The Fronde and the Shape of Louis XIV monarchy

Introduction

The purpose of this study is to expand the boundaries of the author's knowledge by exploring some relevant facts related to the Fronde and the Shape of Louis XIV monarchy. Among all the absolute rulers in Europe, by far the best example of one and the most powerful was Louis XIV of France. He indeed believe in absolute Monarchy which was the political doctrine and practice of unlimited centralized authority and absolute sovereignty as vested especially in a monarch or dictator. He believed in the “divine right” of a French monarch that is the appointed of god to govern the country as he wished. The actions and ideas of Louis XIV both reflected and encouraged absolutism. These helped him to gain power, symbolize his importance to society and to insure his policies. He ruled for seventy two years and wrote a book for his heirs on how to be an absolute monarchy (Ranum, pp. 51-57). In the next section, the author will examine various aspects of the Fronde and the Shape of Louis XIV monarchy.

Discussion & Analysis

The Fronde and the Shape of Louis XIV Monarchy

The Fronde (1648-1653) was a series of rebellions against the regency government of Louis XIV because of rising taxes. It took its name from the slingshots that children used to throw stones at carriages. The rebellion was aimed against the king's advisors rather than the king himself and was led by the nobility and the Parlement of Paris (highest court of appeal), who demanded a greater participation in politics and lower taxes. After the Fronde, the nobility lost a great deal of its previous power.

In 1648, the Thirty Years War was almost over, but the conflict against Spain was to continue for another decade. Mazarin, the head of a state ruined by the war, decided to raise new taxes. The cardinal, who had already ordered the creation of new taxes in previous years, decided this time to broaden the scope of action, forcing the elites to pay taxes (at that time, they were exempt (Lossky, pp. 97-106).

At that time, the French monarchy was moving slowly towards an absolute monarchy. Unlike the Middle Ages, or the States General were convened regularly, the sovereigns had gradually lost the habit, preferring to rely on a single minister. Note also that the various "prime ministers" who succeeded at the head of the state were never appreciated by the people or the nobility (Lossky, pp. 97-106).

Recognizing the discontent of parliamentarians, Cardinal Mazarin tried to divide the nobility, by abolishing the inheritance of offices for the supreme courts. However, the Parliament of Paris was not fooled, and decided to make common cause with them. MPs then promulgated the Edict of Union in May 1648. Mazarin then tried to reconcile with the Parlement of Paris, to the dismay of Anne of Austria. However, the procrastination of the Cardinal came to nothing, parliamentarians enacting the 27 articles in July 1648 (Hurt, pp. 67-73).

This legislation included the ...