How Did King Louis Xiv Use Of Absolute Power

The two very powerful absolute rulers, King Louis XIV of France and Tsar Peter the Great of Russia controlled their kingdoms with complete power. They are the ultimate definition of powerful absolute monarchs. However, only one of them stood out on top for controlling their kingdom with the most absolute rule as possible. King Louis XIV demonstrated the largest amount of absolute power through the way he controlled his nobility and his oppressive policies towards his people. The way that King Louis XIV controlled his nobility was an immense exertion of absolute power. He used his absolute power to weaken the control of the nobles to make sure people knew he was the more superior authority. Louis XIV was forced to rule in this strict way because

To weaken the noble’s power and increase the authority of government officials, Louis XIV would exclude the nobles from his councils. This would administer more power to government officials such as intendants who collected taxes and supervised justice. This centralized more control towards the monarchy. Not only that, Louis XIV made it a privilege for the nobles to be able to wait at his every command. A statement regarding Louis XIV’s importance read, “A kindly nod, a glance of approval, a kind word-these marks of royal attention determined whether a noble succeeded or failed.” (Modern World History, 165) This want for attention came from the amount of power Louis XIV had and the honor it held to be noticed by him. Nobles were pleased simply if they got to be in the same room as Louis XIV or even if they got to help him put on his slippers. Short interactions like these meant the world to the nobles because it meant they could prove their worth. The nobles lived off of a good reputation from Louis XIV because of how much authority he held. To further control the nobles, Louis XIV kept them all in one place so that he could keep a close eye on them. King Louis XIV had the Palace of Versailles built to house

He imposed huge taxes upon his citizens to create the Palace of Versallias that was used to satisfy his own needs. The main purpose of the palace was to protect Louis from a revolt. However he took it a step too far when he took advantage of his authority and used it to show his own wealth and power. Tsar Peter I never abused his power to satisfy his own needs to the extent of Louis, he solely used his power to benefit Russia and his subjects. Therefore, Louis XIV exerted a larger degree of power even though it was in an oppressive way. Louis XIV forced his people to pay heavy taxes that would ultimately help him gain more power. The Palace of Versailles is what gave Louis XIV ultimate control and power over his nobles. As a result of the Palace of Versailles, “Only a ruler with total control over his country’s economy could afford such a lavish palace. It cost an estimated $2.5 billion in 2003 dollars” (Modern World History, 166). Since Louis XIV had absolute power over his people he had the unquestionable power to force his people to help pay for this elaborate palace. Although this tax was not fair for the French citizens, Louis XIV used his absolute power to make such high demands. Although Tsar Peter I also put an oppressive policy of forcing his nobles to leave their homes to work for him it did not have as big an impact on his power as