The Foundations of Absolutism in France

1. The Foundations of Absolutism in France Henry IV, Sully, Cardinal Richelieu, & Louis XIV

2. Characteristics of Absolutism • Ruled by “Divine Right” • Cooperation with the nobility • Creation of Government Bureaucracies • Permanent Standing Armies

3. Henry IV (r.1589 -1610) • Henry IV inherited an enormous mess • Starvation, war, pillage and plunder • He promised a “chicken in every pot” • Tried to gain protestant support by appointing protestant Maximilien de Bethune, duke of Sully as chief minister • He and Sully helped France get back on its feet

4. Henry IV and Sully • The Edict of nantes (1598) • He tried to keep France out of war • Brief but successful war with Savoy in 1601 • Lowered taxes on the peasants • 1602-4 introduced the paulette • Annual fee paid by officials to guarantee heredity in their offices • Subsidized the Company for trade with the Indies • Started a country-wide highway system

6. The King is Dead • Henry was assassinated in 1610 by a “crazed fanatic” (Francois Ravaillac) • Queen-regent Marie de Medici ruled for their son Louis XIII • Feudal lords and princes began to assert control • Marie appointed Cardinal Richelieu to the council of ministers in 1624

8. Cardinal Richelieu (1585 -1642)

9. Richelieu’s Domestic Policies • Main Goal = total subordination to the monarchy • Leveled castles (to put down feudal symbols of independence) • Dealt with threats (duke of Montmorency, Godson of Henry IV) • Divided France into 32 generalites (districts) • Appointed royal commissioners (intendants) • Not locals from the district • Became the eyes and ears of the king

10. French Generalites

11. Strengthening the Monarchy • Henry IV created the Edict of Nantes (1598) • Allowed for 150 Huguenot towns • Louis XIII saw this as “a state within a state” and called for a unification of faith • Battle ensues- La Rochelle (1628) • Protestant district with ties to the English and Dutch • The city fell and the Catholic liturgy was reinstated • First mass was celebrated by cardinal Richelieu himself

12. The Siege of La Rochelle

13. Richelieu Continued • The creation of the French Academy • Foreign policy = The destruction of the Habsburgs • Example: Participation in the Thirty Years’ War • Major limitation = couldn’t tax at will so…cooperation with local elites • Raison d’etat = Reason of state • “Where the interests of the state are concerned, God absolves actions which, if privately committed, would be a crime.” (p536)

14. From Richelieu to Mazarin • Mazarin was not as strong as Richelieu • Period of civil wars (1648 -1653) known as the Fronde 3 results of the Fronde • Government would have to compromise with the social elites and the bureaucracy • Economy was devastated • Was a traumatic experience that left a mark on the young Louis XIV

15. Louis XIV (b.1638 - d.1715)

16. Louis XIV “The Sun King” • Longest reign in European history (r.1643-1715) • Responsible for the “complete domestication of the nobility” • Built the Royal Court of Versailles • Kept the nobility close at hand • Never called the estates general • Nobility had no means of united expression • Appointed Colbert as the controller general of finances

17. Mercantilism under Colbert • Theory = A nation’s international power was based on the amount of gold they possessed • France should sell products to other countries (for gold) and make everything it needs within France = self-sufficiency • The government subsidized industry • Set standards and regulations • The Creation of a powerful merchant marine • Invested $ in shipbuilding and the training of sailors • Helped make Canada and eventually Louisiana part of the French empire

18. Colbert’s Projects • Canal des Deux Mers • 240 km in length (connects the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean) • An example of cooperation with local elites (nobility) • Finished in 1681 (fifteen years to construct)

19. Religious Issues: The Revocation of the Edict of Nantes (1685) • First, the French monarchy never intended religious toleration to be permanent • Religious pluralism was still not accepted • Louis was basically tolerant but wanted one faith for political reasons • “One king, one law, one faith” • Second, religious liberty was not a popular policy • Aristocrats wanted Louis to crackdown on Protestants

20. The revocation cont. • Following the Revocation: • Destruction of Huguenot churches • closing of schools • baptism of Huguenots • the exile of pastors • Huguenots fled to Holland, England, Prussia, Cape Town • The Huguenots leaving had little impact on the economy of France

21. Louis XIV’s Wars • Louis XIV kept France at war for 33 of his 54 years of personal rule • France’s military grew from 25,000 men in 1635 to 250,000 in 1659 • Furthered the creation of a professional military • New methods of feeding the troops • Ambulance corps • Standardized weapons and uniforms • Rational system of promotion

22. Louis XIV’s Wars • War of Devolution (1667) • Low Countries should go to his wife • Triple Alliance • Sweden, England, Holland • Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle 1668 • Gained commercial towns • Lille and Tournai

23. Wars Continued • The Dutch War (1672-1678) • To save Amsterdam the Dutch flooded the countryside • Treaty of Nijmegen (1678/79) • France gets Franche-Comte • Parts of Flanders

24. Charles II of Spain

25. Wars Continued • The War of Spanish Succession • Charles II of Spain (r.1665-1700) • No heirs • Philip of Anjou (Louis XIV’s grandson) was the next closest relative • Union of Spain & France would upset the balance of power w/in Europe • Grand Alliance (1701) • Prussia, Austria, Dutch, England • War ends in 1713

26. Peace of Utrecht (1713) • Philip of Anjou = King of Spain • France and Spain never united • England receives territory from France • The English get the Slave trade from Spain • Dutch gain very little • Austria receives Spanish Netherlands • Completed the decline of Spain as a great power • “Balance of Power” principle