1. ABSOLUTISM
1.1. In France, Louis XIV was the most famous exemplar of absolute monarchy
1.2. Louis XIV strived to acheive centralization and have total control over France
1.3. He was able to accomplish his goal by improving the unorganized taxes system in France
1.4. He set up the Palace of Versailles where he asked the nobles to move inand to take on different parts of hid administration
1.5. He was very successful in terms of war and usually lead his country to success against most European
1.6. "I am the state" was his most memorable statement that is considered as the ultimate declaration of absolutism
2. ARTS
2.1. He didn't care for politics, but Louis XIV left behind artistic treasures
2.2. The Sun King was more interested in the fine arts than in politics and government affairs, and he has left behind some truly impressive architectural achievements
2.3. Versailles offered the appropriate backdrop for artistic life at the court of Louis XIV, who surrounded himself with thousands of aristocrats, composers and artists.
2.4. Louis was considerd as a huge patron of the arts
2.5. Versailles symbolized royalty wealth and luxury
2.6. He was motivated to create his legacy through paintings of himself so that he would be memorable to the future generations
3. WARS
3.1. War of the Grand Alliance (1688-1697)
3.1.1. once again almost all great European states were involved in fighting back French expansion
3.2. War of Devolution (1667-1668)
3.2.1. France was fighting against Spain for the Spanish posessions in the Spanish Netherlands
3.3. Dutch War (1672-1678)
3.3.1. French attempt to conquer the United Provinces of the Netherlands, which turned into a major European War
3.4. War of the Spanish Succession (1701-1714)
3.4.1. France and Austria both fought to get the bigger part of the Spanish empire after the death of King Charles II.This war put the Bourbon King Philip V in power at the concession to the Austrian Hapsburg King Leopold I that the two monarchies would not join in an union. This war while seeing the decline of the Spanish empire in regional affairs, and its alignment with France, also saw the rise of Prussia as the strongest of the German provinces