(1638-1715)
[Footnote 17: Copyright, 1894, by Selmar Hess.]
[Illustration: Louis XIV. [TN]]
On September 16, 1638, Paris was in a state of intense excitement and
rejoicing. The booming of cannon resounded through the city, the people
gave thanks in their churches, all the palaces of the nobility were
illuminated, and so brilliant were the bonfires and torches in the
evening that one could see to read on both sides of the Seine. The poor
were feasted as never before, and there was no limit to the enthusiasm.
The occasion of this unbounded rejoicing was the birth of an heir to the
throne of France. Louis XIII., the son of Henry IV., the first of the
Bourbons, was king. He had married the daughter of Philip III. of Spain,
who was called Anne of Austria, after her mother. She was one of the
most beautiful women of her time; but for twenty-two years she had lived
nearly in a state of separation from her husband, and no living heir to
the throne had been born. The king and the queen were not harmonious;
and after the lapse of this long period, the birth of a son was regarded
as an extraordinary, if not a miraculous event, especially by the devout
people of the nation, who called the child the "God-given."
Louis XIII. was personally a brave man, and had some good qualities; but
as a ruler he was weak and incapable of governing his kingdom. He
admitted Cardinal Richelieu to his cabinet, and the astute politician
became his prime-minister, and was the actual ruler of France. The king
fully appreciated the vast abilities of his great minister, even while
he feared, if he did not hate him, and became but a pliant tool in the
hands of the greatest statesman of his time.
It is said that Richelieu was fascinated by the beauty and grace of Anne
of Austria, and that she made a bitter enemy of the minister by
repelling his courtesies. Be this as it may, they were never friends,
except so far as the relations of state compelled them to be such. He
died in 1642, naming Cardinal Mazarin as his successor. Before his death
he had built up the power of France, and won for her an influential
position among the governments of Europe. But he had repressed
constitutional liberty, and severely burdened the people with taxation
to carry on the wars he advocated.
Two years after the birth of the Dauphin, as the heir to the throne was
then called, another son was born to the king, the Duke of Anjou, who
afterward became the Duke of Orleans. The brother of the king is called
"Monsieur" in France, by courtesy; and he is so designated in various
works of the time. Louis XIII. died when his two sons were respectively
five and three years old, naming the queen as regent during the minority
of the young king. Richelieu had died the year before, and Mazarin had
been installed in his place.
The Palais-Royal, which claims the attention of every visitor in Paris
at the present time, was built by Richelieu for his own residence, and
was called the Palais-Cardinal. At his death he bequeathed it to the
king, and it became the residence of Anne of Austria and her two
children. The official in charge of the palaces represented that it was
not proper for the king to live in the mansion of a subject, and the
inscription bearing the former name was removed, and that of the present
day was substituted for it; which seemed to many to be an act of
ingratitude to the statesman who had presented it to the crown. The
chamber which had been occupied by Richelieu was given to Louis, then
only five years old. It was a small apartment, for the cardinal built
more for effect upon the world than for his own personal comfort; but it
was conveniently located for the proper care of the young king, for
whose sake alone the name of the palace had been changed.
The Palais-Royal, as enlarged and beautified from time to time by its
first occupant, who was ambitious to be more magnificently lodged than
the nominal sovereign at the Louvre, was the most splendid royal
residence of the time. Corneille, the greatest tragic poet of France,
said of it in one of his poems, that "the entire universe cannot present
the equal of the magnificent exterior of the Palais-Cardinal;" though,
as the stranger looks upon it to-day, the praise of the French
Shakespeare seems to be extravagant.
The apartments of the queen-regent were vastly more extensive and
elegant than those of his little majesty, and she caused a great deal of
money and good taste to be expended in their further ornamentation.
Cardinal Mazarin also went to reside with the royal family in this
luxurious palace, and his rooms looked out upon the Rue des Bons Enfants
(the street of the Good Children), though the name was hardly applicable
to those who dwelt in the place. Louis was provided with the
surroundings of royalty on a small scale, such as valets, and young
nobles as children of honor, even while the young king was pinched in
his personal comforts and luxuries. Until he was seven years old Louis
was mostly in the hands of the feminine portion of the household, like
other children. At this age the governor appointed to take charge of
him, the sub-governor, the preceptor, and the valets, entered upon their
special functions; the king was practically emancipated from the
nursery.
