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Richelieu Richelieu was a French cardinal and statesman, who more than anyone else promoted absolutism in France and laid the foundations of the country\'s 17th-century grandness. He was born in Paris on September 9, 1585, and set out on a military career. In order to retain the bishopric of Luçon in the family, however, Richelieu switched to theology and at age 22 was ordained a bishop. As a representative to the Estates-General in 1614, he found a …

…were guaranteed religious freedom. Richelieu, by vigorous and effective measures, succeeded in breaking the political power of the great families of France-making the king an absolute ruler-and in establishing France as the first military power of Europe. He encouraged French exploration and colonization in Canada, where there is a river named for him, and the Indies. A liberal patron of literature, Richelieu was the founder of the French Academy. He died in Paris on December 4, 1642.