Transcript The Reign of Louis XIV

The Reign of Louis
XIV
After a century of war and riots, France was ruled
by Louis XIV, the most powerful monarch of his
time.
Religious wars and power struggles
 Henry
of Navarre, 1598
 Becomes
French king and adopts
Catholicism
 Issues the Edict of Nantes—
• Declaration of religious
toleration
• Especially for Protestants
[Huguenots]
Religious wars and power struggles

Who came next?

Louis XIII (son)
What
about
this
 Cardinal Richelieu – minister
whodemonstrates
actually ruled France the power
that
Limitedabsolutism
Huguenot’s
will have?
freedom and increased
Bourbon power
 Also weakened the power
of the nobility
Louis XIV comes to power
Louis XIV
 The most powerful French
ruler in history
 Became king at age 4
 Hated his minister,
Mazarin
 Nobles were leading riots

Beliefs
 Louis
weakens the nobles’ authority
 Why?
 Louis

“L’état, c’est moi!”


takes control at age 22
Guesses?
Appointed intendants—
government agents—to collect taxes
 Why?

Economic Growth

Economic growth
 Jean Baptiste Colbert—finance minister
Although
Colbert
did well….what
 Mercantilism:
makes France
self-sufficient
might
Louis do
to mess
this up later?
• Manufacture
instead
of import
Religious Problems
In 1685, Louis cancelled Edict of
Nantes
 What happened to Huguenots?
 Fled!
 Economy was hurt
 Huguenots were artisans and
business people

Louis’s Grand Style
 Life
of luxury
 Every meal was a feast
 Nicknamed the “Sun King”
 Built the palace at Versailles
 Kept nobles at the palace
Patron of the Arts

What is a patron?

Gives money and support towards
something
Versailles became a center of the arts
 What do you think he thought the
purpose of the arts were?


To glorify Louis (not God or human
potential)
Louis’s Wars
 Wanted
to expand France’s
boundaries
 Wars in 1660s and 1670s
 League of Augsburg –
 Countries
 Do

united against him
wars cost money?
What do you get when you combine
poor harvests, warfare, and high
taxes to finance wars
War of Spanish Succession 1701
What does it mean to succeed your
parents?
 Louis wanted his grandson to be the
King of Spain
 Spain and France united??
 War Ended in 1714
 Conclusion:

Louis’s grandson remained king of
Spain
 HOWEVER – France and Spain could
not unite

After the war ended…
Legacy of Louis




Mixed legacy
Many rejoiced at his death
Positives:
 France = a military power
 France = respect of culture
and art
Negatives:
 Wars and palace left France
with heavy debt
Was Louis a good or bad king?
Good
Bad