Most historians would argue that the years 1660 to 1789—that is, the period from the Restoration in England and the personal rule of Louis XIV up to the early days of the French Revolution—can be characterized as an Age of Absolutism. There is little doubt that the figure of Louis XIV, the Sun King, looms large in such a conception. Building his lavish court just outside Paris at Versailles, Louis was able to keep an eye on his nobility, who were, perhaps, the most contentious and quarrelsome men…
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