Chronicles of a Cardinal's Cats

by HopesWriting

Summary:

Cardinal Richelieu had 14 cats.
Yes, historically, the villain of The Three Musketeers, had a soft spot for cats.
Here are some of tales (and tails) about the lives, adventures, and mischief of those cats who lived in Paris with his Eminence the Cardinal.

UPDATE: After a VERY long break, I'm finally writing again, and I've posted a new chapter here.

Notes:

I do not own The Three Musketeers. I do not own the book form, nor any of the many films that have been made of it, not the BBC TV series. I do not own Cardinal Richelieu. I am not making any money from this fanfic; it is merely for entertainment purposes.
I am well aware that Cardinal Richelieu is an antagonist both in the book and on screen. This story is not an attempt to justify his faults in the book, in film, and certainly not in real life history. However, I read about Cardinal Richelieu owning cats in real life and the cat lover in me succumbed to the temptation to imagine them and write about them.
I am also aware that Cardinal Richelieu may come off as somewhat OOC in this fanfic. This is because, in my headcanon, he is one of those people who tends to be nicer to cats than to other people. In real life there are some people who do like animals better than other humans. In this story, the cats are his one weakness and bring out the tender side in this normally dangerous statesman.
I apologize in advance for any historical inaccuracies I end up making. Please do not copy or use this story without my permission. Please review, however, this is my first attempt at writing fanfiction so please be gentle.

Chapter 1: Prologue

    Armand Jean de Plessis, Duke of Richelieu, better known as Cardinal Richelieu, also known as “the Red Eminence,” was one of the most powerful people in seventeenth century France. He was the Chief Minister to King Louis XIII from 1624 to his death in 1642. Since the king was young and somewhat inexperienced, the cardinal ended up doing a great deal of the work of running France. He was efficient, industrious, and could be ruthless in his methods. He was a person both respected and feared.
    He also loved cats.
    Yes, the man who was powerful, was a workaholic, and was feared by many humans doted on small, furry cats. He eventually acquired no less than fourteen of them. When he died in 1642, he left money in his will to provide for their needs and appointed a cat caretaker to look after them.
    These are some of their stories.