During the long reign of Louis XIV (r. 1643–1715), the French monarchy reached the peak of absolutist development. Louis believed in the divine right of kings: God had established kings as his rulers on earth, and they were answerable ultimately to him alone. However, he also recognized that kings could not simply do as they pleased. They had to obey God’s laws and rule for the good of the people.

Like his counterpart, the Kangxi emperor of China, who inherited his realm only two decades after the Sun King did (see “Competent and Long-Lived Emperors” in Chapter 21), Louis XIV impressed his subjects with his discipline and hard work. He ruled his realm through several councils of state and insisted on taking a personal role in many of the councils’ decisions.

Although personally tolerant, Louis hated division. He insisted that religious unity was essential to the security of the state. In 1685 Louis revoked the Edict of Nantes. Around two hundred thousand Protestants, including some of the kingdom’s most highly skilled artisans, fled France. Louis’s insistence on “one king, one law, one religion” contrasts sharply with the religious tolerance exhibited by the Ottoman Empire (see “How did Christians, Jews, Hindus, and other non-Muslims fare under these Islamic states?” in Chapter 17).

Despite his claims to absolute authority, there were multiple constraints on Louis’s power. As a representative of divine power, he was obliged to rule in a way that seemed consistent with virtue and benevolent authority. He had to uphold the laws issued by his royal predecessors. Moreover, he also relied on the collaboration of nobles. Without their cooperation, it would have been impossible for Louis to extend his power throughout France or wage his many foreign wars.