The Sun King’s Heliocentric Rule When a ruler holds authority that is only second to the divine being themselves, an absolute monarch is born. Throughout history, Europe has been home to many individuals that helped define the term absolutism and absolute monarchy. Most notably are Louis XIV of France and Peter the Great of Russia during the late 1700s. When examining a ruler’s legacy underneath the premise of absolute monarchy, how nice or how effective of a ruler has no effect. On the contrary, an absolute monarch is defined by the outrageous and the absurd. An absolute monarch is defined by their actions and how capable they are of imposed their will on their subjects, despite how incorrect or detrimental others may deem it to be. And when
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Peter the Great believed that the westernization of Russia was important to it’s success and longevity as a country. He brought Russia from its feudal past to a new modern western state. Among the changes include the shift from the old style to the new style in calendars. As well as, he introduce Western fashion that slowly replaced the old Russian look within groups of elites. The problem was that only the nobles were capable of affording the new fashion, and the peasants and serfs retained the old Russian style. This caused a larger divide between the elites and the peasants which lead to further discord and unrest. He also introduced new sectors and new languages that empowered Russia and focused on science. The fact that he was able to radically change Russia is a testament to his power. Not everybody approved of these changes, but no one was capable of challenging Peter the Great. Louis XIV on the other hand had a different objective. He strived to further solidify France’s position as a cultural powerhouse. He emphasised the patronage of art, which brought forth one of the greatest results of Human ingenuity, the Palace of Versaille. During the course of his rule he spread and reinforced the his image. At one point during his rule, people began to refer to Louis XIV as the Sun King. His image slowly became self propagating and his reputation grew and everyone began to worship him even more. While Peter the Great used his authority to westernized Russia culture, Louis XIV used his authority to solidify his image as the Sun King and as an absolute
Peter the Great believed that the westernization of Russia was important to it’s success and longevity as a country. He brought Russia from its feudal past to a new modern western state. Among the changes include the shift from the old style to the new style in calendars. As well as, he introduce Western fashion that slowly replaced the old Russian look within groups of elites. The problem was that only the nobles were capable of affording the new fashion, and the peasants and serfs retained the old Russian style. This caused a larger divide between the elites and the peasants which lead to further discord and unrest. He also introduced new sectors and new languages that empowered Russia and focused on science. The fact that he was able to radically change Russia is a testament to his power. Not everybody approved of these changes, but no one was capable of challenging Peter the Great. Louis XIV on the other hand had a different objective. He strived to further solidify France’s position as a cultural powerhouse. He emphasised the patronage of art, which brought forth one of the greatest results of Human ingenuity, the Palace of Versaille. During the course of his rule he spread and reinforced the his image. At one point during his rule, people began to refer to Louis XIV as the Sun King. His image slowly became self propagating and his reputation grew and everyone began to worship him even more. While Peter the Great used his authority to westernized Russia culture, Louis XIV used his authority to solidify his image as the Sun King and as an absolute