Louis Xiv Imperialism

“I am the state”. While it is debated whether Louis XIV actually said this or not, this quotation accurately illustrates his philosophy. Viewing himself as being placed in the position of king by God, Louis de Dieudonne took an absolutist approach to ruling France. Each decision Louis made shaped France in a different way. It is debated whether this shaping was for the better or for the worse. This is most likely due to the fact that when most people look at his policies, they merely look at the individual accomplishments he achieved. In order to see how Louis XIV truly affected France, however, one must evaluate all of his policies and their consequences as a collective whole. Only then is the truth revealed to the researcher. The polices

Louis XIV had a strong sense of nationalism that showed clearly through his politics and decisions. In fact, two of the things that Louis practiced which turned other European countries against France were expansionism and mercantilism. Louis XIV practiced expansionism for two reasons. First, according to the author of Louis XIV, Vincent Cronin, when Louis took reign of France, Spain began to decrease in power. This encouraged other countries to expand and take Spain’s land. Seeing these other European nations grow in size and power, Louis decided that he needed to join in the race for land. Driven by want of power, Louis XIV decided to begin practicing expansionism. Another reason Louis XIV practiced expansionism was that, as historian and author John Rickard explains, Louis felt that his Spanish wife had a right to the Spanish Netherlands as her inheritance. With this thought in mind, Louis XIV took it upon himself to claim the Spanish Netherlands for France. Other European powers noticed the French beginning to advance on this land. In an attempt to keep Louis XIV in check, the Dutch decided to form the “Triple Alliance” with England and Sweden. Thus, Louis’s policy of expansionism was the first one that began to pit other countries against

The lack of trust Louis had for nobility benefited the poor for a short while. Cronin asserts that Louis XIV made the nobility pay taxes as well. Although this pleased the poor, it incensed the nobility. This change from earlier tradition did not last, however, once the wars began. Then, the tables once again turned to solely rely on the poor to repay the debts of the country, condemning the poor to extreme poverty and famine. Ashley also brings to light that although the occupations Louis created by trying to make his country self sufficient opened more positions to be filled by Frenchmen, most of them did not last, leaving many citizens unemployed. Therefore, Louis XIV’s policies turned both the poor and the wealthy against