Laporte, a valet who had long been on duty in the royal family, and had
served a term in the Bastille for his fidelity, desired to read to the
king, when he went to bed, something besides fairy tales; if his
juvenile majesty went to sleep the reading would be lost; if not,
something instructive would be retained in his memory. He read the
history of France, and his charge was interested in it. Permission had
been obtained of the preceptor, but Mazarin did not approve of the
reading. One evening, to escape from the crowd, the cardinal passed
through the room during the reading. Louis closed his eyes and pretended
to be asleep. He had already taken a strong aversion to the minister,
like the greater portion of the people in general.
On one occasion he called the cardinal "the Grand Turk," and the remark
was reported to his mother, who sent for him and scolded him severely
for it. The queen-regent did not share the general dislike of the
minister, for they were on the most intimate terms of friendship. It was
not a matter of record, but it was believed by many, that Mazarin had
been privately married to Anne of Austria. The minister had brought his
relatives to Paris, where he was in a situation to advance their
fortunes. One of his youngest nephews had been appointed an _enfant
d'honneur_ of the king, who did not confine his dislike to the minister,
but extended it to his family. Two of these were designated to remain
with his majesty when he went to bed, and Laporte had been instructed by
the queen to give each of them a stand with two candles in it, as an
emblem of office and a token of honor. The king had the selection, and
he forbade Laporte to give it to the young Mazarin.
The minister was one of the most adroit and cunning diplomats of his
time, or any time. He was an Italian by birth, and had been in the
military and diplomatic service of the Pope, in which capacity he had
been recognized as a man of transcendent abilities by Richelieu, who had
retained him in France, where he became a naturalized Frenchman. He was
the most obsequious of courtiers, and he made himself indispensable to
the queen, who nominally wielded the executive power of the government.
He filled one of the most difficult political positions imaginable, and
did it with consummate skill, though he very nearly sacrificed himself
to the indignation of the people and the nobility in the accomplishment
of his purposes.
Richelieu had deprived the representatives of the people of many of
their powers and liberties, and the Parliament had attempted to recover
them under Mazarin. He caused their leaders to be arrested, which
initiated the war of the Fronde, consisting more of a series of riots
than of organized warfare. This disturbance compelled the court to
retire to St. Germain, where Louis was born. The young king was conveyed
there under the protection of the Royal Guard, which forms an exciting
scene in the series of Dumas, Pere, "Les Trois Mousquetaires." Though
humiliated and banished, Mazarin triumphed in the end. He had the
hardihood to arrest the Great Conde, who had made the rebellion a
success at one time. The minister was driven from the seat of his power
into exile; but diplomacy accomplished what soldiers could not, and
after an absence of a year he returned, and established himself so
securely that he held his office to the day of his death.
Under Mazarin's direction and skilful intriguing at home and abroad, the
influence of France was largely increased beyond her own borders, and
the way was paved for triumphs to be achieved after he had himself
passed away. In the family, as it were, of such a statesman and such an
intriguer, were passed the earliest years of the life of Louis XIV. As
the skilful diplomat had overcome the people and the nobility, changing
them from the bitterest foes to at least the semblance of friends, so
the hatred of the young king was buried under his respect for the vast
ability of the minister.
Louis was brought up in the midst of political storms and in the turmoil
of civil war. Mazarin was avaricious, and carried his economical notions
in household matters to a ridiculous extent, limiting the young king's
wardrobe, furniture, garments for underwear and bed use, so that some of
the latter did not half cover the limbs of the growing boy, and he was
compelled to sleep on a bed covered with ragged sheets. He was a bright
boy, and being a king, he realized that he was not supported in the
style that became his exalted condition. He was inclined to military
recreations and to athletic exercises. He came very early to an
understanding of what was necessary to support his character as the
ruler of a great nation, and as a boy he cultivated the graces of social
life, and was always a gentleman. He was a good horseman, and delighted
in this exercise.
