Louis XIV of France was born on 5 September 1638 in Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye. King of France and Navarre for seventy-two years, one of the longest reigns in European history, Louis XIV inherited the throne at age four, and after the death of Cardinal Mazarin in 1661 he ruled personally. Known as the Sun King, he built up royal power, supported by ministers such as Colbert, and moved the court to the vast palace of Versailles, which made the nobility dependent on royal favour. He patronized artists and writers including Molière, Racine and Lully. His wars of expansion, notably the War of the Spanish Succession, and his revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685, which drove many Protestants out of France, left a mixed legacy and strained the royal finances.
Before and after
- 1637Descartes publishes La Geometrie: algebra meets geometry
- February 1637Tulip mania peaks in Holland
- 1638Construction of Schönbrunn Palace
- from 1638 to 1651Wars of the Three Kingdoms
- 5 September 1638Birth of Louis XIV of France
- 1639Discovery of Golden Horns of Gallehus
- 22 December 1639Birth of Jean Racine
- 1640Founding of Chicopee
- 1640Founding of New Bedford
More in Wars, politics & history
- 1534Henry VIII becomes head of the Church of England
- from 17 January 1558 to 26 May 1583Livonian War
- from 2 April 1562 to 30 April 1598French Wars of Religion
- from 28 December 1688 to 1 January 1689Glorious Revolution
- 1713Peace of Utrecht
- from 28 May 1754 to 7 October 1763French and Indian War
The era
This moment belongs to the Early modern world (1500 CE to 1760 CE), voyages, printing and new ideas. You can also browse everything in the 17th century.