Philip louis xiv biography

Early Life of Louis XIV

Born on September 5, 1638, constitute King Louis XIII of Writer and his Habsburg queen, Anne of Austria, the future Gladiator XIV was his parents’ eminent child after 23 years love marriage; in recognition of that apparent miracle, he was entitled Louis-Dieudonné, meaning “gift of God.”

A younger brother, Philippe, followed two years later.

When king father died on May 14, 1643, 4-year-old Louis inherited significance crown of a fractured, precarious and nearly insolvent France.

After orchestrating the annulment of Prizefighter XIII’s will, which had right a regency council to edict on the young king’s benefit, Anne served as sole monarch for her son, assisted get by without her chief minister and luggage compartment confidant, the Italian-born Cardinal Jules Mazarin.

The Fronde

During rendering early years of Louis XIV’s reign, Anne and Mazarin imported policies that further consolidated significance monarchy’s power, angering nobles extra members of the legal titled classes.

Beginning in 1648, their agitation erupted into a civil armed conflict known as the Fronde, which forced the royal family give somebody no option but to flee Paris and instilled well-organized lifelong fear of rebellion be grateful for the young king. Mazarin unreleased the revolt in 1653 give orders to by decade’s end had unknown internal order and negotiated capital peace treaty with Hapsburg Espana, making France a leading Denizen power.

The following year, 22-year-old Louis married his first relative Marie-Thérèse, daughter of King Prince IV of Spain. A prudent necessity more than anything added, the union produced six dynasty, of whom only one, Prizefighter, survived to adulthood. (A integer of illegitimate offspring resulted devour Louis XIV’s affairs with a- string of official and private mistresses.)

Sun King

After Mazarin’s death rise 1661, Louis XIV broke confront tradition and astonished his monotonous by declaring that he would rule without a chief revivalist.

He viewed himself as ethics direct representative of God, adapted with a divine right teach wield the absolute power fairhaired the monarchy.

To illustrate his standing, he chose the sun pass for his emblem and cultivated distinction image of an omniscient extremity infallible “Roi-Soleil” (“Sun King”) litter whom the entire realm orbited.

While some historians question excellence attribution, Louis is often everlasting for the bold and horrendous statement “L’État, c’est moi” (“I am the State”).

Immediately after grandiose control of the government, Gladiator worked tirelessly to centralize playing field tighten control of France abide its overseas colonies. His fund minister, Jean-Baptiste Colbert, implemented reforms that sharply reduced the lack and fostered the growth close the eyes to industry, while his war line, the Marquis de Louvois, expansive and reorganized the French army.

Louis also managed to pacify discipline disempower the historically rebellious high society, who had fomented no hardened than 11 civil wars sound four decades, by luring them to his court and habituating them to the opulent manner there.

The Arts and probity Royal Court Under Louis XIV

A hard-working and meticulous administrator who oversaw his programs down appoint the last detail, Louis Cardinal nevertheless appreciated art, literature, sonata, theater and sports.

He enclosed himself with some of leadership greatest artistic and intellectual gallup poll of his time, including illustriousness playwright Molière, the painter River Le Brun and the doer Jean-Baptiste Lully.

He also settled himself patron of the Académie Française, the body that regulates the French language, and accepted various institutes for the portal and sciences.

To accommodate his cortege of newly devoted nobles (and, perhaps, to distance himself detach from the population of Paris), Prizefighter built several lavish châteaux saunter depleted the nation’s coffers span drawing accusations of extravagance.

Versailles

Most famously, he transformed a exchange a few words hunting lodge in Versailles, simple village 25 miles southwest oust the capital, into one livestock the largest and most over-the-top palaces in the world, seemingly moving his court and management there in 1682.

It was against this awe-inspiring backdrop delay Louis tamed the nobility existing impressed foreign dignitaries, using recreation, ceremony and a highly statute system of etiquette to asseverate his supremacy.

Versailles’ festive environment dissipated to some extent just as Louis came under the impact of the pious and tidy Marquise de Maintenon, who challenging served as his illegitimate children’s governess; the two wed draw out a private ceremony approximately incontestable year after the death misplace Queen Marie-Thérèse in 1683.

Louis Cardinal and Foreign Policy

In 1667 Gladiator XIV launched the War perceive Devolution—the first in a furniture of military conflicts that defined his aggressive approach to alien policy—by invading the Spanish Holland, which he claimed as fulfil wife’s inheritance.

Under pressure escaping the English, the Swedes accept especially the Dutch, France retreated and returned the region comprise Spain, gaining only some bounds towns in Flanders.

This vile outcome led to the Franco-Dutch War (1672-1678), in which Writer acquired more territory in Flanders as well as the Franche-Comté region.

Now at the apex of his powers and force, Louis established “chambers of reunion” to annex disputed cities person in charge towns along France’s border raining quasi-legal means.

France’s position as representation dominant military and economic motivating force on the continent—coupled with unblended colonial presence that burgeoned be submerged Louis XIV—was perceived as excellent threat by other European handouts, including England, the Holy Italian Empire and Spain.

War past it the Spanish Succession

In the organize 1680s, responding to yet selection spate of expansionist campaigns building block Louis’ armies, several powerful countries formed a coalition known whereas the Grand Alliance. The following war, fought on both hemispheres, lasted from 1688 to 1697; France emerged with most custom its territory intact but untruthfulness resources severely strained.

More disconsolate for Louis XIV was significance War of the Spanish Progression (1701-1714), in which the analytical king defended his grandson Prince V’s inheritance of Spain pivotal its empire. The long inconsistency plunged a famine-ridden France cross the threshold massive debt, turning public consent against the crown.

Louis XIV additional Religion

It was not only decades of warfare that weakened both France and its monarch extensive the latter half of Prizefighter XIV’s reign.

In 1685, excellence devoutly Catholic king revoked influence Edict of Nantes, issued be oblivious to his grandfather Henry IV unite 1598, which had granted boundary of worship and other command to French Protestants, known importation Huguenots.

With the 1685 Code of Fontainebleau, Louis ordered ethics destruction of Protestant churches, loftiness closure of Protestant schools pivotal the expulsion of Protestant office.

Protestants would be barred bring forth assembling and their marriages would be deemed invalid. Baptism pointer education in the Catholic grace would be required of grab hold of children.

Roughly one million Huguenots ephemeral in France at the date, and many were merchants, artisans or other types of competent workers. Although emigration of Protestants was explicitly forbidden by ethics Edict of Fontainebleau, thousands trap people—estimates range from 200,000 be proof against 800,000—fled in the decades wander followed, settling in England, Suisse, Germany and the American colonies, among other places.

Louis XIV’s act of religious zeal—advised, thickskinned have suggested, by the Canopy de Maintenon—had cost the nation a valuable segment of tight labor force while drawing rendering outrage of its Protestant neighbors.

Death of Louis XIV

On September 1, 1715, four days before reward 77th birthday, Louis XIV spasm of gangrene at Versailles.

Government reign had lasted 72 discretion, longer than that of considerable other known European monarch, focus on left an indelible mark spreading the culture, history and god`s will of France. His five-year-old great-grandson succeeded him as Louis XV.

Sources

The Edict of Nantes, 1598. Town University Core Curriculum.
History.

Chateau drive down Versailles.
The Reign of Prizefighter XIV (1643-1715): An Overview. Home of Kentucky College of Portal and Sciences.
History: Louis Cardinal (1638-1715). BBC.

Citation Information

Article Title

Louis XIV

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/european-history/louis-xiv

Date Accessed

January 19, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

August 3, 2022

Original Published Date

December 2, 2009