The Absolutism Of King Louis XIV Essay

A Comparison of the Characteristics of the Absolutist Rule of Charles I of England and Louis XIV of France

Louis XIV and Peter the Great were two of the most famous absolutism monarchs in Europe. In my point of view Louis XIV did a better job as a leader. In the 17th century the Europe world entered the age of absolutism. After the religious wars, most European people put their attentions back from the wars and more focused on their own life. At that time, nobles and kings of European countries get more power in managing people. And monarchs’ power and rights reached to the top stage as they claimed to rule by divine will.

     In addition to his strengths, Louis XIV had weaknesses. After Colbert died, Louis made one mistake that undid all of his work. He revoked Edict of Nantes who protected the religious freedom of the Huguenots. Instead of being imprisoned, more than 200,000 Huguenots fled from France. The country lost many of its skilled workers and business leaders. Louis XIV also fought many costly wars that caused his people great suffering. Many of the wars left France on the brink of bankruptcy.

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

A European monarch that heavily enforced absolutism throughout his reign is Louis XIV. He is known as the Sun King and for his statement “I am the State.” Louis had no tolerance toward Protestants, and believed in the motto "one king, one law, one faith." Due to this, he revoked the Edict of Nantes. Following with the Edict of Fontainebleau, Louis ordered the destruction of Protestant churches, closure of Protestant schools, and expulsion of Protestant clergy. After this, a great number of Protestants fled, resulting in France’s loss of much of its labor force. It led to the decline of his reign and the country itself. Throughout his reign, Louis was able to enrich the French

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.

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.

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 hired Jean-Baptiste Colbert, a Swiss banker, to reform France's financial situation. By seeking out people who avoided their taxes (for example, people posing as nobles) and reorganizing the tax collection system (Before Colbert the majority of collected tax never even made it to the treasury), Colbert was able to reduce the loses of the treasury by 30,000,000 liras. This, in conjunction with stimulating the economy by reducing taxes, allowing monopolies, and encouraging immigration of skilled workers, boosted the worth of the French economy, and had a positive influence on the country as a whole.

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.

During the late 17th and early 18th century, many European nations such as France and Russia were absolute monarchies. Even countries such as England had kings who at least attempted to implement absolutism. Indeed the concept of absolutism, where the monarch is the unquestionably highest authority and absolute ruler of every element in the realm, is certainly appealing to any sovereign. However, this unrestricted power was abused, and by the end of the 18th century, absolutism was gone. Absolutism failed because the monarchs' mistreatment of the population caused the people to revolt against their rule and policies. There are many factors which caused this discontent. For one, there was a great loss of human lives. Louis XIV of France

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.

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.

When we first take a glance at the old administration of the kingdom, everything appears to be a diversity of rules and authorites- a tangle of powers. France was covered by governmental bodies or isolated officals who acted indepedantly of eachother and who took part in government by virtue of a right in which they purchased and which could not be removed from them. Often their functions so overlapped and were so connected that they hamperedeachother’s efficiency and clashed in identical speres of business