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Was King Louis XIV a good king?
Louis XIV's reign was important in French history not just because it lasted so long but because he was a strong-willed ruler who was determined to make his subjects obey him and to make his kingdom the predominant power in Europe.
What disease did King Louis XIV suffer?
King Louis XIV (1638-1715) of France was a man plagued by a variety of chronic diseases, such as rheumatism, intestinal infections, fistula, headaches, chronic fever, malaria, urinary infections, gout, and chronic oral problems.
What was Louis XVI last words?
His last words were to the executioners: "Gentlemen, I am innocent of everything of which I am accused. I wish that my blood may be able to cement the happiness of the French." After the beheading in 1793, France moved from a monarchy to a republic. Sanson executed nearly 3,000 people as chief executioner.
What happened to France after Louis XIV died?
(After the death of Louis XIV, history repeated itself as his five-year-old great-grandson, Louis XV, succeeded him.)
Which king did not bathe?
The 17th century British King James I was said to never bathe, causing the rooms he frequented to be filled with lice. It was the Sun King himself, Louis XIV, whose choice to no longer travel from court to court would lead to a particularly putrid living situation.
What happened to Versailles after Louis death?
Following the death of Louis XIV in September 1715, the court abandoned Versailles for Vincennes and transplanted itself briefly to Paris the following December.
Where is Marie Antoinette's grave?
Basilica Cathedral of Saint Denis, Saint-Denis, FranceMarie Antoinette / Place of burialBetween the 7th and the 19th century, 43 kings and 32 queens were interred in the Saint-Denis Basilica, and over 70 recumbent effigies and tombs from the 13th to the 16th century can still be found there.
Does France still have a king?
France's monarchy ended with the French Revolution. King Louis XVI of France took the throne in 1774, but food shortages and economic troubles prompted mass rebellion in the form of the French Revolution in 1789. The monarchy was then formally abolished in 1792.
Is there still a French royal family?
France is a Republic, and there's no current royal family recognized by the French state.
Who was the most loved King of France?
Louis XV (15 February 1710 – 10 May 1774), known as Louis the Well-Beloved (French: le Bien-Aimé), was King of France from 1 September 1715 until his death in 1774. He succeeded his great-grandfather Louis XIV at the age of five....Louis XVMotherMarie Adélaïde of SavoyReligionRoman CatholicismSignature17 more rows
Who owns the Palace of Versailles?
the French state21st century The Palace of Versailles is currently owned by the French state. Its formal title is the Public Establishment of the Palace, Museum and National Estate of Versailles.
Did Nobles pay rent to live Versailles?
There the hotel was theirs (bought or rented ) and when they organized festivities or hold their " own little court " it was up to them to pay of course.
Did King Louis XIV have a STD?
At sixteen he was “abruptly introduced to sex”, had his “first experience with human flesh,” and some girl of uncertain social standing gave him “a case of gonorrhea that caused his doctors to worry about loss of fertility.” At twenty he had a fever, probably typhoid.
What was wrong with King Louis?
One day after being convicted of conspiracy with foreign powers and sentenced to death by the French National Convention, King Louis XVI is executed by guillotine in the Place de la Revolution in Paris.
What challenges did Louis XIV face?
In an attempt to overthrow the crown, they waged a civil war, called the Fronde, against its supporters. Throughout the long war, Louis XIV suffered many hardships, including poverty and starvation. To Louis XIV's relief, Mazarin finally achieved victory over the rebels in 1653.
Who is the real father of Louis XIV?
Louis XIIILouis XIV / FatherLouis was the son of Louis XIII and his Spanish queen, Anne of Austria. He succeeded his father on May 14, 1643. At the age of four years and eight months, he was, according to the laws of the kingdom, not only the master but the owner of the bodies and property of 19 million subjects.
What is Louis XIV known for?
Louis XIV, king of France (1643–1715), ruled his country, principally from his great palace at Versailles, during one of the country’s most brillia...
How old was Louis XIV when he acceded to the throne?
Louis XIV succeeded his father as king of France on May 14, 1643, at the age of four years eight months. According to the laws of the kingdom, he b...
How did Louis XIV die?
Louis XIV died in 1715, four days shy of his 77th birthday, from gangrene associated with an infection in his leg.
How old was Louis XIV when he acceded to the throne?
Louis XIV succeeded his father as king of France on May 14, 1643, at the age of four years eight months . According to the laws of the kingdom, he became not only the master but the owner of the bodies and property of 19 million subjects.
What is Louis XIV known for?
Today he remains the symbol of absolute monarchy of the classical age.
How old was Louis XIV when he became king?
Louis XIV succeeded his father as king of France on May 14, 1643, at the age of four years eight months. According to the laws of the kingdom, he became not only the master but the owner of the bodies and property of 19 million subjects.
Why did Louis XIV marry Marie-Thérèse?
He finally submitted to the exigencies of politics and in 1660 married Marie-Thérèse of Austria, daughter of King Philip IV of Spain, in order to ratify peace between their two countries. The childhood of Louis XIV was at an end, but no one believed him capable of seizing the reins of power.
What was Louis the Great's love for Mazarin's niece?
In 1658 Louis faced the great conflict between love and duty, a familiar one for princes of that period. He struggled with himself for two years over his love for Mazarin’s niece, Marie Mancini.
Who was the king of France in 1653?
In 1653 Mazarin was victorious over the rebels and then proceeded to construct an extraordinary administrative apparatus with Louis as his pupil. The young king also acquired Mazarin ’s partiality for the arts, elegance, and display.
Who backed Louis XIV?
He was backed up first by the great ministers Jean-Baptiste Colbert, marquis de Louvois, and Hugues de Lionne, among whom he fostered dissension, and later by men of lesser capacity. For 54 years Louis devoted himself to his task eight hours a day; not the smallest detail escaped his attention. He wanted to control everything from court etiquette to troop movements, from road building to theological disputes. He succeeded because he faithfully reflected the mood of a France overflowing with youth and vigour and enamoured of grandeur.
How did Louis XIV influence the world?
By the early 1680s, Louis had greatly augmented French influence in the world. Domestically, he successfully increased the influence of the crown and its authority over the church and aristocracy, thus consolidating absolute monarchy in France.
Where was Louis XIV born?
Louis XIV was born on 5 September 1638 in the Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, to Louis XIII and Anne of Austria. He was named Louis Dieudonné (Louis the God-given) and bore the traditional title of French heirs apparent: Dauphin. At the time of his birth, his parents had been married for 23 years.
What was the name of the war that ended in France?
As the Thirty Years' War came to an end, a civil war known as the Fronde (after the slings used to smash windows) erupted in France. It effectively checked France's ability to exploit the Peace of Westphalia. Anne and Mazarin had largely pursued the policies of Cardinal Richelieu, augmenting the Crown's power at the expense of the nobility and the Parlements. Anne interfered much more in internal policy than foreign affairs; she was a very proud queen who insisted on the divine rights of the King of France.
What happened to Queen Anne in 1643?
On 14 May 1643, with Louis XIII dead, Queen Anne had her husband's will annulled by the Parlement de Paris (a judicial body comprising mostly nobles and high clergymen). This action abolished the regency council and made Anne sole Regent of France. Anne exiled some of her husband's ministers (Chavigny, Bouthilier), and she nominated Brienne as her minister of foreign affairs.
How many statues did Louis XIV have?
In addition to portraits, Louis commissioned at least 20 statues of himself in the 1680s, to stand in Paris and provincial towns as physical manifestations of his rule. He also commissioned "war artists" to follow him on campaigns to document his military triumphs. To remind the people of these triumphs, Louis erected permanent triumphal arches in Paris and the provinces for the first time since the decline of the Roman Empire .
What was Louis's foreign policy?
Warfare defined Louis's foreign policy and his personality shaped his approach. Impelled by "a mix of commerce, revenge, and pique", he sensed that war was the ideal way to enhance his glory. In peacetime he concentrated on preparing for the next war.
What religion was Louis XIV?
Religion. Roman Catholicism ( Gallican Rite) Signature. Louis XIV (Louis Dieudonné; 5 September 1638 – 1 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great ( Louis le Grand) or the Sun King ( le Roi Soleil ), was King of France from 14 May 1643 until his death in 1715. His reign of 72 years and 110 days is the longest recorded of any monarch ...
Where did Louis XIV's funeral take place?
As night set in on 8 September, Louis XIV’s funeral procession left Versailles for the basilica at Saint Denis, the ancient burial place of French kings.
How long was Louis XIV on the throne?
In mid-August gangrene set in and by 1 September he was dead. He’d been on the throne for 72 of his 77 years. A new exhibition at Versailles looks at the elaborate rituals that followed. The Sun King died as he had lived — in public.
