Of Kings and Men: Louis XIV.

Louis XIV.

In 1643, Louis XIII dies. His son, Louis XIV is only 5. Anne of Austria, Louis XIV's mother, takes control and places all power in the hands of the Italian Cardinal Mazarin. Mazarin used his power only to amass great personal fortune. In 1648, Mazarin determines he needs more money and begins withholding salaries of officials for 4 years. Officials respond by drawing up a charter of demands:

No new offices created.
Power to approve taxes.
Habeas corpus law.

Mazarin responds by arresting Parisian Parlement leaders, creating an uprising, the Fronde, and he and the royal family flee. Chaos ensues. The Fronde (1648-1653) never caused serious harm because of the great centralization of power that had occurred under Richelieu. It also never raised issues peasants would unite under, instead it remained an upperclass revolt. Mazarin took advantage of this weakness and began to assert the authority of the king. The regency was declared to be over and Louis XIV was seen as fit to rule, though he is only 14. By 23, he assumes full control of the government and does not name a chief minister of state.

Portrait of Louis XIV Louis XIV's vision of Absolutism:

Louis XIV created the court at Versailles in 1680, this is part of his overall plan to create a grand image.
Power came from unlimited authority.
Divine right (anointed with holy oil at coronation).
Seen as God's representative on earth.
Treason seen as blasphemy.
Religious Unity.
"I am the state" / "l'etat, c'est moi".

The reality is he worked with the nobles to maintain order. He made certain they benefited from his increase in authority and maintained their local influence, but made certain that it was dependent upon his support. Religious unity was central to his philosophy that he was chosen by God to rule as all must believe in the same god for this to be as powerful as he wished. Louis revokes the Edict of Nantes and expels Jews and Muslims. This results in the loss of the talented middle class as the Huguenots go to other nations that offer religious toleration.

Louis was a patron of the arts and thus the arts flourished at Versailles. Moliere was the official playwright, yet Louis bans the play "Tartuffe" due to its excessive mocking of religious devoutness. The play was reworked for five years before it was performed. France also became the epicenter of culture during this time and the French language became the language of business and politics throughout all of Europe.

Louis XIV was a gifted administrator:

The French state had control over armed forces, formulation and execution of laws, and collection and expenditure of taxes.
Created training programs.
Instituted use of experts.

Louis was king in council (administrator) and king in court (cultivator of arts). He avoided sacrificing affairs of the state for royal pomp. All government policy and courtliness were an effort in state building.

Document Discussion

It is time to take a closer look at the Memoirs of Duc de St. Simon. Click on the link below and be sure to read it carefully.

Document Discussion Icon As you read, consider the following:

What does this tell us about the time?
How is this a reflection of Absolutism?
What does this tell us about Louis?
What does this tell us about how Louis views others and the state?

Click here to read the document.

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PORTRAIT OF LOUIS XIV IS BY HYACINTHE RIGAUD AND CAN BE FOUND IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN.