigue, and the fword. The king entered Rochelle in 
triumph ; and the fortune of the cardinal was more con- 
fpicuous in the moment of fubmiffion than even his ge¬ 
nius had been fuccefsful in the courfe of the frege. 
Scarcely had the citizens opened their gates to the vidtors, 
than a temped fo violent agitated the ocean, as to bury 
in the waves the immenfe ftrudhire he had planned. Had 
the fleet of England remained but a day longer, the fury 
of the (form had overwhelmed the pride of the cardinal, 
and preferved the freedom of the city ; but the wretched 
inhabitants drew fome confolation from the benevolence 
of their monarch ; their perfons and effedls were fpared ; 
and the moderation of Louis, fatisfied with having broken 
the power of the hugonots, and wrefied from them their 
flrong hold, ftill permitted them the full exercife of their 
religion ; but they were deprived of all their cautionary 
towns, and confequently of the power of defending them- 
fe’.ves in time to come. This put an end, in 1628, to the 
civil wars on account of religion in France. Hiflorians 
fay, that in thefe wars above a million of men lofi their 
lives ; that one hundred and fifty million of livres were 
fpent in carrying them on ; and that nine cities, four hun¬ 
dred villages, two thoufand churches, two thoufand mo- 
nafteries, and ten thoufand houfes, were burnt or other- 
wife deftroyed during their continuance. 
The contempt of Richelieu for the fee of Rome had 
been inftanced as we have feen in the expulfion of the ec- 
clefiaflical forces from the Valteline. Superior to the in¬ 
fluence of religious fuperftition, from political motives 
alone, he had armed the power of the crown againft the 
reformed; to exalt the glory of France, and to deprefs 
the honfe of Auftria, he now refigned his own perfonal 
refentments. On the death of Vincent duke of Mantua, 
bis kinfman the duke of Nevers pleaded his claim as the 
next male in fucceflion to that duchy; hut the emperor 
afierted his right as fupreme prince, and bellowed the in- 
veftiture on the duke of Guaftulla ; and the duke of Sa¬ 
voy alfo urged his pretenfions to the marquifate of Mont- 
ferrat; both were fupported by the forces and treafures of 
Philip ; the banners of Spain were difplayed from the walls 
of Mantua; and the duke of Nevers could only lament 
an ufurpation which he was incapable 0/ refilling- He 
had incurred the difpleafure of the cardinal, by entering 
into the cabals of his enemies; yet Richelieu advifed the 
king to embrace the opportunity of fupporting his own 
fubjeft, the duke of Nevers, agai: 1 It the injultice and am¬ 
bition of the honfe of Auftria. The ardent fpirit of the 
minifter communicated itfelf to the monarch ; and Louis, 
early in the enfuing fpring, prepared to march to the re¬ 
lief of Cafal, then befieged by the forces of the confede¬ 
rates. Neither the inclemency of the feafon, nor the rug¬ 
ged tracts-of the Alps, oppofed his progrefs; he pene¬ 
trated through the narrow pal's of Suza ; and the duke 
of Savoy, alarmed at his approach, confented to defect his 
allies, life engaged to fupply with provilions the forces 
cf Louis; and agreed, with his own army, to join the 
French in driving the Spaniards from Cafal : but his 
heart was full of difaffeclion : he loon revolted, and uni¬ 
ted his arms with thole of the enemies of France. 
To the title of minifter, the king of France now added 
that of lieutenant-general; and Richelieu, polfelfed of all 
military and civil power, crofted the Alps in perfon, and 
continued his march with unwearied rapidity. The 
heads of his columns were already pointed towards Turin, 
and the duke was diligently occupied in preparing for 
the defence of his capital, when Richelieu, fuddenly 
changing his direction, prefented himfelf bef re the gates 
of Pignerol; that important fortrefs, which opened a di¬ 
rect road from Dauphiny into Italy, was taker, in twelve 
days ; and the minifter fummoned Louis to the camp, to 
Ihare the glory of his ambitious projefls. With an army 
of twenty-five thoufand men, the king of France overran 
and reduced the country of Savoy ; Mazarin, afterwards 
fo well known in France by the dignity of cardinal and the 
power of minifter, was fent to negociate with Louis on 
behalf of the duke of Savoy ; a partial fufpenfion of arms 
was all he could obtain ; and that unhappy prince, who 
beheld his territories portioned out between his impla¬ 
cable enemies, and faithlefs allies, funk himfelf into the 
grave the vi6tim of difappointed ambition. His death 
facilitated the progrefs of the French. Revel, Ville 
Franche, and Pontcallier, inftantly capitulated ; but their 
career of conqueft was checked by a peftiiential diforder, 
which thinned and debilitated the armies of France. 
The king himfelf indifpoled, and attended by the cardi¬ 
nal, retired to Lyons; and the remnant of the troops un¬ 
der the marefchals de la Force, Schomberg, and Maril- 
lac, were ordered to proceed to the relief of Cafal. Fee¬ 
ble and enervated by difeafe, the ardour of the generals 
infpired the foldiers; they already beheld the^walls of 
that fortrefs, and the camp of the befiegers ; but when 
they hourly expected the fignal for engaging, they were 
preferved from the encounter with the frelh and vigorous 
troops of Spain, by intelligence of the treaty of Ratilbon, 
negotiated by Mazarin, in 1630, which ellablilhed the 
duke of Nevers in the peaceable poflellion of the duchy 
of Mantua and the marquifate of Montferrat. 
Sweden, animated by the heroic genius of the great 
Guftavus, had already penetrated into Germany, and 
lliaken by fucceflive victories the imperial houfe of Au¬ 
ftria; to fecond her efforts the cardinal negociated a trea¬ 
ty, by which he engaged annually to fupply Guftavus with 
four hundred thoufand crowns, while lie acquired with 
equal addrefs, by a fecret article with the duke of Savoy, 
the flrong fortrefs of Pignerol, and prevailed on the duke 
of Mantua to admit a French garrifon into Cafal. Yet 
even thefe negociations, fo advantageous to his country, 
could not exempt him from the malice of his adverfaries. 
The queen-mother, and the duke of Orleans, Hill plotted 
againft him ; but their adherents, the princefs of Conti, 
with the ducheffes of Elboeuf and Leldiguieres, were fen- 
tenced to exile; and the marefchal Baflompierre was 
committed to the Baftiie. Mary of Medicis, in 1631, ef- 
caped to Flanders from the Hern juftice of her foil, and 
the inexorable refentment cf his minifter ; the duke of 
Orleans fought Ihelterfrom the (form in the court of Lor- 
rain, and elpoufed Margaret the lifter of that prince. 
The pride of the king of France was fenfibly wounded 
by this alliance of his brother with the houfe of Lor- 
rain. Twice he invaded the territories of that prince, 
and twice compelled him to (lie for peace on the molt 
humiliating conditions. Amidft thefe alarms the duke of 
Orleans had quitted a court which could no longer afford 
him fecurity, and had retired to his mother Mary in 
Flanders. While Louis purfued his career of victory in 
Lorraine, his brother having collected a feeble band of 
two thoufand followers, penetrated into Burgundy, ex¬ 
horted the inhabitants to arm againft the arrogance of the 
cardinal, and attacked and deftroyed the fuburbs of Di¬ 
jon. Chafed fron) thence by the marefchal de la Force, 
he retreated into Auvergne ; and purfued by marefchal 
Schomberg, efcaped with his miferable train into Lan¬ 
guedoc. The duke of Montmorency, who governed that 
province, received the brother of his fovereign with open 
arms, and efpouled his caufe with ardour. Though 
Thouloufe, tlie capital, maintained its loyalty, and pro¬ 
claimed the adhe -nts of the duke of Orleans rebels, yet 
the amiable qualities of Montmorency drew to Pezenas 
the 
