The history of the government of France, under the administration of the great Armand du Plessis, Cardinall and Duke of Richlieu, and chief minister of state in that kingdome wherein occur many important negotiations relating to most part of Christendome in his time : with politique observations upon the chapters / translated out of French by J.D. Esq.

That the Kings of France may not be deposed by the Pope.

IT is very often no lesse important to prevent the offending of the Regal Autho∣rity, by the publishing of any pernicious Doctrine, then to oppose any vio∣lences which are offered to it by Arms. In my opinion he spoke very learnedly, who likened this authority to the apple of the eye, which may not be touched though never so little, but the whole man is suddenly troubled and hurt by it; for to say truth, it can hardly be expressed unto how many inconveniences a State is exposed, when once the authority is entrenched upon, or shaken, though it be but a very little. But would not that Magistrate be very much to blame, who should suffer, that the authority of our Kings should be brought under any other power, which might despoil them of it? Were it not the only ready way to open a gate to the revolts of Grandees, who would find means enough to embroyle the State as often as they pleased, if the people might but once be perswaded that the King were guilty of any great sin, uncapable of ruling, suspected of heresy, or a favourer of heretiques? were it not the ready way to furnish the ambition of strangers with a pretext for entring upon and invading the Nation, when and as often as they

would, or had power so to do? Besides, what appearance of any reason were there to tollerate so dangerous at enent, and which all the Fathers of antiquity have condemned as erroneous, & which too was but now late risen up again, in these last ages, and in the time of Gregory the seventh, who first attempted to make it vallid? The King never ceaseth to be King, until he be deposed by him, who first consti∣tuted him to be King, or unlesse he falls under those conditions which his first Con∣stitutor hath declared should be the means he would use to throw him down from his authority; Our Kings are only appointed by the hand of God: He hath made use of their courages to set the Crown upon their heads, and God hath not appoin∣ted, that either Apostasie, Heresie, or any other Crime should be the condition, which should shake them out of their Authority, for that both good and bad do equally raign, as we have heretofore said, and by consequence they cannot be deposed but by God himself; nor can they be deprived of their Authority, for any crime whatever. Besides, if they could be deposed by Popes; it would necessarily follow that the Pope must be superior to them in Temporal Power, for that such deposing must needs be the Act of a superior Iurisdiction, now the Popes are so far from being above them in this particular, that rather on the contrarie the most ingenious and able writers of antiquity have confessed that they are inferior to them. Pope Gelasius writ to the Emperor Anastasius, Polagius the first to Childebert, one of our Kings, and St. Gregory to the Emperor Mauritius, and that in such express terms that their meaning cannot be questioned; The most mo∣derate of them who uphold this error, cannot maintain against these reasons, the power of dispossing Kings, which they ascribe to the Pope; they say indeed it is not an absolute and direct power that they have, and that they do not so much excer∣cise it in despoyling them from commanding, as in dispensing their subjects from their oathes of allegiance which they had made to them; But how frivolous is this evasion? For the Popes cannot dispense with divine right, and the obedience from subjects to their Princes is commanded by divine right in an hundred express places of Holy writ; But I shall passe farther on, and say that it is not in the power of a King to bring himself under such a condition, as that their subjects can be discharged from their duties and oathes, by any means or way whatsoever, for they may not do any Act which is prejudicial to the Regal Authority, entrusted in their hands, but they are bound to leave it entire, not maymed to their successors. Whence it hapned that Philip the Long, intending to make a Treaty with his subjects of Flanders, granted to them for their security of his observing the league, that they might rise against him, and withdraw themselves from his obedience, if he should faile in that which did belong to him or his part, but he was hindred by those of his counsel, who represented to him, that it was unlawful for him to make any such condition.