Characteristics Of Louis Xiv

King Louis XIV was very egotistic. Lisa Hilton explains, “he was of the opinion that he was pretty much a god himself.” He only dressed in the finest fabrics and was very conscious of his appearance. Fashion was of great importance to him. He started wearing a wig when his hair line started to recede. To make himself appear taller, he wore high heeled shoes. He ritualized his daily activities. Nobles would stand in line to help him get dressed, watch him eat, and help him get ready for

Still, the negative aspects of France’s rule under King Louis XIV far outweigh the positive ones. His reign can best be described by the statement “L’état, c’est moi,” (I am the state) that is attributed to him. King Louis XIV spent state money to pay for his own luxuries and monuments that glorified his image. It was also customary for the artists King Louis XIV sponsored to include direct or indirect allusions to him in their productions thus creating a god-like image of him. The Palace of Versailles alone used 5% of France’s income. This liberal

Before the revolution France was ruled under the Ancien Regime system, meaning the country and all its people were under the reign of an absolute monarch. This was a tradition that had been upheld through the years and the Royal family had enjoyed a life funded by the people of France, the royal family’s lifestyle unaffected by the situation outside their palace. The Palace, Versailles, was built by king Louis XIV and the expenses for building this “village” was very high, and in later years the cost for its upkeep would play a significant role in Frances financial difficulties. In order for these difficulties to be overcome France needed a tax reform. The government had a very high tax rate on the poorest of their people, the Third Estate, and they were still not getting enough money to get out of their

Louis XIV was successful in achieving “one king, one law, one faith.” He was able to

Louis XIV turned France around from an unorganized feuding country to one of the most organized, powerful, innovative monarchies in Europe. In addition, he managed to advance civil equality among the people by turning all the people into his loyal subjects (Norton, p.175). How did he do all this? The armed forces that had formerly been a private enterprise who had been fighting against each other or had hired themselves out for payment, was taken over and consolidated into one entity fighting, by the king for the king. He made war an activity of the state which produced peace and order in France while strengthening the fighting power of France against other states (Norton, p.175). In addition, he put soldiers in uniform, taught them how to march in step and housed them in barracks which assisted them in becoming more susceptible to discipline and control (Norton, p.175). There was now a hierarchy in place and was able to get a greater degree of government control that put him on the top as the commander in chief of the army due to his power and the creation of the first large civilian administration (Norton, p.176). This was the first time that ministers of war consisted of civilians and this grew the armies power exponentially. Louis XIV also overhauled the grandeur of France when he took an old village Versailles and turned it into the palace of Versailles that became known as one of the most splendid marvels in Europe so much so, that it became the envy of lessor kings.

Who was King Henry VIII and who was King Louis XIV? How are they different and similar to each other? Well, one thing for sure, both of these rulers were Roman Catholics. Henry ruled England from 1491 to 1547 and Louis ruled France from 1643 to 1715. This essay analyzes the differences and the similarities between these two Roman Catholic kings. Henry VIII, compared to Louis XIV, was overall a ruthless monarch who wasn’t afraid to show off his greediness, abuse his power, or influence others with his clever political strategies. Louis XIV had the longest reign in European history (1643-1715). During this time he brought absolute monarchy to its height, established a huge and grand palace.

During 1789 and decades prior, peasants toil in the fields and reap the diminishing wheat stalks. Bound by the law set by the king, they suffered paying the nobility’s and clergy’s expenses with whatever income they had. When not in desperate poverty, the Third Estate would muster any energy to exert disdain to their king, indifferent behind palace walls. With Voltaire's and Rousseau's conceptions, commoners imagined a government where the nation was in potency, not the monarch. Yet, King Louis XVI taunts this bubbling tension by claiming these privileges were well-deserved, insinuating that his people were literal breadwinners, obligated to pay tribute. With high tax rates, a radical government where the people were free of ridicule circulated

The fact that Louis grew up in a time of civil war in France, where he saw the negative affects poor leadership and too much power to the lords can do probably influenced the way he saw power. His view was that the king should have all the power, and that committees and subcommittees should report to him, like intendants, as we can see in a piece written by James E. King concerning Louis XIV (Doc 1). This source is reliable, because the author of it has no bias while writing it, showing only the facts and the manner in which the kingdom and country was run. Louis made the nobles and lords depend on hi m for any amount of power, and weakened them by giving more rights to the commoners, which undermined their power.

King Louis ruling, usually seen as, “absolute. He ruled by the divine right theory which held that he had received his power to govern from God and was therefore responsible to God alone”(Document C). He broke tradition and ruled without advisors or a court. Having the king feel as if he did not need any help to rule was not good for the population. Himself, being a monarch led to neglect toward the Third Estate.Meaning he did not fix the Estate’s needs, making them feel angry. Once the Third Estate had felt as if they had enough, they wrote a list of complaints, in which they stated “That the king be forced to reform the abuses and tyranny [of his rule]”(Document F). The Third Estate felt abused by the laws and or rules set against them by the king.The majority of the population did not see the king as a king, in fact they called his actions within in his rule as acts of tyranny. If the people of the country do not like or agree with their rulers they are not going to want to have them with absolute power. This was another major cause of the French

King Louis XVI was a bad ruler who did not manage his country’s finances well leading to the unfair taxing of the 3rd estate to pay off personal debts. People lost their freedom and equality due to the discriminatory tax laws, that is why the crowd cheered “Long live the Republic! Long live liberty! Long live equality!” at the time of his death. The quote shows us that with Louis XVI alive there is no change in government nor liberty. King Louis XVI often made the 3rd estate work for a month without pay on Versaille. He used an inefficient and outdated taxing system.

How can one separate a mere normal man from a king? And which is more important between men with a passion from a man with a selfish desire? King Louis XVI was an example of a king unfit to rule. We will discuss King Louis’s early life, his reign as king, and the role he played in the French revolution.

During the reign of Louis XIV, France's stability and success was threatened by the power of the nobility. When Louis looked back at the Fronde, a nobility revolt that occurred during his childhood, he realized the thirst for power the nobility held, and as a result limited their power. To begin with, Louis forced the nobles to move to Versailles where they could cause less trouble, and Louis could keep a close eye on them. Louis achieved this by threatening to deny them their pensions if they didn't move. Louis also instituted heavy taxing for the nobles, in the form of a 10% income tax as well as a head tax. These measures prevented a Noble uprising during Louis' reign as king, and allowed France to develop positively as a country.

Some people think that King Louis XIV did more harm to France than good. They cite his lack of moderation in managing his money. They also point out that Louis denied religious liberties to the Protestants of France and tightened control over his Roman Catholic subjects by revoking the Edict of Nantes. They also claim Louis’ war efforts were very costly and drained the treasury of France. Some say his arrogance, including his emblem of the “Sun King”, turned “his” people away from him. They think that Louis only cared about himself and what he wanted and didn’t think about future France.

Louis XIV was charitable. He did open a veterans’ hospital in 1670 to house ex-soldiers. He opened academies for dance, inscriptions, sciences, architecture and music. These academies set standards for taste. He annexed valuable land such as Flanders and Franche-Comte. Louis’ decision to suppress the Protestant religion can be seen as a political move to join France under one religion and to build national unity.

After being ruled by a prime minister for so long, France needed some changes. That is exactly what Louis the XIV would bring to France. In an age of separation, Louis wanted to start a unification process. He started this by giving himself sole power and also only having one religion for the country. The king is always the center of attention good or bad. Louis was prepared to take the good with the bad, and handled it well. He emphasized the king as the center of attention. While some see him as egotistical and greedy, Louis was one king who knew how to make improvements.