Absolutism: The Rise And Fall Of King Louis XIV

After the chaos of the sixteenth century, absolutism, or an absolute monarchy, looked more like a viable option to straighten out social and political order. Nowhere was the philosophy more aptly applied than in France, and by no one other than King Louis XIV. However, leaving all power in the hands of one person left France’s government vulnerable to the flaws of that one person. Louis’s theatrical rule was undoubtedly influenced by the turmoil of his early childhood, but those theatrics cost him true financial glory in favor of the superficial. Even before Louis officially took his title, he was already being prepared from his title from the time he was five years old. Particularly of note is how his mother, Queen Anne, and Cardinal Mazarin, who essentially served as Louis’s father figure after Louis XIII died, raised Louis XIV. Queen Anne not only instilled the general attitude of divine right that founded Louis XIV’s absolutism, but also shielded him from seeing
First, he fought with the Dutch since they were the one economic power that was competition to France. While France was technically the winner of the war, the six years Louis spent to keep his army fighting that war (often as entertainment for his court life) ironically depleted France’s economy. The same happened with the War of Spanish Succession: because Louis wanted his grandson to inherit Spain rather than the Hapsburgs, France was forced to resort to melting its silver while up against England, the Netherlands, the Holy Roman Empire, and German states. In between these two wars, Louis revoked the Edict of Nantes because he wanted the power that would come with winning favor of the Catholic Church, but overlooked the Hugenots economic influence. In short, Louis thought in the short-term without considering the consequences of the area he was trying to