Evolution of Absolutism in France
Henry of Navarre becomes King Henry IV.
First Bourbon King (name comes from a French town)
 He converts to Catholicism to please the majority.
 Edict of Nantes. Gave Huguenots the right to live in peace and have their own churches in some cities.
 Devoted reign to rebuilding France and its prosperity
 Sought to curtail the power of the nobility; targets were the provincial governors and regional parlements,
and the Parlement of Paris
 He and his finance minister, the Duke of Sully, established government monopolies which laid the
foundation for Colbert’s policy of mercantilism; began a canal system to link the Atlantic and the
Mediterranean; introduced the corvee, a labor tax that was used to improve internal travel
 1610 stabbed to death by a fanatic
Louis XIII
 Inherited the throne at age of nine; his mother, Marie de Medici, ruled as his regent.
 Marie sought security aboard by signing a ten-year mutual defense pact with Spain in the Treaty of
Fontainebleau (1611); arranged for the future marriage of Louis XIII and the Spanish InfantaI
 Sought to secure the monarchy by selecting a strong minister, Cardinal Armand Richelieu (the Gray
Eminence). He was a devout Catholic who believed the church could serve both his own ambition, the
Bourbons, as he aspired to make France the most powerful nation in Europe.
 Cardinal Richelieu had 2 goals:
1. increase the power of the Bourbon monarchy
2. make France the strongest state in Europe
 Richelieu saw three dangers:
1. independence of Huguenot cities (the Peace of Alais weakened them by denying Protestants the
right to maintain garrisoned cities, separate political organizations, and independent law courts
2. power of the nobility ( used middle class agents known as intendants to prevent abuses from the
sale of royal offices that conferred the right to collect revenues, sell licenses, or carry out other
money making forms of adminstration)
3. encircling Hapsburg armies ( greatest obstacle because they controlled Spain, Austria, the
Netherlands, and part of Germany. To limit their power Richelieu involved France in the Thirty
Years War (greatest success, although both he and Louis XIII died before war ended)
 Richelieu was not as effective in financing the government because he could not enact a new tax
without exempting the 2nd Estate
 Used the arts and printing press to defend his actions and to indoctrinate the French people in the
meaning of raison d’etat (reason of state) This set the state for Louis XIV who made sophisticated use
of propaganda and spectacle to increase his power
Louis XIV
 He viewed himself as an absolute monarch. Became king at age 5, but the real ruler then was Cardinal
Jules Mazarin – he was the lover of Louis’s mother, Anne of Austria
 Mazarin continued the Richelieu’s policy of centralization which led to a series of revolts, the Fronde
 Fronde, a series of riots from 1649-1652 tore France apart.
 Two stages.
 The first (1649) led by the Parlement of Paris, the Nobility of the Robe and the masses of
Paris who were angry over an increase in taxes needed to pay for the Thirty Years’ War
 The second (1650-52) was led by the Nobility of the Sword who wished to weaken the power
of the monarchy. They were especially angry over the imprisonment of the influential wives of
princes whom Mazarin had imprisoned for treason.
 For a brief time the nobility seemed to triumphed as both Mazarin and Louis fled Paris; however,
after a period of anarchic rule by the nobility they returned
 As a child Louis feared the Fronde.
 Even when the violence was over, Louis never forgot his fear or anger. At 23, upon the death of
Mazarin, he took sole control of France.
 To gain control of the government, Louis
 Appointed no single chief minister which made revolt more difficult
 Louis and his advisors became masters of propaganda and the creation of a political image.
 Made sure that the French nobles and other major social groups would benefit from the growth of
his own authority
 Maintained control over foreign affairs and limited the influence of noble institutions on the
monarchy, he never tried to abolish those institutions of limit their authority at the local level
 Moved to Versailles, which served as
 the personal household of the king
 the location of the central governmental machinery
 place where powerful subjects came to find favors and offices for themselves and their
clients
 Restructured the central policy making machinery of his government so that it became a part of his
own court and household.
 Removed the princes of the blood from the royal council and required them to live at the royal
palace
 Relied on ministers drawn from new aristocratic families
 Resorted to bribery to control the provinces
 Developed the strongest army in Europe
 Devoted to helping France attain economic, political, and cultural brilliance
 Believed strongly in divine right of kings; “L’etat c’est moi” (I am the state); greatly influenced by his
tutor, Bishop Bossuet
 Jean Baptiste Colbert was his minister of finance
 Instituted policy of mercantilism in France; aim of mercantilism was to maximize exports while
minimizing imports in order to build up supplies of gold and silver.
 Lifted the ban on the Jesuits; but required members to swear allegiance to king, limited the number of
colleges they could open, and required them to have special licenses for public activities
 Suppressed the Jansenists (who opposed the Jesuits) by permitting the papal bull, Ad Sacram
Sedem to be enforced in France; also closed the Jansenist community of Port-Royal
 Louis issued Edict of Fountainebleau (1685) depriving the Huguenots of their religious rights. May
have been detrimental to economy, but did unite state under one religion
 Louis’ other big mistake was getting France involved in a series of disastrous wars.
