Retz, JEAN FRANÇOIS PAUL DE GONDI, CARDINAL DE, was born at Montmirail in 1614, of a family originally Italian, that had acquired great estates in Brittany and formed connections with the noblest families of France. His uncle was Archbishop of Paris, and he was early destined for the church in spite of amours, duels, and every form of unclerical behaviour. A friend reproaching him with his debts, 'Cæsar,' said the splendid young prodigal, 'at my age owed six times as much as I do.' Retz was entangled in political intrigues from his childhood up, even under the watchful eye of Richelieu, and, having at length in 1643 obtained the coadjutorship with reversion of the archbishopric of Paris, he skilfully used the position to make the Paris populace devoted to himself. He plotted actively against Mazarin, and was one of the main instigators of the outbreak of the Fronde in October 1648. During the next four years he rose and fell with the fortunes of his party, receiving, however, a cardinal's hat from Rome, until 1652, when he was flung into prison, first at Vincennes, then at Nantes. After two years he made his escape, wandered in Spain and England, appeared at Rome—where, it is said, he secured the election of Pope Alexander VII.—and at length in 1662 made his peace with Louis XIV. by resigning finally his claim to the archbishopric in exchange for the abbacy of St Denis and restoration to his other benefices, with arrears. He spent the rest of his life mainly in quiet at Paris, at Commercy, and St Mihiel in Lorraine. His enormous debts, reaching to four millions of francs, he provided for in 1675 by determining to 'live for his creditors,' making over to them his whole income save 20,000 livres. He died at Paris, 24th August 1679.
Retz was connected by marriage with Madame de Sévigné, and figures in a perhaps too pleasing light in her delightful letters. His Mémoires, coming down but till 1655, throws much light on the dark and troubled intrigues of the Fronde, and displays quite remarkable skill in narrative and elaborate character-drawing. His own character has been sketched with faithful, if unkindly, truth by his great antagonist, La Rochefoucauld, and the sum of the whole is contained in the words: 'He has raised up the greatest disorders in the state without having formed any plan how to profit by them.'
The earliest edition of his masterpiece in a kind peculiar to French literature appeared at Nancy in 1717, but the first adequate edition was given in the 24th vol. of Michaud and Poujoulat's collection (Paris, 1836). Later and better editions are by Gézuz (1844) and Champollion-Figeac (1859); but the best is that in the series of 'Les Grands Ecrivains de la France,' edited successively by A. Feillet, J. Gourdault, and R. Chantelauze (10 vols., i.-ix., 1872-88). See works by Curnier (2 vols. 1863), Topin (3d ed. 1872), Chantelauze (3 vols. 1878-79), and Gazier (1876).