During the medieval times, in order to be an effective and well-liked ruler, a monarch was to be just, a strong soldier, and a pious leader. According to Jean de Joinville’s Life of Saint Louis, King Louis IX was the model of an ideal medieval monarch because he exhibited the virtues previously mentioned. Louis IX was far more than just a legitimate and educated French king. He displayed sincere piety throughout his life, which prompted him to rule his kingdom with fairness and peace, as well as gave him the bravery needed in battle knowing God that would protect him. The first virtue that Louis IX possessed, which made him an ideal medieval monarch, was that he maintained peace and justice in his kingdom. For instance, he reconciled with his rival, King Henry III of England, by returning the land back that the English had justly lost to the French. Louis IX recognized that the acquisition of land created further conflict between the French and English thrones. Despite the pleas of his advisors, he returned the land in order to create peace and an alliance with the English. In addition to maintaining external peace, King Louis IX also brought justice to his kingdom by personally listening to the complaints of his people and settling issues that arose. In …show more content…
It was also Louis IX’s fear of God led him to be a king who was peaceful, just, brave, and a humble protector of his people. As a child, Louis IX’s mother taught him to believe in and love God. Furthermore, she expected him to recite scripture and attend sermons to deepen his faith in God. Joinville best summarized King Louis IX’s faith in the Life of St. Louis by describing him as “a holy man [who] loved God with all his heart, and followed Him in His acts.” Moreover, he stated that “no layman in our time lived so holily all his days, even from the beginning of his reign to the end of his
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
very strong Christian king and does what he has to do as a king. This
nation. In order to become a true absolute ruler Louis xiv needed to make sure
...tect his right to the throne. Ultimately, he stabilized the nation by settling the civil wars, the Wars of Roses, by marrying the apposing York family, to unite the two feuding families, the Yorks and the Lancasters. All together, King Henry VII is a new monarch for displaying all of the required traits.
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: His Court and The Regency, King Louis XIV wrote, “The royal power is absolute. The royal throne is not the throne of a man, but the throne of God himself. Kings should be guarded as holy things, and whoever
When Louis the XIV began his rule in 1643, his actions immediately began to suggest and absolute dictatorship. Because of the misery he had previously suffered, one of the first things he did was to decrease the power of the nobility. He withdrew himself from the rich upper class, doing everything secretly. The wealth had no connection to Louis, and therefore all power they previously had was gone. He had complete control over the nobles, spying, going through mail, and a secret police force made sure that Louis had absolute power. Louis appointed all of his officials, middle class men who served him without wanting any power. Louis wanted it clear that none of his power would be shared. He wanted "people to know by the rank of the men who served him that he had no intention of sharing power with them." If Louis XIV appointed advisors from the upper classes, they would expect to gain power, and Louis was not willing to give it to them. The way Louis XIV ruled, the sole powerful leader, made him an absolute ruler. He had divine rule, and did not want to give any power to anyone other than himself. These beliefs made him an absolute ruler.
Frightfully stimulated as a child from a home intrusion by Parisians during an aristocratic revolt in 1651, Louis XIV realized his rule would be decisive, militant, and absolute (458). His lengthy reign as Frances’ king and how he ruled would be the example that many countries throughout Europe would model their own regimes under. With this great authority also came greater challenges of finance and colonization. In the 17th century, the era of absolute monarchs was the means to restore European life (458). Louis XIV exemplified absolutism, and his ruling set the example for other monarchs throughout Europe.
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
In conclusion, Yes Henry is the Ideal of a Christian king. He had mercy, faith, and wisdom. He let God guide him to victory without any doubt or hesitation. That’s what being a Christian is all about putting your trust and faith in God when all seems as though things are failing but in your heart you believe that God will help and be there with you every step of the
Of all the absolute rulers in Europe, by far the best example of one, and the most powerful, was Louis XIV of France. Although Louis had some failures, he also had many successes. He controlled France’s money and had many different ways to get, as well as keep his power, and he knew how to delegate jobs to smart, but loyal people.
