[LOUIS XIII OF FRANCE]: (1601-1643) King of France 1610-43 and King of Navarre 1610-20. Son of Henry IV. Louis XIII ...

[LOUIS XIII OF FRANCE]: (1601-1643) King of France 1610-43 and King of Navarre 1610-20. Son of Henry IV. Louis XIII ascended the throne at the early age of nine when his father was assassinated. His mother the Queen Marie de´ Medici acting as Regent. Louis XIII took power in 1617 by exiling his mother and executing her Italian followers. An interesting D.S., Louis, by his secretary, one page, folio, Camp de la Rochelle, 27th September 1628, to the Finance department in Bordeaux, in old French. The cleanly written document refers to the cities of Bordeaux and Montpelier, and further states in part `… of the necessity of our affairs, and on the occasion of the siege of my city of La Rochelle for the payment of salaries… For this reason we have issued a decree containing our intentions´ A letter of interesting content, written during the last days of the long siege of La Rochelle. Countersigned by Raimond Phelypeaux, Treasurer and Secretary of State under King Louis XIII. Addressee to the verso. Small overall age wear, with heavy creasing and one small tear only to the lower edge, but only affecting in part the countersignature, otherwise G The Siege of La Rochelle, alsoº known as the ''Grand Siege of La Rochelle'' was a result of a war between the French Royal forces of Louis XIII and the Huguenots of La Rochelle in 1627-28. The siege marked the height of the struggle between the Catholics and the Protestants in France, and ended with a complete victory for King Louis XIII and the Catholics. In August 1628, only a month before the present letter was written, a third English fleet was dispatched under the Admiral Earl of Lindsey, consisting of 29 warships and 31 merchantmen. In September 1628, the English fleet tried to relieve the city. But after bombarding French positions and failing to force the sea wall, the English fleet had to withdraw. Following this last disappointment, the city surrendered on 28 October 1628.