From the anecdotes recorded by his physician Héroard to the massacre of Nègrepelisse, via the coup against his favourite Concini, Louis XIII could be perceived as a prince of emotion, acting under the sway of anger. Yet, the image of the wrathful king gradually gives way to that of a monarch of righteous anger, guided by reason and state-sanctioned Christian virtues. In the aftermath of the Wars of Religion, theorists of the passions and of royal power – from princely education to the art of governance – are prompted to reinterpret royal action in light of raison d’État. This article proposes a rereading of Louis XIII’s royal performance as constructed by the political thought of the 1620s and 1630s: one that legitimizes the state’s monopoly on violence – the Passion of State – in contrast to the unruly, passionate violence of its subjects.