Outline of the March 16th Lecture / D. Terzioğlu

Absolutism at its peak: France under Louis XIV

1. France before Louis XIV

The French monarchical tradition
Limits to royal authority
Precursors to Louis XIV: Henry IV, Richelieu, Mazarin
Setback: the Fronde (1649-1652)

2. The personal rule of Louis XIV (1661-1715)

Policies towards the parlements
Cooptation of “nobility of the sword”
Administration mainly in the hands of “nobility of the robe”
Mercantilist policies (Colbert)
Modernization of army (Louvois and Vauban)
Justifies absolutist rule through “divine right of kings” (Bossuet)
Active patronage of arts and letters to refashion royal image
More controversial aspects of Louis’s absolutism:
Religious intolerance: Revocation of the Edict of Nantes (1685); suppression of Jansenism
Wars and fiscal pressures

3. The reception of Louis XIV

Montesquieu, Persian Letters (1721)
Voltaire, The Age of Louis XIV (1750)