Historical Look: The Bourbon Dynasty

So once again I've briefly returned to a French history appreciation phase, which is an area that continues to fascinate me. This time the inspiration stems from finishing the 3rd and final season of Versailles. This top quality TV drama centers around the young King Louis XIV of the House of Bourbon, who established the Palace of Versailles as the centerpiece of the French Kingdom during the late 17th century.

During his 72 year reign (the longest to date of any monarch) King Louis XIV led France to becoming one of the strongest kingdoms in Europe. His legacy was continued by his great grandson, and his grandson after him who oversaw a glorious period for the French Monarchy. In this post I want to focus on the rise of the Bourbon Dynasty and their most prosperous reign from 1643 until they were overthrown by the French Revolution in 1792.


The Rise of The Bourbon Dynasty

The first Bourbon king to ascend to the throne was Henry IV in 1589 however it was a disputed claim and led to various wars and conflicts. In order to unite his cause, Henry IV converted from Protestantism to Catholicism in 1593. This conversion improved relations with Spain, and shortly after Henry IV was recognized as the official king of France. While Paris had become a center for Catholics, Henry IV still showed leniency towards the Protestants thru and passed the Edict of Nantes in 1598 which brought an end to the French Wars of Religion.

Henry IV was assassinated in 1610 and succeeded by his nine year old son, Louis XIII. As a child his mother served as regent queen and brought in a heavier Spanish influence to the French monarchy. However in 1624 Louis XIII was able to shift power away from his mother by appointing a new chief of minister in Cardinal Richelieu. It was Richelieu who constructed France as an absolute monarchy and central power within Europe. In 1635 he led France to join Sweden in the Thirty Years War against the Hagsburg Dynasty of the Holy Roman Empire.

Cardinal Richelieu died in 1642 and King Louis XIII died in 1643. His son King Louis XIV inherited the throne at the young age of 4. By this point, France had emerged as the new super power of Europe while England was immersed in Civil War. A few years later, in 1648 the Peace of Westphalia brought an end to the Thirty Years War. This essentially shifted control of Europe away from the the Catholic Church and further advanced the rising power of the Bourbon Dynasty.


King Louis XIV

As a young child, all of King Louis XIV's duties went to Cardinal Mazarin, the successor of Cardinal Richelieu. Early in his reign, Cardinal Mazarin oversaw the sustaining of the newly established absolutist monarchy in crushing opposition during the Frondes wars. Further conflict with Spain continued until 1659 when a marriage was arranged between Louis XIV and the Spanish princess Maria Theresa. Shortly after in 1661 Cardinal Mazarin died and rather than replace the chief minister King Louis XIV declared that he himself would rule without a minister at the age of 23.

At this point Louis XIV, known as the "Sun King" began to rule as an absolute monarch and created a centralized state that ruled from the capital of Paris. He eliminated feudalism, brought unity within the aristocracy, and even made efforts to bridge differences with political and religious opponents. His first greatest test came at the Franco-Dutch War which was essentially a French offensive from 1672 to 1678. Louis XIV's army was able to defeat William of Orange's army and made significant territorial gains in the lowlands.

In 1682 King Louis XIV relocated his residency from Paris to the Palace of Versailles. This was a project he had undertaken early in his reign by transforming the hunting chateau into an extravagant location fit for royalty. The expansion project began in 1661 with additional wings to the grand palace as well as a cultivating landscape full of trees, gardens, fountains, and statues. By the 1680s the King spent most his time at the palace and often had over 6000 people living, visiting, or working within the palace grounds.

This grand setting of Versailles demonstrated the wealth and overly lavish lifestyle of the royal family. However it was only the beginning of France's pompous rise to power during the reign of Louis XIV. While the king made expansions to his palace he also improved the infrastructure and financial system. He controversially revoked the Edict of Nantes, passed by his grandfather, which removed many rights of the Protestants. Yet furthermore he had militaristic ambitions to expand the French territory. Following his victory at the Franco-Dutch War, this expansion continued unchecked until the Nine Years War from 1688-1697. By this point France had surmounted many enemies and a grand European coalition was able to resist their aggression.

