Louis XIV of Bourbon He was born on September 5, 1638 in Saint-Germain, Laye, France and was one of the most important kings in the history of his country, retaining his role since May 14, 1643, the day of his death.
Son of Louis XIII and of Anne from Austria, who had trouble granting, for this reason always saw their son as a blessing. This was reflected on the day he was baptized under the name of Louis-Dieudonné (“given by God”). Since its birth it already had the titles of “Premier fils de France“ and from the “Viennois dolphin“ for his royal descendants.
What Louis XIII He did not trust his wife’s skill to govern France, he signed in his will that a ruling council should reign until his son was old enough to take office. Despite that, after the king’s death, Ana proclaimed himself as sole ruler and entrusted power to the Cardinal Mazarin, which was not widely accepted by the people due to its Italian nationality.
On June 7, 1654, Louis XIV he was crowned King of France in the Reims Cathedral. To better understand the tasks of a monarch, the sovereign met daily with Mazarin and they discussed the affairs of state together. It was at that moment that he realized that his whole life was going to be devoted to politics, but this did not seem to scare him, as he declared in a speech: “The office of king is great, noble and delightful when one feels worthy and capable of doing all the things to which he has committed himself.“
After enduring the civil wars and the war against Spain, LewisBeing very young, he decided to make some decisions about the future of his kingdom: from that moment on everything that affected the parliamentarians, judges and lawyers, would be controlled by the crown and he would not allow any discrepancy.
June 9, 1660 Louis XIV marriage with Maria Teresa of Austria, daughter of Felipe IV of Spain.
On March 9, 1661, he died Mazarin. According to tradition, it was time for the new king to exercise full sovereignty. It was there when Louis XIV wrote in his diary: “Suddenly, I realized that he was king. That was what he was born for. A sweet exaltation immediately invaded me“. Once secured in the throne, the civil servants asked to him who would be his prime minister, to which Lewis answered: “Me. I order you not to sign anything, not even a passport, without my consent. They must keep me informed of everything that happens and they will not favor anyone“It was at that moment that the absolute monarchy was born in France.
In 1661 the king ordered the arrest of Nicolas Fouquet, who was the Finance Superintendent of Mazarin, because Lewis he considered himself too rich and powerful.
It was always known that Louis XIV He was not a really faithful man with his wife, as there is evidence that links him to different love affairs some time after they were married.
One of the main self-imposed missions Louis XIV it was to impose the supremacy of France over all the West. This famous king considered that war was indispensable for the life of a kingdom, since he believed that it was the basis of the economy. That was why his minister Colbert It provided him with the necessary means to start his projects. At that time he dictated the reforms in the Treasury and various protectionist measures in industry and commerce. Firm with his position, and due to the economic well-being of the kingdom at that time, he created the largest army in all of Europe, having at his disposal a select group of 400,000 men.
In 1672, Louis XIV together with an army of 200,000 men, he crossed the Bishopric of Liege and invaded Holland. The conquest did not take him more than a couple of weeks and it was done thanks to the help of the English fleet that contributed much of the victory. Despite this, the Dutch resistance that weakened the conquering troops managed to sign the Treaty of Nijmegen, in which it was decided that Lewis He would be the new arbiter of Europe, having to renounce Flanders, but making it possible to obtain the Franche-Comté of Spain.
In 1683, shortly after his wife’s death, the King secretly married Madame de Maintenon, who made her husband convert to Catholicism, and at the same time, to consider Protestantism as an offense to the king.
After more than 6 decades of a reign plagued by absolutism and repression against people’s ideas, in addition to a selfishness and pride unprecedented in the history of France, after suffering a terrible gangrene in his legs, Louis XIV he passed away on September 1, 1715. His last words were: “I’m leaving. France stays. “
Louis XIV He left a rich legacy in the history of France, since in his management he placed his country in a predominant position in all of Europe, added ten new provinces and founded an empire. In addition, this famous king reaped several triumphs that allowed him to increase the territory, his power and the French influence in the rest of the countries of the old continent.