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The Sun God: King Louis XIV

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Often referred to himself as “The Sun God,” King Louis XIV was one of the most memorable absolute monarchs; known for the unique ways he had conveyed his personal belief in divine right, himself, and the way he saw best fit for the government and people of France. Exerting his control to all of France, he decided to move his court and government to Versailles, the palace that he lived in during his reign as King of France. With that and fear in mind, he then invited very wealthy nobles into Versailles in order to prevent them from developing their own regional power, and revolt., The King would require ceremonies, and rituals to be conducted in order to show his strength and power to everyone living in Versailles with him, and strongly believed …show more content…

By centralizing the seat of government and the members of his court away from the centers of power in Paris, Louis was able to weaken the nobility and increase his control over state and government affairs. According to the article, Louis XIV and Versailles, The Palace of Versailles, “as symbol of France's new prominence as a European super-power, Louis XIV officially installed his government at Versailles.” The reason and intentions behind moving the government to Versailles, reflects how he believes in absolute monarchism because his decisions relied on no one else ,but him.King Louis XIV himself had said, “I am the State. It is legal because I wish it.” This quote also demonstrates his belief of absolutism by being able to make laws legal just by commanding them to happen. King Louis XIV decided to invite Nobles of a certain rank to live at Versailles for a portion of every year. King Louis XIV hoped this would deter the noble class “from developing their own regional power,” according to the article, The Palace of Versailles. Louis XIV truly believed that for the government of France to stay in good hands, he would need to have absolute control, and by keeping rich nobles close to him in Versailles, nothing would be treating his control, and to King Louis, that translates to him doing a good job as

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