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French Absolutism Louis XIV
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Jacques Bénigne Bossuet “Politics Drawn from the Very Words of Scripture” 1679 “The royal power is absolute…The prince need render account of his acts to no one…Without this absolute authority [he] could neither do good nor repress evil. It is necessary that his power be such that no one can hope to escape him… The prince… is not regarded as a private person: he is a public personage, all the state is in him; the will of all the people is included in his. As all perfection and all strength are united in God, so all the power of individuals is united in the person of the prince.”
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Age of Crisis 17th century was a period of great transition European climate was getting colder - less food Governments spent more - mostly on armies and raised taxes on the poor England and Germany establish national churches France and Spain gained control over the papacy
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Age of Crisis Two very different forms of government would evolve – absolutism and constitutionalism Constitutionalism would exist in Britain and The Netherlands Absolutism would exist in France, Prussia, Austria, and Russia In France the process towards absolutism would start after the premature death of Henry IV in 1610
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Absolutism The 17 th century the start of absolutism - rulers with absolute power They reigned by divine right not like medieval monarchs, by the grace of God Their reign was also marked by the influence of great men like Richelieu, Mazarin, and Colbert But even the actions of these men could not stop social disturbances, wars, political problems
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Absolutism Absolute monarchs: a) controlled the church b) law courts c) abolished freedoms and liberties d) maintained permanent armies e) used secret police and spies f) established huge bureaucracies focused on the king g) secured the cooperation of the nobility
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The Bourbon Family Crest
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Foundations of Absolutism Henry IV and his advisor the Duke of Sully laid the foundations for absolutism in France Sully: a) revived the paulette tax - a tax on hereditary positions b) started a highway system c) and dreamed of an international organization to keep the peace - peace equated to profit d) also indirect tax on salt and sales But the number of taxes actually declined – and revenues increased
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Foundations of Absolutism After the assassination of Henry (1610) by a deranged Catholic monk, the nobility revived their ambitions Marie de Medici ruled for the boy-king Louis XIII who was 9 years old – she was incompetent and surrounded herself with those who sought favors In 1614 Louis declared himself in-charge In 1614 the Estates General was convened, but to no effect In 1624 Louis was persuaded to make Armand Jean du Plessis, Cardinal Richelieu his chief minister
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Richelieu (1585-1642) Subordinated all offices to the monarch Weakened the power of the nobles Recruited for the army Supervised tax collection Checked on nobility Regulated economic activity Weaken the Habsburgs who surrounded France
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Intendants France divided into 32 generalites (districts) Royal Commissioners –Could not be native of district –Recruited from newer judicial nobility (noblesse de robe “robe nobility”) Performed specific tasks –Recruited men for the army –Supervised collection of taxes –Administration of local law –Regulated trade and commerce
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Richelieu 1631 France joins Sweden in the Thirty Years’ War against the Catholics Richelieu wrote Political Testament which said power is based on revenue French monarchs could not tax at will so they would never have complete control Richelieu believed in the phrase, “raison d’etat” - what is done for the state is done for God He curtailed the power of the nobles and the Huguenots who had been granted limited religious freedom with the Edict of Nantes In 1627 the Huguenot’s occupied the port at La Rochelle Richelieu personally led the campaign against them and starved them into submission
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“Raison d’etat” “Where the interests of the state are concerned, God absolves actions, which, if privately committed, would be a crime.” Machiavellian?
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Richelieu In 1629 the Peace of Alais revoked part of the Edict that allowed the Huguenots to establish fortified towns and ports To curtail the power of the nobility Richelieu had the Huguenot leaders executed Richelieu’s major weakness was economics – he built roads, canals, and improved domestic industry His involvement in wars kept draining the treasury and gained few tangible benefits Richelieu persuaded the king to appoint Jules Mazarin as his successor He died in 1642 (the same year as Galileo)
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Cardinal Mazarin Louis XIII died in 1643 Queen Anne of Austria governed for her son Louis XIV who was only 5 Their advisor was the Italian Jules Mazarin who was much more diplomatic than Richelieu Mazarin was a staunch advocate of absolutism and he hated Spain In the 1640s Mazarin increased taxes on the wealthy
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The Fronde The policies lead to a civil war - The Fronde (1648-53) The war was between the king and the nobility - the frondeurs 1st Phase- Began among robe nobility when judges of Parisian high court rejected idea to raise new taxes by rescinding judicial salaries 2 nd Phase- Spread to the sword nobility (noblesse d’ epée) who were angered by increasing power of central government
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The Fronde Violence continued sporadically for most of the time and had three significant results: a) government would have to compromise with the nobility b) the economy was ruined and would take years to rebuild c) Louis XIV would never forget the trauma By 1653 nearly all the rebels had been suppressed and royal authority had been re-asserted
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Young Louis XIV
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Louis XIV 1661 Mazarin died and Louis took control of the economy Louis told his advisors he would rule alone Had complete control over all classes of society and became the envy of monarchs across Europe, but most Frenchmen spent their time just trying to survive Many Frenchmen died before reaching their first birthday He reigned for 72 years and it was said that “When Louis sneezed, all Europe caught cold” Married Maria Theresa because of a diplomatic arrangement with Spain
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Marie Theresa & the Dauphin
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Louis XIV
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Louis may not have said “L’état c’est moi!” but it summed up his reign Never called the Estates General Ruled from Versailles where he required the nobility to reside for several months each year 60% of revenue was spent on the maintaining of Versailles Other monarchs imitated Louis and French replaced Latin as the language of the educated But his weakness was always finances He appointed Jean-Baptiste Colbert Controller of Finances
