Research Notes
Louis XIV –
• Born 1638
• Was king in 1643 – ruled for 72 years
• His father died when he was 8 and he was named king technically
• Inherited a divided, bankrupt nation with a poor military
• He believed his power as king was a gift from god and he would rule as an absolute monarch
Louis XIV – http://history.wisc.edu/sommerville/351/351-13.htm
• Did not officially take leadership until death of Cardinal Mazarin in 1661
• Had a great appreciation for the arts – later built Palace of Versailles
• Married Maria Theresa, daughter of Philip IV of Spain, as to connect the 2 nations
• Very religious – attended mass everyday
• Replaced his mother from the high council with powerful clergymen and bureaucrats
• Louis blamed parliament of Paris for the Fronde – in 1673 he forced it to register edicts before it prepared remonstrates
• When the war with Spain ended in 1659, direct taxation and many arrears were written off – indirect taxation rose as France grew more prosperous
• Louis moved into Versailles in 1682 which set standards for royal palaces across Europe and acted as a showpiece of French monarch power
• The French Academy founded in 1634 extended artistic creativity
King Louis XIV – http://www.spanishsuccession.nl/louis.html
• Louis is remembered for raising French arts to peak level
The Term Paper on King Louis Xiv French France
... in the Great French Revolution of 1789, only to be replaced by King's grandson Louis XVI. (King Louis XIV, 2004) Influence of ... King Louis XIV ruled France for some 72 years, the longest by any French head of State. It is believed that reign of King Louis XIV ... words of the famous French philosopher Voltaire perhaps best depict the person and monarch in King Louis XIV. According to Voltaire, ...
• Also remembered for being a power hungry king attempting to submit everyone to his authority
• Cultural effects are in part a side effect to his political agenda
• Success in war with Spain brought high fiscal pressure which lead to the revolt of the Fronde in 1648 – ended with signing of Peace of Rueil in 1649
• Spanish conde was arrested which lead to revolt of several princes – this civil war ended with the surrender of the Bordeaux to the crown in 1653 – peace concluded in 1659 when france gained considerable territorial advantages
• At 21, louis had seen 5 years of civil war and a war with spain his whole life – his marriage with Maria Theresa was a condition forced upon spain to have peace
• French government moved from paris to Versailles in 1682 – it was an expressionof Louis’ glory – it was a place where he could gather his court and the higher aristocracy and nobility to keep an eye on them (he wanted to remain ‘top dog’) – the palace was close to Paris but far enough to be surrounded by an unruly population
• Louis’ policy of encouraging an extravagant lifestyle esured plenty of work for artists
• He expanded French borders
• Dies 1715
Britannica Encyclopaedia – http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/348968/Louis-XIV
• Was 9 during the fronde – civil war between mazarin and the government, in which he lived in both fear and poverty – shaped much of the kings personality since he was stripped of so much and lost trust in the actions of the nobles and Paris itself
• Mazarin won the civil war, reconstructed the government so the leader had more control to prevent this from happening again. At this time louis was a pupil to mazarin and looked up to the control mazarin had manoeuvred over the nobles. Also took on mazarins love of the arts and for elegance.
• At this time the spain war was ending and louis was instructed to marry marie-theresa to consolidate relations between to two countries
• Mazarin dies, louis shocks the country by taking over the entire state kingdom. Dictatorship by divine right – he saw himself as gods representative and treated all disobedience as a sin. Saw that he couldn’t do any wrong.
The Essay on Louis Xiv Power France Absolute
Sara Schneider Mr. CurwenLouis XIV In the seventeenth century there were different types of leaders in Europe. The classic monarchial rule was giving way to absolutist rule. Absolute kings claimed to be ruling directly from God, therefore having divine rule that could not be interfered with. In 1643 Louis XIV began his reign over France as an absolute king. When Louis the XIV began his rule in ...
• Had the nobles duel with each other to find the better/stronger men – this put them in competition with each other and not with the king.
• Nobles had started 11 civil wars in 40 years
• Louis brought them to the court and corrupted them by food, drink, gambling yet all this was on the condition that they pleased him – nobles were no longer political influence
• Reformed the arts and way of life; inlfluenced artists, landscape, architecture and music in favour of himself
• He began to build extravagant residences in st germain, Versailles
• Versailles was an internationally admired palace that captured French prestige and embodied it stature. This allowed him to remove himself from the violent/influencial city but as well to isolate the court. This brought about an almost mythical quality
• Colbert’s reform: self sufficient country, maximize exports, bourgeois expanded with merchants and the army – recruitment and increased economy. Created more roads, canals, and ports to export
• Invaded Netherlands as he saw it as his wife’s property and to show the strong presence france had. His army helped him expand france, defeat dutch-spain coalition, and develop a navy as big as the English.
• Formed a military machine that continues during and after his reign
• 4 main military excursions: war of devoltion (spain), Dutch War, War of Palatinate, War of Spanish Succession
• Minister of war: free standing army with uniforms, ranks, equipment…
Textbook Notes
Pg 82
• Created the grandest court Europe had ever seen
• France developed a strong sense of nationhood – not just people from a particular region
• By 1715, france established an extensive overseas empire that provided resources and markets for it to be an economic power
• Influences of absolutism in eastern europe – peter the great
Pg 80
• Jean baptiste Colbert was appointed controller general by louis
• Central principle was mercantilism – government regulates economic activity based on the idea that international power is based on wealth
The Essay on Marie Antoinette French France Louis
Biography of Marie Antoinette Marie Jos " ep he Jeanne Antoinette was born on 2 nd November 1795 in Vienna, Austria to the emperor Joseph and empress Maria Therese. Her mother was a very powerful woman, who had about 15 children in total. In 1770, when she was only fourteen, Marie was married off to the French Dauphin (heir to the throne). Before she was married, Marie had to say goodbye to her ...
• Believed economic success depended on self sufficiency
• encouraged the creation of domestic industry ( tapestry, silk, cotton)
• discouraged imports to decrease money export
• created powerful merchant marine – ensured france’s positive balance in trade
• began trade with Caribbean and North American colonies
• encouraged colonization of new France
• taxation policies brought money to royal treasury – toll roads, milling and shipping taxes
• this put burden on poor instead of rich – thought if rich had more money in their pocket they would spend more
Louis – http://www.gameo.org/encyclopedia/contents/L6713.html/?searchterm=louis%20xiv
• he did not allow for the pope to interfere with political affairs
Louis XIV – Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr. (book)
• a statement by louis to Parliament of Paris at age 13: “Gentlemen, I have come to my parliament to tell you that in accordance with the law of my state, I am going to take upon myself the management of my government and I hope that the goodness of god will grant that this will be with piety and justice…”
• the reaction was great applause of the witness, cries of joy, striking of drums, and trumpets.