The civil war had "hunted him from pillar to post," and it was not till
he was a dozen years old that he was permanently settled down in Paris.
All these events of his early life had left a powerful impression upon
his mind. It was the custom for the children of honor and the king to
exchange little presents among themselves. One of these gifts to the
juvenile monarch was a golden cannon drawn by a flea, which seemed to
indicate a knowledge of his tastes. Another present was a case of
surgical instruments, containing all the implements, but weighing only a
few grains; and doubtless it suggested the horrors of the battle-field.
Another present was a miniature sword of agate, ornamented with gold and
rubies. These were all given to him by the same young noble; in return
for them Louis was willing to lend the giver the cross-bow of which he
made use himself.
"Kings give what they lend, sire," interposed a governess; and then
Louis presented it to him, wishing it was something more valuable; for
his pocket-money evidently did not permit him to indulge in such
expensive gifts as those he had received; but such as they were, he gave
them with his whole heart. The recipient of the gift kept it, and
regarded it as vastly more valuable than if it had been covered with
gold and diamonds from another.
September 7, 1651, was a memorable day in the annals of France, and if
it was not marked by the popular rejoicings which had greeted the birth
of the king, it was because the people were worn out by the war of the
Frondeurs. The grand master of ceremonies had notified the Parliament
that Louis XIV. would take the "seat of justice," the place of the
monarch in this body on solemn and important occasions, on that day, for
the purpose of declaring his majority, and assuming the government.
There was a great deal of simple fiction in the formalities, for his
majesty was only a boy of fourteen, with far less education than is
usually obtained by one of that age at the present time, and was
incapable of ruling over a great nation.
There was even some fiction in regard to his age, for though he had
entered his fourteenth year, he was hardly thirteen years old. If a boy
of that age were transferred from his place in school to the presidency
of the United States to-day, the cases would be parallel. The education
of the juvenile king had been neglected, perhaps intentionally, by
Mazarin for his cunning purposes, and though he had been instructed in
all the forms and ceremonials of the court, he was deficient in his
knowledge of the solid branches of learning, even for one in his sphere
at that age. But the government, so far as he was concerned, was all a
fiction. It was to be carried on in his name in the future as it had
been in the name of his mother, the queen-regent, before, though neither
of them was the actual ruler. Mazarin was more than "the power behind
the throne;" he was practically the throne itself.
At seven o'clock in the morning, six heralds, clothed in crimson velvet
covered with _fleurs de lis_, the royal emblem of France, mounted on
elegantly caparisoned horses, led the court to the palace where the
Parliament assembled. The king's trumpeters came next to the heralds,
and they were followed by the governors of provinces, two hundred of the
nobility, and the officers of the royal household, escorted and flanked
by several companies of light horsemen. Pages and valets had been
dressed in new liveries, and the spectacle was as magnificent as the
occasion required.
Then came the boy-king, as a chronicler of the period describes him,
"with his august countenance beaming with a gentle dignity truly royal,
and with his natural politeness, calling forth from the assembled
multitude that lined the streets redoubled good wishes for his health
and prosperity." The youth who played the principal part in this great
ceremonial was dressed in elegant garments, so covered with gold
embroideries that the color and material could hardly be discerned. He
was mounted on a beautiful and high-spirited horse, which pranced and
curvetted as if aware that he bore a king; and Louis managed him so
skilfully and gracefully that he won the admiration of the spectators.
The king was received at the entrance of the palace chapel, where the
court attended divine service, by the Bishop of Bayeux, who made an
address to him, to which he listened, apparently in a thoughtful mood,
and then ushered him into the chapel, where he heard low mass. Then he
took his place in the hall of parliament. The minutest particulars of
the scene that surrounded him when he took his seat are given in the
memoirs of some who were present. Seated, and with his head covered,
which was alone his privilege, the young king addressed the assembled
representatives of the people:
"Gentlemen, I have come before my Parliament to inform you that, in
obedience to the law of my kingdom, I desire to take upon myself the
government of my country; and with the blessing of God, I trust that it
will be conducted with justice and piety. My chancellor will state to
you more particularly my intentions."
