We in France have the perfect system of government. With the grace of God our King is placed on the throne and makes laws, war and governs the land. I have had the honour to serve two monarchs, Henry VI and Louis XIII. King Henry being originally a Huguenot was forced to consult with the religious factions, the nobility, and the church. Our much beloved King was fond of saying that he wishes to see a chicken in the pot of every peasant on a Sunday. Yet all factions are convinced that he ruled for the good of all Frenchmen and yet he maintained absolute control of government without resorting to the use of force. The King, it is said, used to compare “… the Kingdom of France to an apothecary’s shop, in which are contained not only the most salutary remedies, but also the most subtle poisons; and he said that the King, ought to make the best advantage of both, by mixing them in the proper manner.” (Thompson, Lectures, p. 118) Of course, he was blessed to have an efficient minister in the Duke of Sully, who ably managed those main concerns of the modern state; finance, agriculture, and commerce. I begin to wonder if an effective bureaucracy is not the first necessity of a modern state such as ours. We have recently seen great changes since the unfortunate assassination of good King Henry by a fanatical Catholic. A period of instability followed during the early years of the reign of the child-king Louis XIII who was only a young boy in 1610. Fortunately the rise of able and wily cleric Cardinal Richelieu has restored France to national strength and international prominence. However, since 1624 when Richelieu became Minister, all minorities, including Huguenots who are also banned from New France, have been repressed under the absolute authority of the Crown. We have an all-powerful centralized government that to the delight of most of my countrymen, has seen the power of France once again rising to pre-eminence among the nation states of Europe. Cardinal Richelieu also offers the best hope for the success of New France. My appointment as his representative in New France and the organization of the Company of One Hundred Associates with a monopoly and the requirement to send out settlers was, in my humble estimation, the best thing that had happened to the colony. Would such efforts had been undertaken from the early years of involvement with the colony, we would be much more secure in establishing French civilization in this new land. Return to Other Ways of Seeing... |
