France

“L’etat C’est Moi!”

Henry of Navarre (Henry IV) of France

• Henry IV (1553-1610) was king of France from 1589 to 1610. The first Bourbon monarch, he faced internal discord caused by the Wars of Religion and the economic disasters of the late 16th century and external danger posed by the powerful Hapsburg monarchy of Spain.

The Bourbons ruled France until the 1800s

From the 1560s to the 1590s, religious wars between Huguenots (French Protestants) and the Catholic majority tore France apart. Henry was a Protestant, but he converted to quiet the Catholic opposition. Understanding that religious beliefs do not determine their patriotic loyalty, Henry issued the Edit of Nantes in 1598.This allowed Protestant worship to continue in areas of majority, but banned them from Paris and other Catholic strongholds and granted them the same civil rights as Catholics. It granted Huguenots religious toleration and let them fortify their own towns and cities.

Henry then set out to heal the shattered land. Under Henry, the government reached into every aspect of French life. He repaired roads, bridges, trade, industry, army and governmental discipline.

By building the royal bureaucracy and reducing the power of the nobility, Henry laid the foundations for royal absolutism.

Henry of Navarre (Henry IV) of France

King Louis XIII and Cardinal

RichelieuWhen Henry is assassinated in 1610, his 9 year old son becomes Louis XIII. Marie de Medici was his mom and regent until 1617 when he took the throne by force and had her exiled from court.His main advisor will be Cardinal Richelieu. To take back the power from the nobles and from the threat of the Huguenots, Richelieu took steps:He destroyed the nobles’ fortified castles, stripped them of their local functions while giving special agents called intendants local authority.He stripped the Huguenots of their rights, but allowed them religious freedom, even after a failed revolt in 1625.He strengthened the army, the navy, and the economy. He supported French culture. In 1635, he had French writers establish the L'Académie française to “fix the rules for the language… to be elegant and capable.

• Louis XIII and Cardinal Richelieu re-instated Henry IV's anti- Hapsburg policies.

• This involved France in the so- called 30 Years’ War (1618-1648).

• France was dedicated by Louis XIII to the Virgin Mary after the birth of his long-awaited son, Louis XIV.

Richelieu, Louis XIII, and wife Anne are featured as characters in the novel The Three Musketeers by Dumas

The Sun

King

• In France, Louis XIV (who reigned from 1661 to 1715), also known as the "Sun King," centralized the government around his own person and used art and architecture in the service of the monarchy.

• The French monarchs ruled with absolute power, meaning that there was little or no check on what they could and could not do.

• There was no Parliament that would have balanced the power of the King (as there was in England). The King also ruled, so it was believed, by divine right. That is, that the power to rule came from God.

• In an effort to use art in support of the state, Louis XIV established the Royal Academy of Fine Arts to control matters of art and artistic education by imposing a classicizing style as well as other regulations and standards on art and artists.

"Le Roi

Soleil"

Louis took the sun as the symbol of his absolute power and was quoted as saying, “L’etat, c’est moi”—“I am the state.”

During his 72-year reign, Louis did not once call a meeting of the Estates General, the general assembly of nobles, clergy, and townspeople that will evolve to more than the group called to raise national taxes for some pet project.

Louis expanded the bureaucracy and appointed intendants, royal officials who collected taxes, recruited soldiers, and carried out Louis’s policies in the provinces. Once fierce nobles will be squabbling now over who gets to hold His Majesty’s robe. The nobles lived at Versailles to keep an eye on them. Louis created the strongest army in Europe, which he used to enforce his policies at home and abroad.

The Sun King

• Louis XIV of France ranks as one of the most remarkable monarchs in history. He reigned for 72 years, 54 of them he personally controlled French government.

• The 17th century is labeled as the age of Louis XIV. • Since then his rule has been hailed as the supreme

example of a type of government - absolutism. • He epitomized the ideal of kingship. During his reign

France stabilized and became one of the strongest powers in Europe.

• During his reign France became the ideal culture since he put great care into its enhancement so he could boast it to the world. The country changed drastically from savage mediaeval ways to a more refined, exquisite living - evident from his palace in Versailles.

• Within 54 years he did what several kings worked on for centuries. French culture became one of the most appealing in the world, and the name Louis XIV has been associated with greatness and glory. Louis XIV was a great monarch, and he was capable of maintaining strong

kingdom because he never, in his entire life, doubted his right to be king. His autocracy was indeed amazing, and truly an example of the kind. He lived and ruled as a king should have. Louis XIV became the ideal king, and many have tried unsuccessfully to live up to his glory.

• Cardinal Mazarin, successor to Richelieu, and financial wizard Jean-Baptiste Colbert were able advisors to Louis XIV.

• Under Colbert commerce, industry, and overseas colonies were developed by state subsidies, tight control over standards of quality, and high protective tariffs. As controller general of finances, Colbert sharply reduced the annual treasury deficit by economies and more equitable, efficient taxation, although tax exemptions for the nobility, clergy, and some members of the bourgeoisie continued.

•Colbert and the king shared the idea of glorifying the monarch and monarchy through the arts.

• Louis was a discriminating patron of the great literary and artistic figures of France's classical age, including Jean Baptiste Moliere, Charles Le Brun, Louis Le Vau, Jules Mansart, and Jean Baptiste Lully.

• His state established or developed in rapid succession academies for painting and sculpture (1663), inscriptions (1663), French artists at Rome (1666), and science (1666), followed by the Paris Observatory (1667) and the academies of architecture (1671) and music (1672).

• The literary Academie Francaise also came under formal royal control in 1671. In Paris, the Louvre was essentially completed with the classical colonnade by Claude Perrault.

Europe after the Peace of Westphalia ended the Thirty Years’ War in 1648.

Versailles

•Louis XIV also built an opulent new palace, Versailles, which became the King's official residence in 1682. Versailles is 14 miles southwest of Paris and contains 700 rooms! It is probably impossible to get a sense of the enormity and luxury of Versailles without going there.

Hall of Mirrors

• Louis XIV eventually invited the higher French aristocrats to live there and wait upon him. And so Versailles was not just a place to live—it became the symbol of the French monarchy itself, and therefore everything about the decor had to speak of the power and accomplishments of the King. Every aspect of the King's life (waking, eating, everything!) was thoroughly ritualized, convincing everyone there of the incredible majesty of the King.

• The thousands of people who lived at Versailles also required entertainment, and so Versailles also became the seat of lavish spectacles including ballets, balls, hunts and receptions, all presided over by the King.

• You have probably heard of the famous Galerie des Glaces (or Hall of Mirrors), a room with 17 mirrors facing the windows that look out onto fabulous gardens. The ceiling of this room is decorated with paintings extolling the virtues and achievements of Louis himself.

Successes and Failures of Louis XIV

Louis greatly strengthened royal power.

The French army became the strongest in Europe.

France became the wealthiest state in Europe.

French culture, manners, and customs became the European standard.

The arts flourished in France.

Louis engaged in costly wars that had disastrous results.

Rival rulers joined forces to check French ambitions.

Louis persecuted the Huguenots, causing many to flee France. Their departure was a huge blow to the French economy.

SUCCESSES FAILURES

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