The official indicated returned to his place and eloquently enlarged
upon the address of his majesty in a long discourse. The queen-mother
then spoke to him, telling him that she had taken charge of his
education and of the government in accordance with the expressed wish of
the late king, her honored lord, and in obedience to the law she passed
over to him the government of the kingdom, and hoped that the grace of
God, with his own power and prudence, would render his reign a happy
one. The king thanked her for the care she had given to his education
and the government of the kingdom, and begged her to continue to give
him her good counsels, saying that she should be his chief adviser.
His brother, the Duke of Anjou, then approached him, kneeled, kissed his
hand, and protested his fidelity. The Duke of Orleans then followed the
example of his nephew, as did a multitude of princes, dukes, marshals,
ecclesiastics, and all the officers of state. The royal party returned
to the Palais-Royal amidst the unanimous acclamations of the multitude,
and the cries of "Vive le roi" continued all night, with bonfires and
illuminations. The boy of fourteen was now actually the king, so far as
forms could make him so, though he was to remain not much more than a
cipher for several years to come.
The war of the Fronde lasted about eight years, and was carried on in
the interest of the people against the court, which had overburdened
them with taxes. The word "_fronde_" means a sling, and was applied to
those who criticised the government then and in later years. The
Parliament refused to impose the taxes required by the regent, which
meant Mazarin, and some of its members were arrested and imprisoned.
Some of the most distinguished nobles in France were implicated with the
opposition, including the great Conde, the king's uncle. Mazarin's
politic yielding, which alone saved him from destruction, assisted in
restoring peace. Conde was in arms against the government, but he was
defeated by Turenne. The people and the nobles were tired of the strife,
and a general amnesty was proclaimed in 1653.
Though Louis was well instructed in his religious duties, was entirely
familiar with court etiquette, and knew enough about military affairs to
enable him to review his troops, he knew little or nothing about the
politics of his kingdom, for he had been purposely kept in ignorance of
affairs of state. But he manifested a sound judgment and considerable
discernment even at this early age. He accompanied Turenne in a campaign
against Conde, and was present at the siege of Arras, which put an end
to the Fronde contests. Some of the Frondeurs had injudiciously called
in the aid of Spain to their cause, and that brought on war between the
two nations. Peace was made in 1659, and one of the articles of the
treaty stipulated the marriage of Louis XIV. and Marie Therese,
daughter of Philip IV. of Spain, and they were married a year later.
This princess was good-natured and beautiful, but this was about all
that could be said of her, for she was rather weak in intellect, and was
not such a queen as "Louis the Great" needed. His majesty was not
attached to her, though he invariably treated her with the most
ceremonious respect, and extended to her the utmost kindness and
consideration.
Though the king had a certain respect for the proprieties of his
position, he lived in a period of the greatest immorality and license,
while he attended strictly to his formal religious duties. Judged by any
standard of the morals of more modern times, the verdict of average
citizens would be against him. He was surrounded by dissolute men, and
some, who ought to have protected him from the assaults of vice, placed
him in its way. He was no worse in this respect than even Richelieu and
Mazarin, not to mention his mother and many of the most noted men of his
time. This is not the place to detail the king's gallantries, for they
would fill a volume.
When Louis was twenty-three years of age, Cardinal Mazarin died, having
ruled the nation for eighteen years; but ten of them were after the king
had come to his majority, and the minister had discovered that he had a
will of his own, incompetent as he then was to hold the reins of
government. Louis went to see him in his final hours, and asked him for
his last counsels. "Sire," replied the dying cardinal, "see that you
respect yourself, and others will respect you; never have another first
minister; employ Colbert in all things in which you need the services of
an intelligent and devoted man." And the king followed this advice, and
perhaps Mazarin gave it because he understood so well the inclination of
Louis.
