Free History lessons The History at the Palace

Discovering the reign of louis XIV

Every first Wednesday of the month, starting in November 2025, the Palace of Versailles offered a series of evening history classes allowing the public to discover the key events that marked the reign of the Sun King. Each class focused on a theme from the reign of Louis XIV and was taught by a renowned specialist.

The first lecture introduces the functioning of royal power and the logic of absolute monarchy. The audience then follows the evolution of the kingdom's diplomacy and geopolitics, between military confrontations and periods of peace. The following lectures focus on how the king finances his authority through taxation and shed light on his complex relationship with religion and the Church.

The series continues with an in-depth look at the influence of the arts and sciences, when Versailles became a major cultural and intellectual centre in Europe. It continues with a reflection on the hierarchy of society and the interactions between the different classes of the socio-economic system of the Ancien Régime. Finally, it concludes with an analysis of the crises and revolts that shook the kingdom, revealing the social and political tensions of Louis XIV's time. Each one-hour lecture ends with a discussion with the audience, providing an opportunity to explore the topics covered in greater depth and engage in direct dialogue with the speakers.

lectures

The lectures are available in full on the Palace of Versailles’ YouTube channel.

Wednesday, 5 November - The Royal State

By Laurent Avezou, historian, archivist, palaeographer, senior lecturer (Chartres) at the Lycée Pierre de Fermat, Toulouse.

Upon the death of Cardinal Mazarin on 9 March 1661, Louis XIV, king since 1643, assumed power. Ministers, secretaries of state, and the Council were the institutions on which his power rested. However, traditional forces such as parliaments and the rural nobility remained. The distance and weakness of means of communication made the kingdom a juxtaposition of peoples and countries, rather than a modern state.

Wednesday, 12 November – The Conquering King: War and Diplomacy from 1661 to 1688

By Jean-Philippe Cénat, teacher of Khâgne at the Lycée Auguste-Blanqui, Saint-Ouen.

At the beginning of his reign, Louis XIV inherited a favourable geopolitical situation: France was at peace. With the strongest army in Europe at his disposal, the young king sought to distinguish himself through the War of Devolution (1667-1668) and then the Anglo-French War (1672-1678), both of which ended in victory. Although the annexation of border territories in peacetime allowed him to consolidate the kingdom's borders, it led to the rest of Europe forming a coalition against France in a new war in 1688.

Wednesday, 3 December - The Setting Sun: War and Diplomacy from 1688 to 1715

By Clément Oury, Deputy Director General of Campus Condorcet in charge of the Humathèque.

France needed to make an unprecedented military effort to end the War of the League of Augsburg (1688-1697) in 1697. But five years later, Europe was once again embroiled in conflict over the Spanish crown. This new war brought the kingdom to the brink of collapse.

Wednesday, 7 January: ‘One King, One Faith’

By Etienne Bourdeu, former member of the Casa de Velázquez, teacher at Victor-Louis High School, Talence.

To better understand the conflicts between Louis XIV, the denominations considered heretical (Protestantism and Jansenism) and the Pope, it is necessary to grasp the central role of religion in modern societies. Faith was not simply a matter of spirituality; it was just as much about the organisation of society and its control.

Wednesday, 4 February - The French, the king and taxation

By Stéphane Guerre, professor of Khâgne at Lycée Blomet, Paris.

After discussing the financial resources available to the royal power, the aim of the course will be to highlight the tax reforms that shaped the reign of Louis XIV, while exploring the mechanisms of tax collection and society's reactions to increasing tax pressure.

Wednesday, 18 March - Art and science in the service of the king

By Isaure Boitel, lecturer in modern history at the University of Picardie Jules Verne, Amiens.

In order to discover how artists and scholars of the time placed themselves at the service of Louis XIV, the aim of the course is to understand why French culture fascinated foreign contemporaries so much and played such a significant role in sovereign power.

Wednesday, 8 April - Clergy, nobility, commoners: a hierarchical society

By Mathieu Lemoine, teacher of Khâgne at the Lycée Molière, Paris.

Seventeenth-century French society was a society of orders, in which each individual was distinguished according to the privileges they enjoyed, which positioned them within a hierarchy. Despite fixed patterns, French society was relatively open, allowing for social advancement.

Wednesday, 6 May - Misery in the Grand Siècle: crises and revolts

By Gauthier Aubert, professor of modern history, University of Rennes II.

Historians of the 17th century have highlighted the difficulties endured by Louis XIV's contemporaries, providing a counterpoint to the magnificence of his reign, symbolised by Versailles. To conclude this series, we will discuss the major crises faced by 20 million French people, as well as how they dealt with them, which in some cases led to rebellion.

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