The 17 th Century

1. The 17th Century Absolutism and the Age of Louis XIV

2. Absolutism: What is it? • Sovereign power or ultimate authority in the state rested in the hands of a king • Claimed to rule by divine right • Sovereignty meant the authority to make laws, tax, administer justice, control the state’s administrative system, and determine foreign policy

3. France and Absolute Monarchy: Cardinal Richelieu • Chief minister from 1624 to 1642 • Major figure of the 17th century • Led France into the Thirty Years’ War on the side of the Protestants • “Reason of State”

4. France and Absolute Monarchy: Cardinal Richelieu • Strengthened and centralized the power of the monarchy • Eliminated the political and military rights of the Huguenots, but not their religious rights • Limitation of the power of the nobility • The Indendants • Financial affairs

5. Cardinal Mazarin during the Minority of Louis XIV • Successor to Richelieu • Italian • Served 1642 until 1661 • Continued the policies of Richelieu • Supposed relationship with the Queen-Mother

6. Mazarin and the Fronde • As a foreigner, Mazarin was unpopular and the nobles saw a chance to restore their power • 1st Fronde (1648-49) • Led by the Parlement of Paris (nobles of the robe) with the support of Paris • Compromise was reached ending the conflict • 2nd Fronde (1650-52) • Led by the Nobles of the Sword against Mazarin • Wanted him removed and their positions of power restored • Revolt was crushed in 1652 as the NOS began fighting among themselves • Influence upon the young Louis

7. Reign of Louis XIV (1643-1715) • "The Sun King" • Reigned from 1643-1715 • Longest reign in European history • With the death of Mazarin in 1661, Louis took control over the government

8. Control of State and Church • Louis was a very conscientious monarch • Kept to a strict routine throughout his reign • Did not view his duties as drudgery since he considered his royal profession as “grand, noble, and delightful.” • Government affairs under Louis XIV • Key of Louis’ power was the restructuring of the central policy-making machinery into his own court and household • Kept the high nobility out of government • Most of his ministers came from the Nobility of the Robe – they were to be subservient to Louis as he said, “I had no intention of sharing my authority with them.” • Although Louis had control over the central policy-making machinery – foreign policy, war, taxes, and religion – Louis was less effective in local affairs

9. Religion under Louis XIV • Louis believed in religious harmony – “One king, one law, one faith” • This brought him into conflict with the Huguenots, as he saw them as undermining his authority • 1685 – Edict of Fontainebleau • Revoked the Edict of Nantes • Ordered the destruction of Huguenot churches and schools and the conversion of the Huguenots to the Catholic faith • 200,000 Huguenots fled France despite prohibition • Consequences of Louis’ religious policies

10. French Finances under Louis XIV Jean-Baptiste Colbert (1619-1683) • Sought to increase the wealth and power of France through mercantilist policies • Attempted to improve the quality of French manufactured goods to decrease need for imports and increase exports • Founded new luxury industries – tapestry works at Beauvais; invited Venetian glassmakers to France, etc. • Drew up regulations about workers, quality of goods, taxes, loans • Improved internal communications by building roads and canals • Raised tariffs on imported goods (Dutch & English) and created a merchant marine

11. French Finances under Louis XIV Jean-Baptiste Colbert (1619-1683) • Most of Colbert’s policies were not effective • Main problem was that Louis spent more than what Colbert could collect, especially during the wars

12. Versailles • Louis XIV’s court, which would be latter copied by the rest of Europe • Originally a hunting lodge that Louis moved into in 1660 to escape Paris which is dislike immensely; finished in 1688 • Versailles served many purposes – residence of the king, reception hall for state affairs, the center of government • Life at Versailles was a court ceremony with Louis at the center • Complex court etiquette • Important: Versailles served as the setting in which Louis controlled and kept an eye on the upper nobility

13. Wars of Louis XIV • Central aspect of Louis’ reign was the desire for glory, to increase the power and territory of France - could only be done by war • Important figure: François-Michel Le Tellier, the Marquis de Louvois • Created for Louis a peacetime army of 100,000 that could expand to 400,000 in war

14. Early Wars • The War of Devolution (1667-68) • Louis invaded the Spanish Netherlands to claim territories in the name of his wife • Dutch, English and Swedes intervene and Louis sues for peace in 1668 • As a result of the Dutch intervention, Louis becomes their enemy until his death • The Dutch War (1672-78) • Louis invades the United Provinces in 1672 to avenge their intervention in the last war and gains some initial success • This success forces the HRE, Brandenburg, and Spain to intervene • Peace of Nimwegen ends war in 1678, though Louis does obtain Franche-Comté from Spain

