Name _____________________________ Class _________________ Date __________________
The Monarchs of Europe
Section 2
MAIN IDEA
Henry IV, Louis XIII, and Louis XIV strengthened the French monarchy, with
Louis XIV setting the example of an absolute monarch for the rest of Europe.
Key Terms and People
Huguenot French Protestant
Saint Bartholomew’s Day Massacre fighting begun on Saint Bartholomew’s Day in
1572 between Catholics and Protestants, in which many Huguenots were killed
Henry IV Huguenot who converted to Catholicism in order to be accepted as king
Edict of Nantes proclamation by Henry IV that gave certain rights to French Huguenots
but stressed that Catholicism was the official religion of France
Louis XIII French king who took the throne after Henry IV was assassinated; Cardinal
Richelieu served as his adviser
Cardinal Richelieu prominent Catholic priest who became chief minister and adviser of
King Louis XIII
Louis XIV French king who held absolute power, became known as “the Sun King”
War of the Spanish Succession costly war fought by Louis XIV over the successor to
the Spanish throne
Treaty of Utrecht ended the War of the Spanish Succession; forced Louis XIV to give up
territory and forbid France and Spain from being ruled by the same monarch
Taking Notes
As you read the summary, use a graphic organizer like the one below to
take notes on how Henry IV, Louis XIII, and Louis XIV increased the
power of absolute monarchy in France.
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The Monarchs of Europe
Section 2
Section Summary
RELIGIOUS WARS AND HENRY IV
By the 1560s, one in 10 people in France had become
a Huguenot (HYOO-guh-NAHT), or French Protestant.
In 1562, Huguenots and Catholics began a longlasting civil war. Ten years later, hostilities took a
horrible turn when the Catholic queen of France
ordered the killing of Huguenots in Paris. Her
assassins started with the Huguenot nobles who were
in the city for the wedding of Henry of Navarre, a
French nobleman. The event became known as the
Saint Bartholomew’s Day Massacre. From Paris, the
violence spread to other parts of France. The final
Huguenot death toll ranged from 10,000 to 70,000.
Henry of Navarre escaped death by denying his
religion. Years later, he fought to become king Henry
IV of France. In order to be accepted, he converted to
Catholicism in 1593. However, he believed the
Huguenots needed certain rights in order to restore
peace, so he issued the Edict of Nantes (NAHNT) in
1598. This allowed Huguenots limited freedom to
worship as they pleased. It also stressed that
Catholicism was the official religion of France.
LOUIS XIII AND RICHELIEU
In 1610, Henry IV was assassinated, and the next
king, Louis XIII, was very young. His mother served
as regent. Later, Cardinal Richelieu (REESH-uhl-oo)
became Louis XIII’s most trusted adviser. One of
Richelieu’s goals was to strengthen the monarchy.
Richelieu’s forces held the Huguenots inside the
city of La Rochelle in a siege that lasted over a year.
When the Huguenots finally surrendered, Richelieu
ordered the walls destroyed and all churches to
become Catholic. Richelieu’s spies uncovered a series
of planned revolts against the king by nobles, and
punished those involved harshly. By such actions,
Richelieu and Louis XIII worked to reduce the power
of the Huguenots and the French nobles.
What set off the St.
Bartholomew’s Day
Massacre?
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Underline the purpose of
the Edict of Nantes.
Why do you think Cardinal
Richelieu worked so hard
to strengthen the
monarchy, even though he
was not the king?
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______________________
______________________
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THE MONARCHY OF LOUIS XIV
The son of Louis XIII, Louis XIV, led France during
a time of great power and prosperity. He became
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Section 2
known as the Sun King. Like his father, he became
king at a young age, and his mother was regent. She
received advice from Cardinal Mazarin after the death
of Cardinal Richelieu. But Louis XIV was more
confident than his father in his own ability to rule.
When Mazarin died in 1661, Louis declared that he
would run the government himself, as an absolute
monarch. This began a tradition of absolute monarchy
in France that would last for well over a century.
Louis demanded that he be in charge of all military,
political, and economic initiatives. He also wanted his
subjects’ religion to be under his direct control.
By drawing so much power to himself and the
central government, Louis deprived the nobles of
influence. Their influence declined further when Louis
built an enormous palace at Versailles (ver-SY),
outside Paris, and required the nobles to visit him
there. In time, about 10,000 officials, servants, and
courtiers came to live in the palace.
Louis’s grand lifestyle cost a great deal of money.
Fortunately, France’s wealth grew, largely because of
the policies of Jean-Baptiste Colbert, the minister of
finance. He called for limiting imports and increasing
exports in order to build wealth. Colbert also
changed the tax policy to maximize money coming
to the government.
Another way that Louis established absolute
monarchy was by smashing the power of the
Huguenots once and for all. In 1685 Louis made his
move. He canceled the Edict of Nantes that had
protected the Huguenots, and outlawed Protestantism
in his realm. Over 200,000 Huguenots fled France.
Louis wanted increased power as well as wealth.
He went to war in Europe to reclaim territory that had
formerly been ruled by France. His most famous war
was the War of the Spanish Succession. The Spanish
king had no heir so he had named Louis XIV’s
grandson, Philip V, to succeed him. But the other
European powers did not want France and Spain to be
so closely connected, so they went to war against both
countries. After many years of fighting, Philip
remained king of Spain, but in the Treaty of Utrecht,
France had to give up much of the territory it had
wanted to claim.
How were Louis XIII and
Louis XIV alike? How were
they different?
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Did the War of the Spanish
Succession allow Louis XIV
to increase his power and
wealth? Why or why not?
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