Final answer:
Cardinal Richelieu, minister to Louis XIII, and Cardinal Mazarin, minister to Louis XIV, were instrumental in reinforcing the French absolute monarchy by centralizing power and suppressing noble authority. Cardinal Richelieu and Talleyrand helped preserve the authority of the French monarchy.
Step-by-step explanation:
Cardinal Richelieu, minister to Louis XIII, and Cardinal Mazarin, minister to Louis XIV, helped to preserve the authority of the monarchy. Cardinal Richelieu, serving under Louis XIII, focused on consolidating royal power by restraining the influence of the nobility and extending France's influence through foreign policy.
After Richelieu's death, Cardinal Mazarin became the chief minister to Louis XIV and continued the work of strengthening the monarchy.
Mazarin faced significant opposition during the Fronde, a series of civil wars, but his management helped to solidify the absolutist state that Louis XIV would famously embody.