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CHAPTER VII
THE GROWTH OF ABSOLUTISM IN FRANCE AND THE
STRUGGLE BETWEEN BOURBONS AND HABSBURGS,
1661-1743

THE AGE OF LOUIS XIV

UPON the death of Cardinal Mazarin in 1661, the young
king Louis XIV declared that he would assume personal charge
of the domestic and foreign affairs of the French monarchy.
From that date, throughout a long reign, Louis was in fact as
well as in name ruler of the nation, and his rule, like that of
Napoleon, stands out as a distinct epoch in French history.

Louis XIV profited by the earlier work of Henry IV, Sully,
Richelieu, and Mazarin. He inherited a fairly compact state,
the population of which was patriotic and loyal to the
crown. Insurrections of Protestants or rebellions of
nobles were now things of the past. The Estates-
General, the ancient form of representative gov-
ernment, had fallen into disuse and oblivion. Local adminis-
tration was conducted by faithful middle-class officials, the
intendants; and all powers of taxation, war, public improve-
ments, police, and justice were centered in the hands of the
king. Abroad, the rival Habsburgs had been humbled and
French boundaries had been extended and French prestige
heightened. Everything was in readiness for a great king to
practice absolutism on a scale never before realized.

Louis XIV
the Heir to
Absolutist
Tendencies

The theories of government upon which the absolutism of
Louis XIV was based received a classic expression in a celebrated
book written by Bossuet ( 1627-1704), a learned and upright
bishop of the time. Government, according to Bossuet, 1 is

____________________
1 The statements of the arguments in favor of monarchy by divine right are
taken from Bossuet famous book, La politique tirèe des propres paroles de l'Ecriture
Sainte.

-235-

Questia, a part of Gale, Cengage Learning. www.questia.com

Publication Information: Book Title: A Political and Social History of Modern Europe. Volume: 1. Contributors: Carlton J. H. Hayes - author. Publisher: Macmillan. Place of Publication: New York. Publication Year: 1916. Page Number: 235.
    
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