What was the King's body made of?
The day after the king’s death, his body was cut open, divided into three parts (body, heart and entrails) and embalmed by doctors and surgeons in front of the principal officers of the court, before being placed in a coffin made of lead, which was placed in a coffin made of oak.
What was the effigy of the dead king made of?
Previously, following a Roman practice revived by the English, a wicker effigy of the dead king had been made (in England it was made of wood) and to this were fixed a wax mask and wax hands moulded from the dead king’s body.
How many children did Louis XIV have?
Unlike those poor Spanish Bourbons who had all sorts of problems making heirs, he had had six children with his wife Marie-Thérèse, two of whom were boys. But just before he died, things started to go wrong.
What were the rituals that followed the death of a French king?
The rituals that followed the death of a French king included the complete dismembering of the body, as this new exhibition at Versailles shows. At the beginning of the summer of 1715 Louis XIV complained of a pain in the leg. In mid-August gangrene set in and by 1 September he was dead.
Where was Louis XIV's heart?
Louis’s heart was put in the Jesuits’ church in the rue St Antoine, where looters also came during the Revolution and took the gold that encased it. Though this heart was destroyed, the exhibition contains three other royal hearts set in gold in the same way. Only the Sun King’s embalmed innards remained undesecrated by the Jacobins. A recent discovery allowed the identification of the exact location of the barrels containing the entrails of Louis XIV and his father at the foot of the steps to the sanctuary of Notre Dame Cathedral.
How did Louis XIV die?
On September 1, 1715, four days before his 77th birthday, Louis XIV died of gangrene at Versailles. His reign had lasted 72 years, longer than that of any other known European monarch, and left an indelible mark on the culture, history and destiny of France. His 5-year-old great-grandson succeeded him as Louis XV.
What did Louis XIV control?
Louis XIV Assumes Control of France. The Arts and the Royal Court Under Louis XIV. Louis XIV and Foreign Policy. Louis XIV and Religion. Death of Louis XIV. The reign of France’s Louis XIV (1638-1715), known as the Sun King, lasted for 72 years, longer than that of any other known European sovereign. In that time, he transformed the monarchy, ...
How many Huguenots lived in France?
Roughly 1 million Huguenots lived in France at the time, and many were artisans or other types of skilled workers. Although emigration of Protestants was explicitly forbidden by the Edict of Fontainebleau, scores of people—estimates range from 200,000 to 800,000—fled in the decades that followed, settling in England, Switzerland, Germany and the American colonies, among other places. Louis XIV’s act of religious zeal—advised, some have suggested, by the Marquise de Maintenon—had cost the country a valuable segment of its labor force while drawing the ire of its Protestant neighbors.
What did Louis XIV do to the French government?
His finance minister, Jean-Baptiste Colbert (1619-1683), implemented reforms that sharply reduced the deficit and fostered the growth of industry, while his war minister, the Marquis de Louvois (1641-1691), expanded and reorganized the French army. Louis also managed to pacify and disempower the historically rebellious nobles, who had fomented no less than 11 civil wars in four decades, by luring them to his court and habituating them to the opulent lifestyle there.
What was the first war of devolution?
In 1667 Louis XIV launched the War of Devolution (1667-1668), the first in a series of military conflicts that characterized his aggressive approach to foreign policy, by invading the Spanish Netherlands, which he claimed as his wife’s inheritance. Under pressure from the English, Swedish and especially the Dutch, France retreated and returned the region to Spain, gaining only some frontier towns in Flanders. This unsatisfactory outcome led to the Franco-Dutch War (1672-1678), in which France acquired more territory in Flanders as well as the Franche-Comté. Now at the height of his powers and influence, Louis established “chambers of reunion” to annex disputed cities and towns along France’s border through quasi-legal means.
What did Louis XIV appreciate?
A hard-working and meticulous ruler who oversaw his programs down to the last detail, Louis XIV nevertheless appreciated art, literature, music, theater and sports.
What was Louis XIV's foreign policy?
In 1667 Louis XIV launched the War of Devolution (1667-1668), the first in a series of military conflicts that characterized his aggressive approach to foreign policy, by invading the Spanish Netherlands, which he claimed as his wife’s inheritance.
When did Louis XIII die?
When France’s King Louis XIII died at the age of 41 on May 14, 1643, the monarchy passed to his eldest child, Louis XIV, who was just four years and eight months old.
