France Under Louis XIV

1. Chapter 4 Section 2 pp. France Under Louis XIV

2. Rebuilding France • From1560s to the 1590s they had religious wars that tore France apart • Worst Incident • Began on St. Bartholomew’s Day, August 24, 1572 • Huguenot and Catholic nobles gathered to celebrate a royal wedding • When violence interrupted, it led to the massacre of 3,000 Huguenots • Symbolized the complete breakdown of order in France

3. In 1589, a Huguenot prince inherited the French throne as Henry IV • Knowing that being a Protestant would face many problems with a Catholic land he became a Catholic • To protect the Protestants he issued the Edict of Nantes in 1589 • It granted the Huguenots religious toleration and let them fortify their own towns and cities • His goal as a prince was to put a chicken in every pot • Royal officials • administered justice • Improved roads • Built bridges • Revived agriculture

4. Henry IV was assassinated in 1610 • His nine year old son Louis XIII took over the throne • In 1624 Louis appointed a chief minister, Cardinal Armand Richelieu • He sought to destroy the power of the Huguenots and Nobles

5. Louis XIV, the Sun King • After Louis became king, disorder came against France • This was called Fronde • Nobles, merchants, peasants and the urban poor people rebelled • Louis used the sun as the symbol for his absolute power • He argues, just as the sun stands at the center of the solar system, the Sun King stands at the center of the nation • He is quoted by saying, L’eta, c’est moi • I am the state • He expanded the bureaucracy and appointed intendants, royal officials, who collected taxes, recruited soldiers, and carried out his policies in the provinces • The army was the strongest under his rule • He has a finance minister named Jean Baptiste Colbert • His policies helped make France the wealthiest state in Europe

6. Versailles, Symbol of Royal Power • Louis XIV turned a royal hunting lodge into the immense palace of Versailles • Became the perfect symbol of the Sun King’s wealth and power • Louis perfected and elaborate ceremonies that emphasized his importance • Every morning he had a ritual known as the levee, or rising • At night they did the ceremony in reverse

7. Successes and Failures • Louis XIV ruled France for 72 years • He poured vast resources into wars to expand French borders • Led by the Dutch or the English alliances fought to maintain the balance of power, a distribution of military and economic power that would prevent any one nation from dominating Europe • In 1700 Louis’s grandson Philip V inherited the throne of Spain • In 1685, Louis revoked the Edict of Nantes because he saw France Protestant minority as a threat to religious unity • 100,000 Huguenots fled France

8. Vocab • Intendant- official appointed by French King Louis XIV to govern the provinces, collect taxes, and recruit soldiers • Levee- morning ritual during which nobles would wait upon King Louis XIV • Balance of power- distribution of military and economic power that prevents any one nation from becoming to strong

9. Review • Henry IV of France- Huguenot [protestant]- Converted to Catholicism to rule France and be accepted • Louis XIV- Sun King ruled France for 72 years- built Versailles, changed styles of all of Europe • Palace of Versailles- Hunting lodge turned into the grandest of all European Palaces by Louis XIV. • Balance of Power- Distribution of Military power- try to keep peace- you have big army, I have big army • War of Spanish Succession- Fought to stop the unification of France and Spain • Edict of Nantes- Toleration of Huguenot’s in France, created by Henry IV