15,697
edits
Changes
no edit summary
====Thirty Years War====
<div class="portal" style='float:right; width:35%'>
====Related Articles====
{{#dpl:category=French History|ordermethod=firstedit|order=descending|count=8}}
</div>
[[File: Battle of Lens.jpeg|200px|thumb|left| 19th-century painting of the Battle of Lens (1648)]]
Richelieu was unique among statesmen of the time as he put the needs of his king before that of his religion. He devised a strategy that promoted and safeguarded the geopolitical interests of France. Despite being an early adherent of the Devot party, he was determined to limit the power of his fellow Catholics the Hapsburgs.<ref> Levi, p. 123</ref>