Book details
Memoirs of Louis XIV and His Court and of the Regency — Complete
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Metadata
- Gutenberg ID
- 3875
- Title
- Memoirs of Louis XIV and His Court and of the Regency — Complete
- Language
- en
- Book source
- Project Gutenberg
- Description max 80 words
-
The Duke of Saint-Simon's definitive memoirs offer an unflinching, insider's view of Louis XIV's court, the Regency, and the reign of Louis XV. Blending political intrigue, military campaigns, and intimate court gossip, this classic work exposes the vanity, corruption, and human frailty behind the glittering facade of Versailles, providing an essential historical record of 17th and 18th-century France.
- Summary up to 500 words
-
Written by the Duc de Saint-Simon, these memoirs offer a critical, first-hand chronicle of the final years of Louis XIV's reign, the Regency of the Duke of Orléans, and the early rule of Louis XV. Drawing from his own experiences as a high-ranking courtier and soldier, the narrative exposes the complex, often cynical dynamics of the Versailles court. Saint-Simon details the rise and fall of powerful figures, including Madame de Maintenon, Cardinal d'Estrées, and the Duke of Orléans, while revealing the King's favoritism and the moral decay of the aristocracy. The text highlights the machinations of ministers like Chamillart and Pontchartrain, as well as the baseness of courtiers who fawned over the monarch while secretly plotting against one another. Significant historical events, such as the War of the Spanish Succession, the Battle of Blenheim, and the death of the Regent, are woven into a psychological portrait of an era defined by absolute monarchy and religious tension. Saint-Simon's tone is sharp and unflinching, documenting the decline of the French state's stability through anecdotes of scandal, financial mismanagement, and the eventual death of Louis XIV. The work serves as both a political history and a vivid record of the human frailties within the highest echelons of power, capturing the transition from the grandeur of the Sun King to the uncertainty of the Regency.
- LLM editorial rating
- 4.2/5
- Download URL
- https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/3875.epub.noimages
- Local file path
-
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People
Authors
- duc de Louis de Rouvroy Saint-Simon
Classification
Categories
- Biography
- History