| A | B |
|---|
| Henry IV | One of the founders of French Absolutism. •United the French people through changing taxes, administration policies, and electing a “freedom of religion” policy through the Edict of Nantes, and the selection of a protestant chief minister. |
| Duke of Sully | Effectively administered the French government by combining direct and indirect taxes on salt, sales, and transit and leased their collection to financiers. Also revived trade through economic policies and was first to realize possibilities of overseas trade. •Also dreamed of international organization designed to maintain peace (one of the first). |
| Cardinal Richelieu | Set in motion the cornerstone of French Absolutism by adopting policies that called for the total subordination of all groups and institutions to the French Monarchy, in particular the aristocracy/nobility. •Developed foreign policy that aimed to annihilate the Habsburg dynasty that ultimately pulled France into the Thirty Year’s War. •Established a school that aimed at creating a unified French language. •Developed raison de’etat (reason of state) that became cornerstone of French government |
| Louis XIII | Became King as a child after Henry XIV died (mother and council ruled in place as a result). •Ignored the Edict of Nantes and decided to end Protestant military and political independence because it was a “state within a state” (i.e. threat to monarchy power). As a result he took of La Rochelle and established Catholicism as main religion, thus creating a unified French state |
| Mazarin | Chief minister and successor of Richelieu who attempted to follow centralizing policies but failed. •Caused the civil wars known as the Fronde, which influenced King Louis XIV policies and views of the role of government. |
| Colbert | Attempted to solve the economic and political problems facing France during King Louis XIV’s reign. •Established mercantilist policies and attempted to make France self-sufficient by supporting both old and new businesses and purchasing Canada which was full of rich resources. |
| Absolute monarchy | Is a stage in the evolution of modern state between medieval feudal monarchies and the constitutional governments of recent centuries |
| Urban protests in France | People began to protest unemployment, high prices, lack of food, and new taxes after the seizure of La Rochelle and the violation of the Edict of Nantes. |
| Centralization | Push by monarchs, such as France, to gain more power. •Altered the balance of power from nobles/church to monarchs, thus marking the birth of modern day states. •Created homogeneous cultures throughout Europe. |
| Fronde | Means slingshot or catapult. Aristocratic factions began to resent the increased power of the monarch while commoners began to question why the government was taxing and ruling in a harsh way. •Showed that the government would have to compromise with the bureaucrats and social elites, that the French economy was in need of serious repair, and that it would affect the rule of King Louis XIV. |
| Divine Right | Kings legitimized power by claiming that God put them there. Were able to alter balance of power from feudal lords and religious leaders to the monarchs and individual states. |
| Palace of Versailles | Initially built by Louis XII to get away from his wife, Louis XIV used a diplomatic center by adding on extravagant wings and requiring his council to live there at least half of the year. |
| New French bureaucracies | Shifted power from the aristocracies and nobles to the king. •Reorganized role of public offices. |
| Mercantilism | A collection of governmental policies for the regulation of economic activities, especially commercial activities, by and for the state. •Adopted by Colbert in an attempt of solving the financial problems France was facing. |
| Purchase of Canada | Colbert purchased in an attempt utilize the resources of the region and to add to the mercantilist policies of France |
| Revocation of the Edict of Nantes | King Louis XIV revoked because religious freedom was never meant to be permanent and there was popular dissent towards the Edict. •Caused the collapse of government/economic policies because craftsmen and the population that was being taxed left. |
| Classicism | France reclaimed glory of the Romans and Greeks thus pushing France into a “Golden Age” |