15. The War of the League of Augsburg (1688-1697) • In 1688, Louis decides again to obtain his goals through war • Campaign against the HRE and annexation of Alsace & Lorraine • French atrocities in the Palatinate lead to the formation of the League of Augsburg • Bitterly contested war that lasts for nearly nine years bringing famine and economic depression to France • Treaty of Ryswick ends war in 1697 • Louis is forced to give up most of his conquests in Germany, but is allowed to retain Strasbourg and parts of Alsace

16. The War of Spanish Succession (1701-1714) • Last and longest of Louis’ war • Reason: Spanish succession crisis • Suspicion that the thrones of France and Spain could be united, plus actions by Louis forced the creation of a new, Grand Coalition against France • Progress of the war does not go in France’s favor

17. The War of Spanish SuccessionFamous Battles • Battle of Blenheim, 13 August 1704 • Decisive victory for the Allies • First major French defeat in 40 years • Battle of Ramillies, 23 May 1706 • Battle of Oudenarde, 11 July 1708 • Battle of Malplaquet, 11 September 1709 • Bloodiest battle of the war

18. The War of Spanish SuccessionFamous Figures

19. The War of Spanish Succession (1701-1714) • Peace of Utrecht ends war in 1713 • Philip V remains as Spanish king, but thrones of France & Spain can never be united • Austria gains the Spanish Netherlands, Milan and Naples • England gains the most – Gibraltar, Newfoundland, Hudson’s Bay Territory, and Nova Scotia • Balance of Power is restored in Europe

20. Costs of Louis’ wars • Louis left France economically exhausted, nearly bankrupt, and suffering the loss of several thousand of its citizens • The century long French dominance of Europe is broken • On Louis’ deathbed in 1715, it was attributed that Louis said, “I have loved war too well” and it cost him and his country dearly

21. Absolutism in Europe:House of Hohenzollern • Received the Mark of Brandenburg in 1415 • Over the next centuries the family would obtain territory along the Rhine and the duchy of Prussia • By the 17th Century, the Hohenzollern’s territory, known as Brandenburg-Prussia, consisted of three disconnected areas in western, central, and eastern Germany

22. Absolutism in Europe:House of Hohenzollern • Frederick William the “Great Elector” (1640-88) • Restored Brandenburg after the losses of the Thirty Years’ War • Recognized that having a strong & effective army was essential as Brandenburg was a flat country with no natural defenses • Creates the General War Commissariat to levy taxes for and oversee the training of his new army; the Commissariat then evolves into an agency for the civil government • To help him rule, Frederick William makes a deal with the Junkers • Elector Frederick III becomes King Frederick I • Frederick III (1688-1713) succeeds his father and generally continues his polices • His contribution to the rise of Brandenburg-Prussia: Frederick aids the HRE during the War of Spanish Succession and in return was granted title King in Prussia

23. Absolutism in Europe:House of Hapsburg • Peace of Westphalia ends the Hapsburg’s dreams of an empire in Germany • Leopold I’s Move to the East • Encourages eastward movement, but is challenged by the Turks • From 1683 to 1699, Austrians fight the Turks, defeating them in 1697 • Treaty of Karlowitz (1699) Austria gains rest of Hungary, Transylvania, Croatia and Slovenia establishing the Austrian Empire in south-eastern Europe • Multicultural Empire • Despite all the new additions (the Spanish Netherlands & Italy in 1715), the Austrian Empire never becomes a centralized and absolutist state • The Empire remained a collection of diverse territories held together by a personal union – allegiance to the Hapsburg emperor

24. Reign of Peter I, (the Great)1689-1725 • Centralization of Authority • 1711 – creates the Senate to supervise the administrative machinery of the state while he was away at war • Becomes a ruling council, but Peter adds “colleges” to deal with specific functions to offset the Senates initial ineffectiveness • 1722 – institutes Table of Ranks • Westernization • Grand Embassy to the West • Peter introduces Western customs and practices to Russia • First Russian book of etiquette to teach Western manners • Shaving of beards and shortening of traditional long-skirted coats • Mixing of women • Peter’s Wars

25. Conclusion • Limits of Absolutism • Costs of Louis XIV to France and Europe • Eastern Orientation of Austria • Rise of Prussia