King Louis XIV

King Louis XIV, also known as Louis The Great was born in France on September 5th 1638. After his father’s death, his early life included extensive training to prepare him for the throne since he was his father’s only son. After Louis XIV’s father died, his mother took the position of regent with the assistance of Cardinal Mazarin of Italy. The reign of Louis XIV began in 1661 after the death of Mazarin, and ended in 1715 when he passed away.

During the time he held the position of king of the country, Louis was widely regarded as a “Playboy” when he was a younger man. However, as he grew older he recognized the importance of marriage and married Maria-Theresa of Spain. Despite the bind of marriage, King Louis had many mistresses and children born from these affairs.

King Louis The Great believed he was placed on Earth by God to rule as a king. As a supporter of absolutism, he famously declared “I am the state.”, or in french, “L’État c’est moi.” He believed it was his divine right to be the sovereign. Louis understood that his subjects were subordinate to him and were not to be completely trusted.

Because of his strong passion of the Roman Catholic religion, Louis wanted to convert all of his subjects to Catholicism. He was avidly against the Protestants and other religions too. Louis’s hunger for absolute power created controversy in his relationship with the Church seeing that he wanted the church to serve under him.

When Louis’s reign over France began, the country was still suffering from the effects of the Thirty Years War. Other rulers in Europe created alliances against France which resulted in numerous additional wars. These wars, including The War of Devolution, drained the country’s finances and diminished France’s population.

With the exodus of the Protestants, the country’s economy deteriorated because they accounted for a large percentage of merchants. Lastly, The War of Spanish Succession lead to the discontinuation of French dominance through a treaty, The Peace of Utrecht. As a result of this treaty, King Louis was forced to relinquish territory in other parts of Europe.

Despite everything, King Louis The Great also had a positive effect on France. With the support of war minister Marquis de Louvois, he developed the largest army in Europe at the time. This army consisted of 280,000 men. With this army, he became the major ruling power in Europe by capturing land and expanding his kingdom.

Under his directing, minister Jean Baptiste Colbert developed industry and trading. This boosted the nation’s economy. King Louis’s support of mercantilism improved the economy as well. “France became a dominant country in language, culture & dress.”

Bibliography

The Columbia Encyclopedia. “Louis XIV (1638 – 1715).” In The Columbia
Encyclopedia. New York, NY: Columbia University Press, 2016.
http://search.credoreference.com/content/topic/
louis_xiv_of_france_1638_1715?searchId=8608d43a-f516-11e6-8241-12c1f5c39a71.

Commire, Anne, ed. “Louis XIV.” World History in Context.
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