The Regency and the Fronde, 1643–1661
In 1643 France was at war with Spain, taxes were heavy and many peasants were poor. The king was a child, so his mother Anne of Austria acted as regent with the Italian-born Cardinal Mazarin.
From 1648 to 1653 a series of revolts called the Fronde broke out. First the parlements (high law courts, not like a parliament) refused new taxes. Then great princes, such as Condé, fought for their own power. The royal family even had to flee Paris. The rebels were divided, and by 1653 the crown had won. Louis never forgot this fear.
Mazarin ended the war with Spain in the Peace of the Pyrenees (1659), and Louis married the Spanish princess Maria Theresa.
Building absolutism at home, 1661–1685
Absolutism means the king holds the highest power and answers only to God (divine right). In practice Louis still needed to work with nobles, the Church and local groups.
- Personal rule: after Mazarin died in 1661 Louis named no chief minister. The over-rich finance chief Fouquet was arrested.
- Councils and ministers: a small High Council and trusted ministers from new families (Colbert, Louvois).
- Intendants: royal officials sent to the provinces to watch taxes, justice and the army.
- Versailles: from 1682 the court lived there. Nobles competed for the king's favour through ceremony, so they had less time to rebel.
- Image: art, buildings, medals and the sun symbol made the king look all-powerful.
- Colbert and mercantilism: sell more abroad than you buy; protect home industry with tariffs; build roads, canals (Canal du Midi), workshops and a navy.
Louis XIV and Europe, 1661–1685
Louis wanted gloire (glory) and safer borders. In the War of Devolution (1667–68) against Spain he gained towns in Flanders. In the Dutch War (1672–78) he attacked the Dutch Republic; the Dutch flooded their land to stop him. The Peace of Nijmegen (1678) gave France Franche-Comté. In the 1680s he took more towns, including Strasbourg (1681), through legal claims called réunions. Many rulers grew afraid of French power.
Challenges at home, 1685–1715
- Religion: the Edict of Fontainebleau (1685) cancelled the Edict of Nantes and removed Protestant (Huguenot) rights. Around 200,000 Huguenots left, many of them skilled workers. Louis also quarrelled with the Pope and with Jansenists (a strict Catholic group).
- Money: wars cost far more than taxes brought in. New taxes, such as the capitation (1695) and the dixième (1710), even touched nobles.
- Hunger: famines in 1693–94 and 1709–10 killed huge numbers of people.
- Critics: some writers began to question the cost of glory.
Challenges in Europe and France defeated, 1685–1715
In the Nine Years' War (1688–97) a large alliance, led by William III of the Netherlands and England, fought France. The Peace of Ryswick (1697) made Louis give back most of his gains since 1678.
When the king of Spain died in 1700, he left his empire to Louis's grandson Philip. Other powers feared one family ruling France and Spain. The War of the Spanish Succession (1701–14) brought heavy French defeats, such as Blenheim (1704). The Peace of Utrecht (1713) let Philip V keep Spain, but he could never unite it with France, and Britain gained trade and land. When Louis died in 1715, France was still the strongest land power but deep in debt.
Try it: power versus debt
Make a two-column table: 'Year' and 'Was Louis stronger or weaker than 10 years before?'. Fill it for 1653, 1663, 1678, 1697 and 1715. Then check your guesses with the 3D slider: the sun shows power, the red bar shows debt.
Key formulas and definitions
- Absolutism = the monarch holds supreme power, answerable only to God
- Divine right = the idea that a king's power comes from God
- Fronde = revolts of courts and nobles, 1648–53
- Intendant = royal official sent to run a province
- Mercantilism = export more than you import; protect home industry
- Huguenots = French Protestants
- Gloire = royal glory and reputation
Worked examples
1. Explain why the Fronde failed.
The rebels were divided: the parlements wanted legal limits on taxes, while the princes wanted power for themselves, and they did not trust each other. Mazarin made deals, split them, and the royal army was loyal. Many people also wanted order after years of disorder.
2. How did Versailles help Louis control the nobles?
Great nobles were expected to live at court. They spent money and time on ceremony and competing for small favours from the king, so they had less time and money to build power in their own regions. Louis rewarded loyalty with posts and pensions.
3. 'Louis XIV's wars did more harm than good to France.' Assess this view.
Early wars brought gains: Franche-Comté and Strasbourg, safer borders and great prestige. But after 1688 wars against big alliances brought few gains (Ryswick), huge debts, high taxes and suffering in famines. Utrecht kept a Bourbon in Spain but at great cost. Overall the later wars caused more harm than the early wars brought good.
Common mistakes
- Thinking 'absolute' meant Louis could do anything. He still needed nobles, officials, the Church and local bodies to cooperate.
- Confusing the French parlements (law courts) with an elected parliament.
- Thinking Louis said 'L'État, c'est moi' in a famous speech. There is no good evidence he said it.
- Thinking France was ruined and weak in 1715. It was in heavy debt but still the largest power in western Europe.