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Harshness towards individuals who flout the laws and commands of state is for the public good; no greater crime against the public interest is possible than to show leniency to those who violate it.

— Cardinal Richelieu Champlain's Dream‎ (2008)

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Source and credibility

Wikiquote does not flag this quote as disputed or misattributed.

Source: As quoted in Champlain's Dream‎ (2008) by David Hackett Fischer
Work: Champlain's Dream‎, 2008
Source quality: Secondhand citation Quoted from another book or article rather than from the original.

More by Cardinal Richelieu

Deception is the knowledge of kings.

If one would give me six lines written by the hand of the most honest man, I would find something in them to have him hanged.

We may employ artifice to deceive a rival, anything against our enemies.

The last reasoning of Kings.

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Had Luther and Calvin been confined before they had begun to dogmatize, the states would have been spared many troubles.

The Catholic Encyclopedia (1913)

Secrecy is the first essential in affairs of state.

To know how to dissemble is the knowledge of kings.

To mislead a rival, deception is permissible; one may use all means against his enemies.

Artifice is allowable in deceiving a rival, we may employ everything against our enemies.

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Attribution

Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Cardinal Richelieu (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.