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 …show more content…
One example of how absolutism is portrayed through the arts is painting. Hyacinthe Rigaud painted portraits of King Louis XIV that symbolized the French monarchy and Louis XIV’s rule as an absolute monarch. The aristocratic portraiture’s main concern is the appearance of the painting itself and enhancing the theme of regality. It served as an allegory for royal authority, and with Rigaud’s paintings of the King, his main intent was to glorify the monarchy. In Rigaud’s paintings, King Louis XIV demonstrates the embodiment of an aristocrat: the ideal, civilized, and elegant man. Through the well-mannered way he poses, and the serious expression on his face, it demonstrates superiority. Fiero’s description of King Louis from Rigaud’s painting also uses symbolism to portray royal authority and absolutism. Symbolism from his painting includes King Louis XIV’s scepter, crown, the sword of the state, and the flower shape pattern called fleur-de-lis (the emblem of the French Monarchy, which is the pattern used on his coronation garments). Another example of portraying absolute power through the arts is …show more content…
In order to finance the wars, taxation had to be raised, and everyone including the nobility had to pay (they used to be an exempt). Nearing the end of King Louis’s reign, France was bankrupt, resulting the people of the state to be at odds with their king. “France’s resources and finances were ultimately drained, leading King Louis and the state of France in debt, which made the people turn against him” (Eggert). Regardless, when it came to the arts, his rule as an absolute monarch has led him to contribute so much in various branches of creative activity today. Comparing the given examples, his use of the arts was one of the most important ways King Louis XIV introduced and glorified his rule as an absolute monarch to his people. His use of the arts was somehow to prove that through his expensive taste, his rule as an absolute ruler meant security. King Louis XIV “believed that luxury was not only necessary to the economic health of France but also the prestige and very survival of the royalty, and the French monarchy” (Dyer). Believing that images and artistic production have the power and ability to shape other people’s perception, King Louis XIV took
One of the most notable of which would be his decision to completely reconstruct a new palace at Versailles. Such a great expenditure is blatantly criticized in Doc 7 where the Duc de Saint-Simon states, “the foundations and groves have buried more money than could ever appear”. Such expenditures, undoubtedly funded by taxpayer dollars expose Louis’ extremely self-serving distribution of funds when it came to matters of his own comfort. However, it is important to realize that Doc 7, written by a noble, must also be read with a watchful eye. The Duc de Saint-Simon’s assertions could possibly, though construction of a new palace would likely cost a tremendous amount of capital, be riddled by bias as a result of the absolutist King’s extreme suppression of nobility perks and privileges. The idea that Louis acted in his own interest in terms of capital distribution may be explained away by such bias had it not been for the evidence presented in Doc 4. Though on the surface it seems to show the public’s appreciation for the King, one must acknowledge the fact that an ‘inscription on a ceremonial arch of great architectural importance in Tournai’ was most likely commissioned by the King, and again funded by taxpayer dollars. Such a commission would expose the fact that the words stated in the inscription is not the point of view of the French people, but rather the desired
In his book The French Revolution, William Doyle talks about the king’s power before the The French Revolution. Doyle explains that the king has an absolute monarchy over the citizens in France. An absolute monarchy is when a king or queen has full control over his citizens. The king is the judge, jury, and the executioner for his people. Whatever the king decides goes, no one has a say in what he has decided on. There are several examples that Doyle talks about in his book that shows how King Louis the 16th had an absolute monarchy over his citizens before 1787.
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
During the reigns of King Louis XIV of France and King Peter I of Russia, also known as Peter the Great, the nobility was under strict control to limit its power and status in society and government. Both autocrats, or absolute rulers, put the nobles in an area separate from the rest of society to keep them under close watch. The kings’ opinion on religion also impacted the status and power of the nobility because most of them were skilled Protestants. This would prove to be a problem in the long run for Louis XIV. Overall, Peter the Great and Louis XIV despised the nobility and their power in the government and went to many measures to subdue them.
nation. In order to become a true absolute ruler Louis xiv needed to make sure
For my assignment, I will be comparing the two pieces of art titled Louis XIV painted by Hyacinthe Rigaud and Portrait of Marie Antoinette With Her Children by Marie-Louise-Elisabeth Vigee-Lebrun. I will be analyzing and breaking down the different techniques used in both paintings and explaining the similarities between them as well. Though the paintings contain the same family throughout both, there is a clear imbalance in power and something very normal for this time period. I will be elaborating on the difference in social status between the two paintings, even though they are the same family.
A Comparison of the Characteristics of the Absolutist Rule of Charles I of England and Louis XIV of France
that contributed to the rise and fall of the French Monarchy. The ideas of the
Louis XIV controlled France’s economy. He began to heavily tax to support the military reforms. Louis agreed not to tax the nobility, therefore taking away the right for the upper class to have a say in where the taxation money was spent. This gave more and more power to the king. He could spend the money that he was getting from the poor and middle class in any way he pleased without upsetting the nobility. Unfortunately for Louis, the poor could not provide the money he needed. Soon, with the help of Jean-Baptiste Colbert, Louis introduced mercantilism in Europe. He regulated the flow of trade, making sure that France was exporting more than it was importing. To accomplish this, he raised the taxes on imports and lowered those on goods made in France. He encouraged skilled workers and craftsmen to immigrate to France, offering them goods and privileges.
King Louis XIV was a showy and self-absorbed king. His palace was representative of his personality and ideals. The Versailles palace architecture displayed Louis XIV ideals of secular issues. He cared more about spending money to show off his power. Unlike the Escorial, Versailles was centered on “The Sun King” instead of religion. At one point Louis XIV stated that “he was the state”. This statement was saying that Louis XIV represented the center and best of France. An example of this was that King Louis XIV lived in the middle of Versailles. Versailles was also very ornate and had the atmosphere of freeness. However, the Escorial was very basic like Philip II.
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 order to gain the power he desired as an absolute monarch, Louis used a few key techniques that were very successful. His first and most necessary step to get all control was to take all of the nobles’ power, and make it so they were completely under his control. He first did this by taking the nobles’ positions of power, and either getting rid of them by doing it himself, or giving the jobs to loyal middleclass or some nobles who were completely loyal and under his control. Louis had very simple reasoning for doing this, which was that if the nobles had any power or control, they would have a better chance of overthrowing him, and that since there can only be so much total power, the more they had, the less ...
One of the most important elements of Versailles that affected Louis XIV’s reign was the use of propaganda. The Palace contained “paintings, statues, tapestries” (Page) and a general grandness that significantly promoted Louis’ name. Louis himself was a “prominent subject in the artwork” (Montclos 330) and was portrayed as handsome and god-like. Even in the aspects of the Palace where Louis wasn’t literally being represented, the grand nature of Versailles sent out a message that the King was living lavishly, and was therefore very powerful. Louis XIV used the grandiosity of his Palace and the art inside to promote himself to his people.
The term ‘absolute” defines the singular power of the monarch to control every aspect of governing without the aid of the aristocracy or parliamentary forms of governance. The example of Louis XIII defines the rise of absolute monarchy in the 17th century, which eliminated agreements, such as the edict of Nantes, which enabled to aristocracy rights and powers in governmental decisions., however, Louis XIII dissolved these laws in order to gain total dominance over governmental affairs through military and financial might. In this example. Louis XIII defines the role of absolute monarch and the individual powers that the king welled over the government in 17th century
O’Donnell, Sr., Joseph J.. “Art and the French Revolution”. The Eerie Digest, May 2013. Web. 5th May 2013.