Absolutism is a political theory giving rulers complete sovereignty. Louis XIV was one of the most popular successful absolute monarchs. He exercised absolute paternal rights of a father on France and his powers were unlimited by church, legislature, or elites. Calling himself the "Sun King" after the God Apollo, he worked to banish feudalism and create a unified state under his absolute power. To illustrate this power he built the Palace at Versailles and created an elaborate, theatrical royal lifestyle. His reign of 72 years, from 1638 to 1715, it is the longest documented reign of any European monarch. To establish absolutism in France Louis XIV used divers strategies including the centralization of the French state, diminishing the nobles' power and oppressing the third estate. Louis XIV wanted to have control over everything that happened in his country. To be able to do this he had to centralize the state. Cardinal Richelieu had already started to do this under the reign the Louis XIII by centralizing the administration of France with district commissioners appointed by the king. This weakened the local nobility but gave a lot of power to Richelieu who mainly ruled the country in Louis XIII's place. To keep power over France, Louis XIV ruled through councils of state and made many decisions personally. He also selected councilors from the recently ennobled or upper middle class for he did not trust the nobility who had rebelled against the throne when he was a child. Those who were to become his councilors were manly upper middle class who relied on him for their position in society and politics for they were less inclined to rebel against him. He also never had a first minister to avoid the power of Richelieu and Mazari... ... middle of paper ... ...ing and the nobles had a right called capitaineries to all game in region, which meant that nothing could be done to harm the game even if the crops were destroyed. The system was very corrupt but the king did not change it for it meant that the peasants were more oppressed, thus less inclined to revolt. In conclusion, Louis XIV used many strategies to become an absolute monarch and prevent anyone from overthrowing the throne. From centralizing the French state to oppressing the third estate, the "Sun King" found all kinds of way to realize his dreams and his system seemed to work for it lasted 58 years. There were other absolute monarchs such as Peter the Great of Russia, Catherine the Great of Russia and Frederick the Great of Prussia but he was the only one in Europe to manage to hold for so long and it ended very quickly after Louis XVI came to the throne.
Louis XIV, also known as the Sun King, was an absolutist monarch of France who sought to heavily suppress the power of novels while simultaneously promoting the ideals of a “divine right monarchy”. A man notorious for his incredible spending on various personal ventures, such as the extremely costly construction of a new palace at Versailles, Louis XIV was often the subject of criticism and mockery, especially from the nobles who hoped to discredit him and his absolutist regime. Overall, Louis XIV did predominantly act in a manner with his own personal agenda in mind, as seen through his Revocation of the Edict of Nantes, occurring as a result of his desire to have his country fall in line with his own beliefs, his unrelenting expenditures
He moved his court because he did not feel safe in Paris and could watch over his court officials due to living so close to one another. This piece certainly provides evidence of what Louis himself valued, but perhaps these attributes are needed to effectively rule with absolutism. Throughout this entire document, the author is implying how great Louis is as a person and an effective ruler. He even goes to list his issues: “All his faults were produced by his surroundings...soon found out his weak point, namely, his love of hearing his own praises” (Saint-Simon). Louis cared deeply regarding his personal image and these weaknesses do not seem that drastic, but according to him, “It was this love of praise which made it easy for Louvois to engage him in serious wars” (Saint-Simon). The text gives historians information about Louis’ love-affair with Mademoiselle de la Valliere, compelling his courtiers to spend more than they earned creating a dependency, and other interesting details regarding his life that are excluded in textbooks. Overall, this document provides a deeper insight to King Louis XIV personality and justifications for why he chose the actions he did. Duc de Saint-Simon, someone that resided at the Palace of Versailles, can provide information about a man that ruled with an iron fist over his
Absolute monarchs ruled though the policy of absolutism. Absolutism declared that the king ruled though divine right with a legitimate claim to sole and uncontested authority (French State Building and Louis XIV). On this basis, Louis XIV of France and Suleiman I of the Ottoman Empire were both absolute monarchs. Each ruler believed that his power belonged to him and him alone due to divine right. They showed their absolute power by living lavishly, increased their power by waging wars, and kept their power by ensuring complete loyalty of their subjects.
Louis XIV was an absolute monarch in France from 1643 to 1715. His father died when he was just four years old, making Louis XIV the throne’s successor at a very young age. Because of this, he ruled for seventy-two years, which made him “the longest monarch to rule a major country in European history” (Eggert). But it was when he was twenty-three years old when he decided to rule without a prime minister, believing it was his divine right. Translated by Louis de Rouvroy, Duc de Saint-Simon, the author of the book The Memoirs of Louis XIV:
Absolutism is defined as a form of government where the monarch rules their land freely without legal opposition. In modern times, when democracy is the ideal, this form of government seems cruel and tyrannical; however, there was an era when it thrived in European politics. During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, absolute rule was justified by the concept of divine right and its improvements to the security and efficiency of a nation.
An absolute monarch is a ruler by divine right who has control over every portion of his kingdom. The most famous absolute monarch, Louis XIV, had the longest reign of any of the French kings. Louis achieved this as a result of his reformed laws, foreign policy, a smart economic advisor, and his decision to deny power to the nobility. Although some of these ideas could be viewed as having a negative impacting on France, overall Louis XIV’s absolute government was beneficial to the development of his country.
