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Show I o::oxo::::o:to Monarch and Minister Both Soldiers at Heart I have said that Louis was military; from the childhood when he ranged little toy sliver regiments and harnessed har-nessed toy guns to dogs, to the last great day before Perpignan. I have said that Richelieu was essentially a commander. Well, the two men having this one capital natlonnl quality In common, though very differently exercised exer-cised In each, were linked by It They were both, at heart, soldiers. Louis XIII would never have made a good general officer; Richelieu would not only have made one of the best general officers In history, hut did in practice act as a general officer of the highest talent ; and if he bad been called emperor Instead of cardinal, the whole world would see It Louis XIII could never have swept over a mass of detail with bis eye. choosing the exact Instant In which to plant the blow, to fall on the defensive, de-fensive, or to retire, organize, and triumph through organization. He could not ever have handled great numbers of men. Richelieu had all those qualities. But both men differing so vastly In the degree of their military talent, were military to the core, and therein Is found the true point of contact between be-tween them. From "Richelieu," by Hilaire Belloc |