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What happened during the Day of the Dupes in 1630?

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Full-length portrait of Cardinal Richelieu by Philippe de Champaigne, showing him in red clerical robes holding a red book, standing beside a balustrade with a draped curtain behind. — Cardinal Richelieu As both statesman and churchman, Cardinal Richelieu was the acknowledged architect of France's greatness in the 17th century. In 1640, when this full-length portrait was painted (likely by Philippe de Champaigne), he was embroiled in a dispute with the pope and other religious controversies along with many other consequences of expanding French power across Europe. He would die two years later, facing conspiracies against his life and suffering ill health.

The Day of the Dupes (November 10–12, 1630) was a dramatic political crisis in which the queen mother, Marie de Médicis, attempted to force Louis XIII to dismiss his principal minister, Cardinal Richelieu.12

Encouraged by Catholic zealots and the keeper of the seals, Michel de Marillac, the queen mother sought to end Richelieu’s policy of supporting Protestant states against the Habsburgs in the Thirty Years’ War. Marie de Médicis, allied with the king’s brother Gaston, duc d’Orléans, believed she had successfully convinced the king to remove the cardinal.123

However, after a period of suspense, Louis XIII recognized that Richelieu was essential for maintaining royal authority and navigating complex state affairs. The king chose to stand by his minister, effectively defeating the conspiracy. Following this failure, Marie de Médicis and Gaston were forced into exile, and the king began to adopt the cardinal's firm methods in dealing with dissident nobles.231