History UsefulNotes / LouisXIV

* [[DerivativeWorks/TheThreeMusketeers Films based on]] the sequels to ''Literature/TheThreeMusketeers'', ''Twenty Years After'' or ''The Vicomte de Bragelonne'' (well, a subplot of the latter, anyway) by Creator/AlexandreDumas:

* ''Film/RevengeOfTheMusketeers'', 1994 French film. Louis appears as a teenager at the time of his coronation. Played by Stéphane Legros.

* ''Film/{{Blanche}}'' (2002). Played by José Garcia (who was at the very least 13 years too old for the role).

A feudal monarch thus relied on his own charisma and influence, rather than the power or resources of his office, at least partially... And Louis's father, the [[UsefulNotes/LouisXIII thirteenth of his name]], was a bit limp in this area, despite having Literature/TheThreeMusketeers working for him. Another problem came from the king's first ministers, like Cardinals [[UsefulNotes/CardinalRichelieu Richelieu]] and [[UsefulNotes/CardinalMazarin Mazarin]], being accused by the nobles of usurping the king's power. Conveniently, this gave them an excuse to rebel against the cardinals' actions, since they justified themselves by defending the king's prerogative.

The longest-reigning [[UsefulNotes/LEtatCestMoi King]] of UsefulNotes/{{France}} (5 September 1638 - 1 September 1715) -- and indeed the [[LongRunner longest-reigning monarch]] of any great UsefulNotes/{{Europe}}an power and the longest confirmed reign of any monarch of a sovereign state in history[[note]]Some monarchs reigned longer, such as Sobhuza II of [[UsefulNotes/{{Eswatini}} Swaziland]] who reigned for almost 83 years, and several [[UsefulNotes/TheRaj rulers of Raj-era princely states]] and [[UsefulNotes/AllTheLittleGermanies minor German princes]] have documented reigns lasting 75+ years, but since they were monarchs of dependent or constituent states and subordinate to other monarchs, they're not counted. (Sobuzha's realm was a protectorate of the United Kingdom, being a semi-autonomous part of UsefulNotes/TheBritishEmpire, until the country gained independence in 1968; this meant that technically, Sobuzha, who came to the throne at the very end of 1899, was a vassal of the British monarch for the first 68 years of his reign. (The British lawyers put it that the Swazi monarchs recognized the British monarch as their suzerain but not their sovereign.) The Indian maharajahs, etc. had a similar relationship with the British Crown. The minor German states were for their part procedurally subordinate to the Holy Roman Emperor and practically subordinate to, um, everyone else in Germany.) Also, ancient histories present the ''possibility'' of some major ancient sovereigns surpassing him, but the dates are uncertain and may be exaggerated. To give you an idea, the Ptolemaic-era Egyptian historian Manetho gave the reign of the [[UsefulNotes/AncientEgyptianHistory Egyptian Old Kingdom]] King Pepi II Neferkare as lasting ''94 years'' in the 23rd and 22nd centuries BCE, but modern historians are generally skeptical and put Pepi II's reign at "only" 64 years. Some sources, including [[https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/longest-reign-in-europe Guinness World Records]], cite Afonso I of UsefulNotes/{{Portugal}} as the longest-reigning sovereign monarch with a reign lasting almost 74 years, from 1112 to 1185, but the Kingdom of Portugal didn't gain sovereignty from the Kingdom of León until 1139, making his reign as a sovereign 46 years. (Rather like Sobhuza actually.) [[/note]][[labelnote:Added note]]While Louis' reign was indeed the longest, he did not fully rule in his own right until 1661, having ascended to the throne before age 5. The longest reign without a period of regency was that of UsefulNotes/ElizabethII, who ascended to the British throne in 1952 shortly before her 26th birthday and reigned until her death at 96 in September 2022.[[/labelnote]] -- known as Louis the Great (''Louis le Grand'') or the [[TheMagnificent Sun King]] (''le Roi-Soleil''). He was the most influential monarch of the 17th century, and his most visible surviving legacy is the ludicrously grand palace he built in Versailles, which millions of tourists visit every year.

* ''Film/{{Blanche}}'' (2002). Played by José Garcia (who was 13 years too old for the role).

* Films based on the sequels to ''Literature/TheThreeMusketeers'', ''Twenty Years After'' or ''The Vicomte de Bragelonne'' (well, a subplot of the latter, anyway), by Creator/AlexandreDumas:
** ''The Return of the Musketeers:'' The third film in Richard Lester's [[Film/TheThreeMusketeers1973 Musketeer Trilogy,]] where he is played by a twelve-year-old David Birkin in his first film role.

* ''Film/LouisTheChildKing'', 1993 French film about his childhood during the Fronde civil wars. Played by Maxime Mansion.

* ''Film/{{Blanche}}'' (2002). Played by José Garcia.

* DecadentCourt: As noted above, Louis's royal court was well-known for the nobles' partying lifestyle and the king's extravagance. It's also well-known for its backstabbing and intrigue, such as in ''Literature/TheThreeMusketeers'' sequel novels (not the first, since it happens under Louis XIII). That said, the French court that preceded Louis was arguably ''worse'', rife with power struggles between the aristocracy and the crown, corruption among the nobles themselves and nobles defying royal authority. Part of Louis's centralizing reforms involved cleaning up a lot of the aristocratic corruption, depriving the nobles of the power bases that allowed them to cause so much grief and re-asserting royal authority across the country. This is also why he kept a lot of them around hilmself in Versailles.