How long did Louis XIV rule?
In the latter years of his 72-year rule, however, the succession of wars launched by the king ultimately took their toll on France and resulted in battlefield defeats, crippling debt, and famine. Citizens grew so disgruntled that they even jeered the diseased Louis XIV during his funeral procession.
How many children did Louis XIV have?
Louis XIV, however, had a healthy libido and fathered more than a dozen illegitimate children with a number of mistresses. Mistress Louise de La Vallière bore five of the king’s children, only two of which survived infancy, while her rival Madame de Montespan, who eventually became the king’s chief mistress, gave birth to seven of the monarch’s children. Louis XIV eventually legitimized most of his children born to mistresses in the years following their births.
What did Louis XIV believe?
By the 1680s, however, the devoutly Catholic Louis XIV believed his faith should be the sole religion of his country. After years of persecuting Protestants and constricting their rights, the Catholic king revoked the Edict of Nantes in 1685 through his issuance of the Edict of Fontainebleau, which ordered the destruction of Protestant churches, ...
How old was Louis XIV when he was crowned?
Louis XIV was 15 years old at the time of his coronation in 1654, but he did not wield absolute power over France until seven years later when Mazarin died. (After the death of Louis XIV, history repeated itself as his five-year-old great-grandson, Louis XV, succeeded him.)
What did Louis dieudonné mean?
So relieved were the royal couple to have a direct heir to the throne that they christened the boy Louis-Dieudonné, meaning “gift of God. ”. If the name alone didn’t give Louis XIV an inflated sense of himself, Mazarin also instilled in the boy the notion that kings are divinely chosen.
What was the name of the king of France who died in 1715?
Inside the walls of the opulent Palace of Versailles, France’s King Louis XIV died of gangrene on September 1, 1715, just four days short of his 77th birthday. Known as the “Sun King,” Louis XIV centralized power in the monarchy and reigned over a period of unprecedented prosperity in which France became the dominant power in Europe ...
Who was the first cousin of Louis XIV?
Maria Theresa and the Fren ch king were double first cousins: Louis XIV's father was Louis XIII of France, who was the brother of Maria Theresa's mother, while her father was brother to Anne of Austria, Louis XIV's mother.
Where did Louis the Queen marry?
A marriage by proxy to the French king was held in Fuenterrabia. Her father and the entire Spanish court accompanied the bride to the Isle of Pheasants on the border in the Bidassoa river, where Louis and his court met her in the meeting on the Isle of Pheasants on 7 June 1660, and she entered France. On 9 June the marriage took place in Saint-Jean-de-Luz at the recently rebuilt church of Saint Jean the Baptist. After the wedding, Louis wanted to consummate the marriage as quickly as possible. The new queen's mother-in-law (and aunt) arranged a private consummation instead of the public one that was the custom.
What religion did Elisabeth of France practice?
Elisabeth of France. Religion. Roman Catholicism. Signature. Maria Theresa of Spain ( Spanish: María Teresa de Austria; French: Marie-Thérèse d'Autriche; 10 September 1638 – 30 July 1683), was by birth Infanta of Spain and Portugal ( until 1640) and Archduchess of Austria as member of the Spanish branch of the House of Habsburg ...
Who was the first cousin of the French king?
In 1658, as war with France began to wind down, a union between the royal families of Spain and France was proposed as a means to secure peace. Maria Theresa and the French king were double first cousins: Louis XIV's father was Louis XIII ...
Who were the two queens of France?
Two queens of France: Anne of Austria with her niece and daughter-in-law, Maria Theresa, and the latter's son Louis. On 26 August 1660, the newlyweds made the traditional Joyous Entry into Paris.
Where is Marie-Thérèse buried?
Death. Marie-Thérèse's burial site at the Basilica of St Denis, where most of France's monarchs are buried. During the last week of July 1683, Maria Theresa fell ill and, as her illness worsened, her husband ordered for the sacraments to be kept nearby. She died a painful death on 30 July 1683, at Versailles.
What was the relationship between Maria Theresa and Louis XIV?
Maria Theresa and Louis XIV – A Marriage to Unite Countries. The negotiations between Spain and France resulted in the Treaty of the Pyrenees, which included an arrangement for marriage between Maria Theresa and Louis XIV of France, who were double first cousins. These negotiations were complicated and one of the issues ...
Where did Louis XIV marry Maria Theresa?