Mazarin died possessed of an immense fortune, which was not generally
believed to have been honestly acquired. He was a usurer, though he
could be very liberal when his policy demanded. On his death-bed his
confessor warned him that he was eternally lost if he did not restore
whatever wealth he had fraudulently accumulated; but the dying cardinal
declared that he had nothing which had not been bestowed upon him by the
bounty of the king. His fortune was estimated at fifty millions of
francs, or about ten millions of dollars, a vast sum for that time. He
gave the bulk of it to his nieces and nephews, with presents to members
of the royal family, and eighteen large diamonds to the crown, called
"the Mazarins."
Like Richelieu, he had built a palace on the Seine, which he gave to the
State, and the Palais Mazarin is now occupied by the French Academy.
This act and the creation of a dukedom were to perpetuate his name. He
was the owner of one of the original twenty-five Bibles printed by
Gutenberg, which is called by Mazarin's name, and was once sold for
about twenty thousand dollars.
[Illustration: Moliere at breakfast with Louis XIV.]
After the death of the great minister, officials of the government
desired to know to whom they were to apply for instructions, and the
king promptly replied that they were to address themselves to him. Louis
had hitherto devoted himself almost wholly to the pleasures of his
dissolute age, and he astonished his people and the nations of Europe by
assuming in reality the entire control of the affairs of state, which he
retained to the end of his life. He proceeded at once to examine into
the finances of the nation, and appointed Colbert, as Mazarin had
advised, minister of this department. He succeeded Fouquet, a brilliant
man who had amassed enormous wealth by robbing the treasury. Louis was
firm and resolute in carrying out his will, and he caused the arrest of
the peculating minister immediately after a magnificent fete he had
given in honor of his sovereign. He was convicted and sentenced to
imprisonment for life.
Colbert did not disappoint the king, and the measures recommended by him
at once improved the finances, stimulated the commerce of the country,
established extensive manufactures, and filled the treasury. France was
in the highest degree prosperous as a nation. Louis was arbitrary and
absolute. His most notable saying, "_L'etat c'est moi_" (I am the
State), was fully realized in his administration. He made war and made
peace at his own pleasure, and, as monarchs are measured, he was
entitled to the appellation of Louis le Grand, chiselled on the
triumphal arches of Paris to perpetuate his glory. In the later years of
his reign his wars made serious inroads upon the treasury, and they were
not always successful. The building of the immense and extravagant
palace of Versailles, with its surroundings, costing a billion francs,
was an act of folly often condemned, and was one of the burdens which
broke down the treasury of the nation. Colbert was dead, and the king,
with Louvois, his over-liberal minister, dissipated the resources he had
collected.
Marie Therese, the queen, died in 1683. He afterward married Madame de
Maintenon, then the widow of the lame and deformed poet Scarron, who had
rescued her from poverty. She had a powerful influence over the king,
which was unfortunate for him, for she was a bigot, though a better
woman than most of those who had been his intimates. Throughout his
reign Louis maintained the most severe system of court etiquette. He
regarded himself as the absolute owner of his realm, and the arbiter of
the existence of all his subjects. His habits were methodical. He rose
at eight, and was dressed by his valets in the presence of many
courtiers, after he had performed his devotions. He breakfasted at ten,
and dined alone at one, waited upon by the highest officers of the
court. His presence awed those who came before him.
He patronized and encouraged poets, authors, and artists; and Moliere,
both author and actor, was a great favorite with him, and appears to
have been the only man of his profession who was ever admitted to the
honor of dining with the king. Though Louis was not known to make a joke
himself, he greatly enjoyed the witty conversation of Moliere, who is
commemorated in Paris by a fountain and street named after him.
The last years of the reign of Louis XIV. are in strong contrast with
the glorious period of the zenith of his prosperity. Several bloody
defeats of his armies darkened the military splendor of his reign, the
treasury was well-nigh bankrupt, and his court for the speedy trial and
punishment of offenders, political or otherwise, had estranged the
people; but he remained arbitrary and absolute to the end. At the age of
seventy-seven he died, after intense suffering, in 1715. He died a great
king, but not a great man.
[Signature of the author.]