In 1701 he was faced with yet another major balance of power in the War of Spanish Succession. This was essentially over the disputed king of Spain and once again France was faced with heavy opposition from a European coalition. After 13 years of war, a treaty was worked out that recognized Philip as king of Spain, independent of France. France was able to retain much of it's territory however the war demonstrated Britain's return to power. King Louis XIV died shortly after the conclusion of this war, outliving his son, the throne went to his grandson. Louis 72 year reign remains the longest reigning monarch in history and his contribution to French society has forever earned him the legacy of Louis the Great.




King Louis XV "The Beloved"

The Sun King outlived his heir, Louis the Grand Dauphin, who died at the age of 49, as well as his grandson the Duke of Burgundy who died at the age of 29. It was his great-grandson Louis XV who ascended to the throne at the young age of 5. The kingdom was managed by a regency under Philip, the Duke of Orleans until he was disposed and replaced in 1723 by Cardinal Andre Hercule de Fleury. During this time France became engulfed in a succession conflict with Austria from 1740 to 1748. When Cardinal Fluery died in 1743, King Louis XV took sole power of his kingdom, similar to his father did, at the age of 33.

During his reign the French began to have territorial disputes with Great Britain over colonies in the United States such as the French and Indian War (1754-1763). Simultaneous to this conflict was the Seven Years War in Europe, over disputed territory in Austria, yet mostly a proxy war between France and Britain. Both wars resulted in devastating losses for the Kingdom of France, and shifted the balance of power to Great Britain's favor. Britain now controlled Europe as well as the United States, while France withered into eventual poverty and social upheaval. King Louis XV's reign was for 59 years (the 2nd longest in French history) and while he was not as effective as the Sun King he became known in history as the "Beloved". His grandson Louis XVI would secede him to the throne after his death in 1774.


King Louis XVI "The Last King"

I've written quite extensively in the past about King Louis XVI and the French Revolution and won't dive too deep into it here. However I will see that it was the 2006 film, Marie Antoinette, starring Kirsten Dunst, that first inspired me about the collapse of the French monarchy. Ironically the French Revolution became the defining event of King Louis XVI's reign, whom lost control of the monarchy to a people's uprising. Much of this was of course no thanks to his extravagant Austrian wife, Marie Antoinette, who became very unpopular with the public for her overly luxurious lifestyle. However the public storm was a brewing for some time within France and following the American Revolution, democratic change seemed inevitable.

To be fair King Louis XVI did play an active role in supporting America in their War of Independence from Great Britain in 1776. However the financial support offered to the American colonists only worsened the debt owed and taxes on the people. By 1789 Louis XVI was forced to relieve some of his power to the Estates-General. In 1791 he attempted to flee with his family, however was captured and a year later the monarchy was fully abolished. Louis was executed by guillotine in 1793 and his wife Marie Antoinette a few months later. This brought an end to the Bourbon dynasty that had reigned since 1589.


Bourbon Restoration

After the abolishing of the monarchy the French First Republic was established from 1792 to 1804. This was eventually replaced by Napoleon Bonaparte's French Empire as he led a campaign of conquest throughout Europe. During this time, Louis XVIII the brother of the executed king, lived in exile in England, Prussia, and Russia. Following the collapse of Napoleon's empire, Louis XVIII was restored to the throne in 1815, despite a brief flee for 100 days upon Napoleon's return and conclusive defeat at the Battle of Waterloo.

Louis XVIII marked the restoration of the Bourbon dynasty and the French Monarchy. However unlike the previous absolutist monarchies, his was to be a constitutional monarchy in which he shared power with a national assembly.  For his ten years in reign Louis XVIII hardly had much say or control in the nation's affairs. Following his death in 1824 however his brother Charles X took the throne with a much more conservative ultra-royalist approach. His attempts to regain total control however resulted in the July Revolution of 1830 which ultimately caused Charles to abdicate the throne.

The next in line was his cousin, Louis Philippe I who reigned with even less control than any monarch had before as France had now become a national sovereignty rather than a kingdom. Much of Louis Philippe's authority fell to the statesman as well as the wealthy elite. He heavily supported the French conquest of Algeria from 1830 to 1847. However this only added to further financial troubles which resulted in the Revolutions of 1848 which resulted in the complete end to the French monarchy.