In June 1660, Maria Theresa and Louis XIV were married in Saint-Jean-de-Luz, in the south-western part of France. Although Louis XIV was faithful to his wife at the beginning of the marriage, the Sun King soon began having affairs with other women. In 1661, for instance, Louise de La Vallerie became the king’s first official mistress.
What did Maria Theresa do to France?
One of the lesser known contributions that Maria Theresa made to France is the introduction of chocolate to the kingdom. As a result of the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire , cacao was introduced into Europe. Maria Theresa herself was a great lover of chocolate.
How did Maria Theresa die?
Maria Theresa died at the age of 45 on the 30 th of July 1683, after returning from a tour of Burgundy and Alsace. Back in Versailles, the queen fell ill and died suddenly from complications related to an abscess. When the king heard of his wife’s death, he did not mourn but instead is reported to have said “This is the first time she’s caused me any bother.”
Who was the heir presumptive of the Spanish throne?
Following the death of her brother, Balthasar, Maria Theresa held the title of heir presumptive, which she retained until the birth of her half-brother Philip Prospero in 1657. Under the Treaty of the Pyrenees, Maria Theresa was forced to renounce all her claims on the Spanish throne prior to her marriage.
Who was the Queen of France in 17th century?
Maria Theresa of Spain: Betrayal, Incest, and Black Baby Rumors. Read Later. Print. Maria Theresa of Spain was an infanta (meaning ‘princess’) of the Spanish Empire who lived during the 17 th century. She belonged to the Spanish branch of the House of Habsburg , and is best-known for being the Queen of France as a result ...
Where is Marie Theresa buried?
Marie Theresa of Spain’s burial site at the Basilica of Saint Denis. (Krischnig / Public Domain ) Top image: Meeting on the Isle of Pheasants, June 1660; Maria Theresa is handed over to the French and her husband by proxy, Louis XIV. Photo source: (alteesses.eu / Public Domain ) By Wu Mingren.
Overview
Image and depiction
Few rulers in world history have commemorated themselves in as grand a manner as Louis. He cultivated his image as the Sun King (le Roi Soleil), the center of the universe "without equal". Louis used court ritual and the arts to validate and augment his control over France. With his support, Colbert established from the beginning of Louis' personal reign a centralised and instit…
Early years
Louis XIV was born on 5 September 1638 in the Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, to Louis XIII and Anne of Austria. He was named Louis Dieudonné (Louis the God-given) and bore the traditional title of French heirs apparent: Dauphin. At the time of his birth, his parents had been married for 23 years. His mother had experienced four stillbirths between 1619 and 1631. Leading contemporaries thus regarded him as a divine gift and his birth a miracle of God.
Minority and the Fronde
Sensing imminent death, Louis XIII decided to put his affairs in order in the spring of 1643, when Louis XIV was four years old. In defiance of custom, which would have made Queen Anne the sole Regent of France, the king decreed that a regency council would rule on his son's behalf. His lack of faith in Queen Anne's political abilities was his primary rationale. He did, however, make the concess…
Personal reign and reforms
Louis XIV was declared to have reached the age of majority on 7 September 1651. On the death of Mazarin, in March 1661, Louis assumed personal control of the reins of government and astonished his court by declaring that he would rule without a chief minister: "Up to this moment I have been pleased to entrust the government of my affairs to the late Cardinal. It is now time that I govern t…
Early wars in the Low Countries
The death of his maternal uncle King Philip IV of Spain, in 1665, precipitated the War of Devolution. In 1660, Louis had married Philip IV's eldest daughter, Maria Theresa, as one of the provisions of the 1659 Treaty of the Pyrenees. The marriage treaty specified that Maria Theresa was to renounce all claims to Spanish territory for herself and all her descendants. Mazarin and Lionne, howe…
Height of power
By the early 1680s, Louis had greatly augmented French influence in the world. Domestically, he successfully increased the influence of the crown and its authority over the church and aristocracy, thus consolidating absolute monarchy in France.
Louis initially supported traditional Gallicanism, which limited papal authority in …
Revocation of the Edict of Nantes
Louis decided to persecute Protestants and revoke the 1598 Edict of Nantes, which awarded Huguenots political and religious freedom. He saw the persistence of Protestantism as a disgraceful reminder of royal powerlessness. After all, the Edict was the pragmatic concession of his grandfather Henry IV to end the longstanding French Wars of Religion. An additional factor in Louis' thi…