Political, Economic, and Religious Developments in France

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

Louis XIV, the ruler of France from the late seventeenth century to the early eighteenth century, claimed, “I am the state.” He considered this to be absolutism. His goal, also acquainted with absolutism, was, “one king, one law, one faith;” Furthermore, Louis wanted to promote religious unity, royal dignity, and security of the state. In order to achieve this goal, he had to rule with a firm hand, laying down the law for all to see. Louis XIV’s absolutism fostered in four major parts: the building of Versailles to control the nobility, the breeding of a strong military, the improvement of France’s economy, and, while quite harsh, the brutal extinction of religious toleration.

Louis XIV declared his goal was “one king, one law, one faith.” Analyze the methods the king used to achieve this objective and discuss the extent to which he was successful.

Of all the absolute rulers in Europe, by far the best example of one, and the most powerful, was Louis XIV of France. Although Louis had some failures, he also had many successes. He controlled France’s money and had many different ways to get, as well as keep his power, and he knew how to delegate jobs to smart, but loyal people.

King Louis was an Absolute leader he believed that the higher hierarchy should live lavish. To fulfill this he needed money, he used his power to “collect taxes and use the money as he saw fit” (Becker, Doc 1). The Sun King Louis also made sure that what he wants goes, if he felt that something needed to be done good or bad he made sure that the problem was being dealt with.” It would take misfortunes in which they themselves were the sufferers to change their mind about the beneficence of the Sun King” (Glasser Doc 3). Louis’s impact was strong, throughout all his actions he made destroyed the country they were always in wars and the money begin collected went towards military and himself. It was as if he brainwashed his contemporaries to do what he wanted with them not knowing what the long term effects

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

Louis XIV was a very generous spender. He put in large amounts of money to finance the royal court, and operated as a supporter of the arts, funding literary and cultural figures. He also kept his army in mind by building military complex known as the Hôtel des Invalides to give a home for officers and soldiers who had served him loyally in the army. The Hôtel des Invalides established new treatments frequently and set a new standard for the rather barbarous hospice treatment styles of the period. To support a Machiavellian tactic, Louis XIV didn?t have any mercenaries or auxiliaries, he controlled his own army, and was a self-sufficient ruler that didn?t rely on the help of others in battle.

Louis XIV was one of France’s most effective and powerful monarchs. He strengthened his rule with a policy of absolutism. Where the king gained authority directly from God or the divine right to rule. There were no legal limits to the powers that the king could exercise, however, during his rule a monarch had certain influential groups of people who the king needed to negotiate and consult in order to establish an effective functioning government. Among these groups where the land owning nobility, royal officer nobles, the royal commissioners, the Catholic Church, the bourgeoisie and the peasants. More notably seen the King Louis XIV is regarded as the “sun king” because of the great grandeur he

The author explained how the French Revolution starts and also how choice made by the royal government affect the old regime which moved the country into different conflicts. For example, in chapter 1 “The

Louis XIV 's France was an absolute monarchy, meaning the king had the power, control, finances and the nation in his hands more then ever before. In the 17th century, France was the strongest and wealthiest nation in Europe, and the head of the state, the king, was the most influential person of the time. In the ideas of the scientific revolution and the soon-coming changes of the enlightenment the country was developing. For a few decades France was not involved in any major wars or battles and the peace helped the population grow fast.

Although Louis XIV, also known as Louis the Great, brought death and destruction through his wars, there are many positive aspects of his reign, such as the creation of Versailles and the building of France’s national army. He did what had never been done before. He changed the lifestyle and the attitude of France by creating one of the most powerful monarchies ever to be built and at the same time, reassured all the nobility and other wealthy groups of their political and social standings. He made it clear that he was the final decision maker yet he still needed the help of the nobility and other authorities.

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 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.