FRANCE UNDER LOUIS XIV

''I have the idea that will .... give much pleasure to the people here'', wrote louis xiv, the young king of of France. His plan was to throw a grand party. Each guest would recieve a lottery ticket for a price of of jewery and every ticket would be a winner. A Louis bidding, some six hundred noble guest flocked to the royal palace for a week of some sumptious feast, pagant, sport,dance. This extravaganza was the first of many spectacles organized by louis XIV. By the late 1600, louis had became the absolute monarch of France .

Rebuiding France
From the 1560's to the 1590's, religious war between Huguenots (french protestant) and the catholic majority tore France apart. Leaders on both sides used the strive to further their own ambition.
The worst incident began on st Batholomew's day, August 24 1572 at huguenot and catholic noble gathered to celebrate a royal wedding but violent erupted that led to the massacre of three thousand huguenot. In the next few days, thousands were slaugthered.
HenryIV 
In 1589,a Huguenot prince inherited the French throne as HenryIV. Knowing that a protestant would face severe problem ruling a largely catholic land, he became catholic. ''Paris is well worth a mass'', he is supporsed to have said. To protect protestant, however he issued the edict of nantes in 1598. It granted the Huguenot their own religious right.

When henryIV was killed by an assasin in 1610, his nine years old son, louisXIII, inherited the throne for a time, nobles reasserted their power. Then in 1624, louis appointed Cardinal Armand as his chief minister. This cunny, capable leader spent the next 18 years strenghtning the central government. Cardinal handpicked his able successor, Cardinal juis. When five year old louisXIV inherited the throne in 1643, the year after Cardinal death, juis was in place to serve as Chief minister. Like Cardinal worked tiredlessly to extend royal power.

Louis XIV,The Sun King  
Soon after,louisXIV became king, disorder again swept France in an uprising called defraud , nobles, marchant, peasant, and the urban poor rebled agains him.
'' i am the state'' like his Great grand father of Spain, LouisXIV firmly believed in define right.
'' God's power is felt in an instant from one end of the world to the other; royal powers take the same time to act throughout the kingdoms as does God with the whole world.''
--louisXIV 
During his reign louis did not call for any meeting of Estate general. Louis ruled for 72 years far longer than anyother ruler.