The Wars of Louis XIV
Louis’s army of abut 250,000 was the creation of Michel Tellier and his son, the Marquis of Louvois.
Louvois
 Superior military tactician
 Improved salaries and discipline making being a soldier an honorable profession.
 Limited military commissions
 Introduced promotion by merit
 Enlistment was for four years and was restricted to single men
 Intendants monitored conduct at all levels
Sebastien Vauban
 Master of military engineering
 Perfected the arts of fortifying and besieging towns
 Devised the system of trench warfare and developed the concept of defensive frontiers that
remained basic to military tactics through WW I.
The War of Devolution – 1667-1668
 Began with French invasion of Spanish Netherlands and the Franche-Comte on France’s eastern border
 Triple Alliance of England, Sweden, and the Dutch Netherlands intervened and forced Louis to withdraw
 Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle awarded France several towns along border of Spanish Netherlands
The Dutch War – 1672-1678
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Triple Alliance broken by Treaty of Dover (1670)
Louis invaded Holland in 1672
William of Orange secured support of H.R emperor, Brandenburg, and Spain
Peace of Nijmwegen awarded France the French-Comte and additional lands along border of Spanish
Netherlands
The War of the League of Augsburg – 1688-1697
 Began when Louis tried to push France’s frontier to Rhine River
 New alliance formed by William of Orange now king of England deprived Louis of most of his gains.
 By the Treaty of Ryswick, France did retain Strasbourg and part of the Alsace.
The War of the Spanish Succession 1700-1713
 Began over question of who was to be heir to Charles II of Spain
 England, the Netherlands, and the HRE joined forces to oppose the French
 Treaties of Utrecht (1713) and Rastatt (1714) ended the war.
 According to the treaties:
 Great Britain took Gibraltar, gain Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, and the Hudson Bay territories from
France
 Britain was granted as asiento, permission to send enslaved Africans to Spain’s American colonies.
 Austrian Habsburgs gained the Spanish Netherlands and other Spanish lands in Italy.
 Prussia and Savory were recognized as kingdoms
Balance of Power Theory
After the Peace of Westphalia, Europe was now seen as a group of independent states that could negotiate for
themselves. Each state was seen as the equal of the other;
Therefore to protect the sovereignty of each state, a “balance of power” theory developed. The purpose of
BOP is to maintain the sovereignty of each state. There are three aspects to “balance of power” (BOP) theory.
The three aspects are:
1st: all states are equal and sovereign.
2nd: a disturbance upsets the BOP; as a result a coalition forms as a counterbalance. A war follows between
the coalition and the state that caused the disturbance. The conflict is resolved by treaty and the BOP is
restored.
3rd: a member of the coalition can withdraw or switch sides, or a previously neutral state can take a side – thus
causing a “shift” in the BOP. The state that caused the shift is said to “hold” the BOP.
These three aspects can be seen in the wars of Louis XIV.
After Peace of Westphalia (1648), all states were equal and sovereign. (1st aspect)
The War of Devolution – 1667-1668
 Began with French invasion of Spanish Netherlands and the Franche-Comte on France’s eastern border
(this caused a disturbance in the BOP)
 Triple Alliance of England, Sweden, and the Dutch Netherlands intervened and forced Louis to withdraw
(coalition was formed to as act as counterbalance) The coalition forces Louis to withdraw
 Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle awarded France several towns along border of Spanish Netherlands (BOP was
restored)
The Dutch War – 1672-1678
 Triple Alliance broken by Treaty of Dover (1670) (England a member of the Triple Alliance cut a deal
with France and switch sides thus causing a “shift” in the BOP; therefore England “holds” the
BOP)
 Louis invaded Holland in 1672 (a disturbance in the BOP from 2nd aspect)
 William of Orange secured support of H.R emperor, Brandenburg, and Spain (coalition as
counterbalance)
War followed
 Peace of Nijmwegen awarded France the French-Comte and additional lands along border of Spanish
Netherlands (Treaty restored BOP)
The War of the League of Augsburg – 1688-1697
 Began when Louis tried to push France’s frontier to Rhine River (disturbance in BOP)
 New alliance formed by William of Orange now king of England deprived Louis of most of his gains.
(England switched side again now that William of Orange is William III of England – England
continues to hold BOP)
War followed
 By the Treaty of Ryswick, France did retain Strasbourg and part of the Alsace. (BOP restored)
The War of the Spanish Succession 1700-1713
 Began over question of who was to be heir to Charles II of Spain (Charles II left throne to Louis XIV’s
grandson causing a disturbance in the BOP)
 England, the Netherlands, and the HRE joined forces to oppose the French (Coalition formed)
War followed
 Treaties of Utrecht (1713) and Rastatt (1714) ended the war. (BOP restored)
 According to the treaties:
 Great Britain took Gibraltar, gain Novia Scotia, Newfoundland, and the Hudson Bay territories from
France
 Britain was granted as asiento, permission to send enslaved Africans to Spain’s American colonies.
 Austrian Habsburgs gained the Spanish Netherlands and other Spanish lands in Italy.
 Prussia and Savory were recognized as kingdoms
Great Britain is the big winner!! gained land and new source of income (asiento)