1.6 Personal Control pre-1685 Flashcards
1
Q
who was Hugues de Lionne?
A
- directed Louis’ foreign policy
- the most intelligent of his ministers
1
Q
what features are at Versailles that show control over the natural environment?
A
- flower beds were changed daily
- 300 sculptures
- 1,400 fountains
- the grand canal is 1,500m long
- the lake reflects the sky to show Louis’ union between heaven and earth
- it was supplied with Seine river water that was pumped from 3 miles away
- the natural ground was swampy and marshy
2
Q
who was Le Tellier?
A
- appointed for state of war in 1643, survived through the Frondes
- had lost of experience
3
Q
how did Fouquet fall?
A
- he was the youngest surintendant de finances ever in 1653
- Fouquet had immense power that brought back memories of the Fronde for Louis and challenged his power
- built Vaux-le-Vicomte in 1641 that is massive
- in 1658 he bought belle-ile-en-mer and fortified it
- he made advances on one of Louis’ mistresses, de la Valliere in 1661
- he began to outshine Louis
- when Mazarin died it was expected he would become the next first minister
- Colbert revealed irregularities in Fouquet’s account and called out his embezzlement
- he was arrested in 1661 after his fete at Vaux
- his trial lasted 3 years before he was condemned to banishment, Louis commuted the sentence to life imprisonment and he was taken to the fortress of Pignerol where he died
4
Q
who was Colbert?
A
- he was in charge of Mazarin’s personal finances before taking over from Fouquet
- he was controller general, superintendant of buildings and commerce, secretary of state for the marine and royal household
- died in 1683
5
Q
why was it significant that Louis selected nobles of the robe to be his ministers?
A
- they owed their rise to power and their position to the crown
- they were more reliable than members of his family who might have ambitions of their own and didn’t owe their positions to him
- all the ministers families rivalled each other which made them more competitive
6
Q
in terms of parlement and intendant control, how did Louis curtail the power of the parlement?
A
- reduced the capital value of offices and parlement’s capacity to discuss edicts
- he made royal decrees superior to those of parlement
- he used the general apathy of parlement to his changes to remove their right to remonstrance in 1673
- office values were 5x those of 1638, the paulette was extended and there were opportunities to get money elsewhere
- this meant officiers saw no threat to their position
7
Q
how did Louis fail to exercise power and control over regional parlement?
A
- magistrates resisted royal edicts
- Colbert failed to standardise legal procedures
- Louis had good control over his court but achieving widespread control was hard
8
Q
why was it hard to control intendants?
A
- there was a lack of country-wide infrastructure that limited communication
- this led to corruption: there were only 33 intendants in 1673 and Bearn didn’t have one at all until 1682
- intendants were overworked and underpayed which meant power was delegated to deputies who were underqualified and ignored royal edicts
9
Q
how did Versailles exercise control over the nobility?
A
- The chateau acted as a vast stage for the nobility to see practically all his waking life
- Six successive parties of over one hundred people observed the petit levee which was his morning wake up
- Some of the highest rank got to see Louis leave his bed and less favoured courtiers watched him complete dressing and put on his wig
- Procession followed Louis go through the hall of mirrors to take mass, while he worshipped God courtiers would worship him
- It tamed the nobility by reducing powerful individuals to a dependency upon courting Louis’ favour by attending to his every need
10
Q
how did plays increase Louis’ gloire
A
- the playwright Pierre Corneille compared Louis to Caesar and said he only had to appear and his enemies would collapse
- Moliere compared him to Apollo and Neptune
11
Q
how did fetes increase Louis’ gloire?
A
- the 1664 fete ‘pleasures of the enchanted island’ had fireworks, equestrian parades, opera, comedy, theatre and ballet
12
Q
how did writing increase Louis’ gloire?
A
- in 1671 there was a prize competition for the best public writing or speech praising the king
- the famous poet chapelain wrote sonnets of Louis’ invasion of Flanders
- the Gazette de France reported and praised all of Louis’ actions
13
Q
how did science increase Louis’ gloire?
A
- there was an exact map of France made for intendants
- Cassini was an Italian astronomer who received a 9000 livre pension to live in France. He discovered Jupiter’s great red spot, Saturn’s satellites and the first accurate measurement from the earth to the sun
14
Q
what shows Louis’ love of the arts?
A
- he was arguably the most triumphant patron of the arts in modern europe
- he personally selected all his musicians, sculptures and pictures
- he practiced dancing everyday till 60
- he loved jewels and fashion and even had the Mona Lisa in Versailles