... reign as follows; “The princes and nobility were oppressed, the parlements had no more power, it was obligatory to receive and register all edicts, whatever they were, since the King was so powerful and so absolute”, it can be seen from the aspects of Louis XIV’s reign discussed above that it would be too simple, and indeed almost too short-sighted to say that his monarchy was completely absolute. Of course Louis reigned with great power (as can be seen from his extensive control over his courtiers and political system), but there can be no doubt that there were certain facets of society and events which prevented this power from being completely absolute, such as the aforementioned incident with the pope. Therefore, I have reached the conclusion that with all things taken into account, despite his great power and influence Louis XIV was not an absolute monarch.
During the 16th and 17th centuries a new type of ruling emerged as a result of unorganized government called royal absolutism. This type of government was seen in many European countries including France and Russia where King Louis XIV and Peter the Great ruled respectively. Both had ways of ruling that were similar to each other and different to each other. Politically, economically and socially both Louis XIV and Peter the Great were similar to and different from how they ruled and what their reign resulted.
Louis XIV is considered the “perfect absolutist” and he has been said to have been one of the greatest rulers in France’s history. He came up with several different strategic plans to gain absolute
Louis XIV, also known as the Sun King, was the monarch of the House of Bourbon who ruled as the king of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His rule was the longest of any monarch in a major in European nation. As king, Louis XIV had many successes, including great military growth, limiting the power of the French nobility, and enforcing the economic system of mercantilism. However, with these successes came failures, such as his revocation of the Edict of Nantes, poor economic management, and the foundations he laid that led to future civil war. Louis XIV believed in centralized power and throughout his reign he geared France toward absolutism. Peter the Great of Russia also believed in centralized power, as he directed Russia into becoming
Absolutism was the most widespread political system used in Europe and in some parts of Asia from 1550-1750. The term Absolutism refers to a form of government by which the leader assumes power through the belief they have a divine God given right to rule with unlimited control. Several events probably contributed to this political system, the feudal wars of the 14th Century, the weakening and decline of the Catholic Church and the terms of the Treaty of Westphalia, which established that every European state would be given supreme authority over their own territories. While the style of the absolute ruler was similar in parts of Europe and Asia, the best example of the absolute ruler was King Louis XIV (1638-1715). King Louis XIV was crowned king in 1643, took complete control over France and swiftly declared his divine right to rule. He declared himself the, “Sun King”, took authority over all of Frances fiancés, economy and military, placed the church under his control and took power from the feudal nobility. King Louis XIV allowed the nobility to become part of his court and gave them positions of importance to gain their support. He did this to prevent the nobility from being a potential threat; to being his supporters. He even exempted them from paying taxes. This nobility dictated the aristocratic flare that King Louis XIV so flamboyantly displayed during his rule. It was the baroque style, the aristocratic style, in all its grandeur, greatness and flare for the extravagance. (Fiero) The movie Vatel brought to life what it must have been like under the rule of King Louis XIV, the dominance of the absolute ruler, the hierarchy of the social classes, the grandeur of King Louis XVI rule and the aristocratic style...
Absolutism was a period of tyranny in Europe during the 16th and 17th centuries because monarchs had complete power to do whatever they pleased. Since absolutism is a "monarchical form of government in which the monarch's powers are not limited by a constitution or by the law" essentially there are no boundaries for actions the monarch can and cannot take. The absolutists did not focus on the people under their rule, they ruled by fear and punishment, and believed they were equal to God.
Absolutism describes a form of monarchical power that is unrestrained by all other institutions, such as churches, legislatures, or social elites. To achieve absolutism one must first promote oneself as being powerful and authoritative, then the individual must take control of anyone who might stand in the way of absolute power. The Palace of Versailles helped King Louis XIV fulfill both of those objectives. Versailles used propaganda by promoting Louis with its grandiosity and generous portraits that all exuded a sense of supremacy. Versailles also helped Louis take control of the nobility by providing enough space to keep them under his watchful eye. The Palace of Versailles supported absolutism during King Louis XIV’s reign through propaganda, and control of nobility.
... then a noble. These governors were required to spend a large amount of time at Louis’ extensive palace of Versailles, which allowed Louis to monitor the generalités very closely. Religiously, Louis revoked the Edict of Nantes and declared France a Catholic state. Louis hoped that religious unity and centralization would lead to stronger unity in the country as a whole. He expelled or executed any Protestants who refused to convert, and the Catholics supported most of his actions. Although he delegated most of the power in France to himself, Louis did acknowledge the power and authority of the Parlement of Paris, which helped to regulate local administration and taxes, but overall, Louis stripped the nobles and aristocracy of most of their powers. Louis XIV long rule gave France the time it needed to transform from a divided nation to a centralized and powerful one.
This historical study will define the absolute monarchy as it was defied through the French government in the 17th century. The term ‘absolute” is defined I the monarchy through the absolute control over the people through the king and the royal family. All matters of civic, financial, and political governance was controlled through the king’s sole power as the monarchical ruler of the French people. In France, Louis XIII is an important example of the absolute monarchy, which controlled all facts of military and economic power through a single ruler. Udder Louis XIII’s reign, the consolidation of power away from the Edicts of Nantes to dominant local politics and sovereignty in Europe. These forms of absolute power define the role of the monarch in controlling the people without the influence of the nobility or a parliament in the decision making process. In essence, the various aspects of absolute monarchy will be defined win the example of , Louis XIII as the sole sovereign of his people during the 17th century.