Louis fought his early wars for defensive purposes— to secure France’s northern border and to remove the Spanish from strategic towns. However, the Sun King pursued many subsequent wars to increase his power and influence. For example, Louis believed that if France had once historically controlled a region, France was justified in winning the region once again. Louis believed, as a divine right ruler, that he had the authority to break truces at will. Consequently, Louis made many enemies out of nearby countries, including Spain, England, and the Netherlands. After Louis won the Campaign in the Franche-Comte region in 1668, Europe was not interested in having France become the preeminent power in Europe. Louis believed that trade would generate wealth and by keeping trade within his own colonies, he could capture the profits that would have been otherwise outside of his control. By reorganizing the administrative and financial aspects of his kingdom and developing trade and manufacturing, he improved the prosperity of his empire. Louis sought to finance his military objectives from this new income stream, but ultimately, it was not enough. Louis XIV’s many wars, and the lavish life at Versailles, exhausted France of funds. Since only the lowest French classes such as the farmers paid the
Machiavelli wrote that a ruler should be both like “a lion and a fox” (The Prince, Chapter XVIII). By this Machiavelli means that a ruler should be like a lion to keep away the wolves that can get to the fox who finds the traps that the lion could get into. Essentially, a ruler should be cunning and powerful. Elizabeth I of England and Louis XIV of France fit these characteristics. Louis XIV acted as a lion in such ways as the Edict of Fontainebleau which took away the power of the Huguenots. Elizabeth I of England was like a lion because she married her country, not a man, therefore keeping all power to herself and frightening away the “wolves.” Louis XIV acted as a fox by getting away from the “traps” of the nobility by heavily taxing them because he did not want to relive the Fronde, a civil war where he was humiliated by nobles (Tom Richey, Louis XIV Rap 0:27-0:31). Elizabeth acted as a fox because she was religiously tolerant and kept England away from “traps” that could lead to wars.
These types of decisions define why Louis XIII is an important example of the primacy of the king over all other sources of political and governmental power in the 17th century. Certainly, Louis XIII’s rise to power defines the lack of checks and balances that would typically be a part of a lesser monarchy in which the aristocracy could have an influence on governmental decisions. However, this was not the case with Louis XIII, since he had gained complete control over the government through military might and the wealth of the royal family. This historical example defines the primacy of the absolute monarch within the context of the king’s role in governing in 17th century
King Louis XIV's 72 year reign was incredibly influential in shaping French history. King Louis XIV’s childhood was traumatic because of “La Fronde” which was a noble rebellion against the monarchy. This experience taught King Louis XIV to distrust the nobles. It was for this reason that he eventually excluded nobility from the council and surrounded himself with loyal ministers whom he could control. He also separated the aristocracy from the people of France by moving the court to the Palace of Versailles. One of the most notable of King Louis XIV’s decisions was that he refused to appoint another Prime Minister after the death of Prime Minister Mazarin. Every decision, from the declaration of war to the approval of a passport, went through him personally. During his reign as king, France participated in several wars including the War of Devolution, in Anglo-Dutch War, and the War of the Spanish Succession. Another major action he took was the proclamation of the Edict of Fontainebleau, which revoked the Edict of Nantes, imposing religious uniformity through Catholi...
Louis XIV (the fourteenth) was an absolute monarch. He was often called "the Sun King," and ruled over France. He devoted himself to helping France achieve economic, political, and cultural prominence. Many historians believe the phrase "absolute power corrupts absolutely" mirrors Louis' reign. Louis XIV revoked the Edict on Nantes, changing the economy of France in one motion. By creating the city of Versailles and being a major patron of the arts, Louis was very influential on French culture. He made France go almost bankrupt from his costly wars and failures. Louis was very corrupt in his power, and it shown in all he did to change France; he got what he wanted, when he wanted it.