France: The Accomplishment Of Louis XIV

In the time before King Louis XIV’s reign, 17th century France was involved in several civil wars, there were no secure borders and the aristocracy acted as local rulers. In 1643 when Louis XIV came to power, he thought that he needed to secure both France and his own rule. He decided to build a new palace complex 12 miles outside Paris. To him, isolation meant security, he would be away from the plotters and schemers in Paris. He also believed that having all government departments and ministries living within Versailles would centralize the government and create reform.

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

Another great piece of evidence supporting the statement that Louis XIV is the best example of an absolute monarch is his palace at Versailles. This palace was bigger than any other palace, more expensive, and better in just about everyway, except for being good for its country, France. The palace at Versailles was originally built as a small hunting lodge by Louis XIV’s father, Louis XIII in 1624. In 1669, Louis XIV decided to expand the palace, and moved into the palace in 1682 while parts of the building were still under construction. The palace was of monumental size, with a around 2,000 rooms, 15,000 acres of gardens and lawns and woods, and costing what would cost an estimated $2 billion in 1994, a extremely large sum of money for France. To run the fountains, it would cost so much money and use so much water that Louis’ workers would turn the fountains on when they saw him coming, and turn them off when he passed. The palace usually held about 7,000

King Louis XIV built a brilliant royal residence called the Palace of Versailles. He then encouraged nobles to come stay with him in Versailles, which was his way of keeping an eye on them. When the nobles were there they were courteous and helped serve the King. None of the nobles wanted

The Palace of Versailles is one of the most infamous works of European architecture known to man throughout history. Brought to life by King Louis XIV, otherwise known as the Sun King, his reign of absolutism directly affected the architecture and design of the Palace, turning it into a lasting symbol for absolutism.

King Louis had his builders construct the Palace of Versailles to stay in during hunting trips. Although many builders contributed to the palace, they could not have done it without Colbert, Le Brun, Le Vau, and Le Notre. Colbert directed the works, Le Brun and Le Vau decorated the palace, and Le Notre was the chief gardener. The area around the palace was full of animals for King Louis to hunt.

King Louise XIV loved to dance, and in order to show power and hierarchy in France, he built the palace of Versailles. Each member of the court was required

Many achievements for advancement were accomplished during the late 1700s and early 1800s. The French King Louis XIV created at Versailles, near Paris a elaborate court and in 1680s he transformed a small chateau into the largest building in Europe, 12 miles from Paris. Also, Louis XIV carried off successfully a dual functions. He was both King in council and King in court. In his view, the two rules went together and he held

Early in king Louis XIV position of ruling Richelieu passed away in 1642. Mazarin took over Richelieus position as minister of france, and continued his work. These two men helped to strengthen the monarchy system in france a lot, and are import figures to the ruling of Louis XIV. The palace of Versailles is a stunning contribution to Louis’s

Another thing that Louis changed was the appearance and way of life of France. These great towns of France went under a sort of "metamorphosis". The landscape was altered and monuments were built everywhere. Louis decided that he wanted to isolate the center of government from the city of Paris, so he constructed the palace of Versailles. It was an object of universal admiration and enhanced French prestige. It became Louis’ permanent address in 1682 and was also the home to thousands of the more important nobles, royal officials, and

Louis XIV, France’s Sun King, had the longest reign in European history (1643-1715). During this time he brought absolute monarchy to its height, established a glittering court at Versailles, and fought most of the other European countries in four wars. Although his reign had some negative aspects; on balance, Louis’ reign was primarily a benefit to France.

The reign of Louis XIV was the longest of the modern era, and during his time, France reached remarkable achievements in art and architecture, such as the Palace of Versailles. Louis XIV was responsible for creating the lavish complex that was filled with Baroque interiors and surrounded by French and English gardens. In its later years, it was further renovated for other kings then given to the Republic for public use. Through its elaborate ornamentation and massive scale, the Palace of Versailles represents the glory of the Sun King and expresses the power of the French monarchy.

Louis XIII originally commissioned the work as a hunting lodge. However, with each new monarch, new additions were made until Louis XIV declared Versailles as his residence and the seat of government in France.

Louis proved willing to pay the price of being a strong ruler . He established a consci entious routine from which he seldom deviated, but he did not look upon his duties as drudgery since he judged his royal profession to be "grand, noble, and delightful." Eager for glory, Louis created a grand and majestic spec tacle at the court of Versailles (see Daily Life at the Court of Versailles later in the chapter). Consequently, Louis and his court came to set the standard for monar chies and aristocracies all over Europe. Less than fifty years after his death, the great French writer Voltaire used the title "Age of Louis XIV" to describe his history of Europe

Day-to-day life in the palace you would wake early in the morning before Louis XIV woke up to see him was up. If you were Louis XIV you would wake up to all your servants watching you. The man with the highest rank of nobility would hand the king his shirt. Reason why they watch him wake up is because they consider him as the Sun King and they want to see the “sun rise”. Another reason he is the Sun King is that everyone revolves around him like the sun in our solar system. People did many things in the Palace like dancing, hunting, and playing cards. Though I am pretty sure they always let him win. Also he would take many walks in the garden everyday with his servants. Everyday his cloths would get fancier and fancier as well as a haircut also a shave everyday. Each of the salons was name after each of the seven known planets in our solar system. There was also a grand theater that all the aristocrats would go to and watch Louis XIV perform.