Louis XIV use of a finance minister instead of a chief minister allowed him to view himself as direct representative of God and through God, he is given absolute power of the monarchy. Bureaucracy and mercantilism were contributing developments that aided the growth of the French state. Firstly, bureaucracy was a network of state officials carrying out orders according to a regular and routine line of authority. This network was performed by a group called intendants created and appointed by Colbert and Louis XIV. This is essential because intendants were handpicked by Louis and they would represent his rule within a region, but only by strict guidelines that were placed upon them in training. Furthermore, with the use of intendants gathering
