the Sun King
France's absolute ruler
The Sun King is Louis XIV of France, who reigned from 1643 to 1715—the longest rule of any European monarch.
The epithet came from his adoption of the sun as his personal emblem, symbolizing absolute power radiating from the center.
The palace at Versailles was the Sun King's monument to himself.
- VersaillesFrench royal palace complex
- FranceWestern European republic
- monarchHereditary supreme ruler
- absoluteTotal, without qualification
- absolute powerUnrestricted governmental control
Louis XIV · golden · throne · palace · baroque · crown · reign · glory · majesty · gilded · court · aristocracy · opulence · divine right · bourbon · War of Spanish Succession · chandeliers · mirrors
- Bourbon FranceVersailles, Louis XV, Colbert, Edict of Nantes, absolute power
the Sun Kingconstitutional monarch
Sovereign bound by law
Oliver Cromwell · William of Orange · republicanism · Queen Victoria · Elizabeth II
the Sun KingLouis XVI
Robespierre · popular sovereignty · the Republic · Marie Antoinette · Napoleon Bonaparte
the Sun Kingconstitutional monarch
Sovereign bound by law
Queen Elizabeth II · Magna Carta · representative government · elected leader
sun, sunny, sunlight, sunshine, sunlit, suns, sunned, sunning, king