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L’ etat c’est moi! By Hyacinthe Rigaud By Hyacinthe Rigaud
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Louis XIV’s Carriage
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Louis XIV as Apollo
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by Jean Nocret, 1670
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The Sun Symbol
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Colbert Colbert believed the wealth of the country should serve the state He applied the theory of mercantilism to France Mercantilism - government policies for the regulation of economic activities by and for the state Nation’s international power based on its wealth, gold supply Essential to sell more goods abroad than it bought
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Colbert He built roads and canals to enhance communications. He established industries to eliminate imports, and he improved tax collection Colbert sent 4,000 people to Canada Marquette and Joliet - Mississippi River La Salle – Louisiana Commercial class prospered while agriculture declined Because of war, bad harvests, deflation of currency, and emigration Colbert’s goals were never attained
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Jean-Baptiste Colbert
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State Religion 1685 Louis revoked the Edict of Nantes Closed schools, destroyed Protestant churches, and exiled those who would not renounce their faith “one king, one law, one faith” “un roi, une loi, une foi” The revocation won Louis enormous praise but it proved to be a great mistake as over 200,000 Huguenots left France for England, The Netherlands, or the United States taking with them skills and resources
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Louis XIV’s Wars Because he felt the need to be victorious in war and to control Europe he kept France at war for most of his reign Appointed Marquis de Louvois secretary of State for War Louvois created a professional army A) feed the troops b) an ambulance corp. c) standard weapons and uniforms d) rationalized training e) regulated promotion
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Louis XIV’s Wars In 1667, during the War of Devolution, Louis invaded Flanders no success In 1672 he invaded Holland but the Dutch saved themselves by flooding their land 1681 he seized Strasbourg and parts of Lorraine 1689 William of Orange - King of England William joined the League of Augsburg, but neither side won Claude Le Peletier, Colbert’s successor devalued the currency and sold offices and titles to the nobility
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Louis XIV’s Wars English, Dutch, Austrian and Prussians formed the Grand Alliance Even though the were all fighting the French internal conflicts developed Two soldiers dominated: Eugene, prince of Savoy representing the Holy Roman Empire and John Churchill representing England
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http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipe dia/en/c/c3/War_of_the_Spanish_S uccession_family_tree.jpg
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Louis XIV’s Wars 1700 Charles II was king of Spain - he was insane Charles died in 1700 and left the throne to the grandson of Louis XIV, Philip of Anjou 1701-1713 The War of Spanish Succession a) old territorial disputes b) dynastic question of Spanish throne The Dutch and British refused to accept French control of the Spanish colonies and Netherlands
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Peace of Utrecht Philip of Anjou remains king of Spain Spain and France must never unite France gave Austria Spanish Netherlands France gave England Nova Scotia, Hudson Bay, Newfoundland France recognizes the Hohenzollern rulers of Prussia Marked the end of French expansionism
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Peace of Utrecht Spain gave England Gibraltar Spain gave England -asiento- the rights to the slave trade Represented the balance of power principle Saw the decline of Spain Saw the rise of the British Empire
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Louis XIV Gian Lorenzo Bernini, 1665
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Versailles Statistics f 2,000 acres of grounds f 12 miles of roads f 27 miles of trellises f 200,000 trees f 210,000 flowers planted every year f 80 miles of rows of trees f 55 acres surface area of the Grand Canal f 12 miles of enclosing walls f 50 fountains and 620 fountain nozzles f 21 miles of water conduits f 3,600 cubic meters per hour: water consumed f 26 acres of roof f 51,210 square meters of floors f 2,153 windows f 700 rooms f 67 staircases f 6,000 paintings f 1,500 drawings and 15,000 engravings f 2,100 sculptures f 5,000 items of furniture and objects d'art f 150 varieties of apple and peach trees in the Vegetable Garden
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Louis XIII’s Old Chateau
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Versailles Today
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Palais de Versailles
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Versailles Palace, Park Side
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Garden View of Versailles
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Chateau de Versailles
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André Le Nôtre, Royal Gardener
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Versailles’ Northern Gardens
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Gardens at Versailles
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Chateau de Versailles Gardens
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The Orangery
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Grounds at Versailles
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The Lightening of the Belvedere by Claude Chatelet, 1781
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Fountains, Fountains, and More Fountains!
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And More Fountains!
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And Even More Fountains!!!
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Temple of Love
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Hall of Mirrors
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The Queen’s Bed The King’s Bed
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Louis XIV’s Chapel
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Louis XIV’s Chapel Altarpiece
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Organ in Louis XIV’s Chapel
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Louis XIV’s Opera Stage
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Cabinet with Views of Versailles, 19c
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Louis XIV Furniture
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The Gallery of Battles
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Louis XV [r. 1715 – 1774]
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The “Hunts” of Louis XV
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Madame de Pompadour
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Madame de Pompadour’s Bedroom
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Petite Trianon, Madame de Pompadour’s Chateau
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Marie Antoinette & Her Children
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Marie Antoinette’s Boudoir
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Marie Antoinette’s “Peasant” House
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Marie Antoinette’s “Peasant’s Hut”
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