The Age of Reason in France
John O. Andersen
Hey all,
If you want to dig into some fascinating history, Time-Life Books has a
"What Life Was Like" series. The other day I picked up a volume published
this year called: "What Life Was Like During the Age of Reason: France AD
1660-1800."
At that time, France was the most powerful nation in Europe and arguably the
world. There is a large section on the Sun King (Louis the XIV) who reigned
for 72 years! The book also covers the other royals, great thinkers,
artists, authors, musicians, etc. during that period. The book traces the
events which led to the French Revolution and finishes with the rule of
Napolean Bonaparte.
Here are a few entertaining passages from the book:
On the adolescent king, Louis the XV:
"The king's innermost thoughts and feelings might stay secret, but nothing
else about him did. Virtually every aspect of his daily life was a public
spectacle, conducted under his courtiers' fascinated gaze. On some
occasions even the contents of his chamber pot became a subject for public
discussion. The whole court, for instance, worried when their young
sovereign suffered an unpleasant bout of constipation. Everyone applauded
when the royal physician announced that he had administered a laxative,
which, he declared, had caused "a charming evacuation." pg. 27.
On the ritual of the king going to bed:
(Note: this may sound ridiculous to us in 1999, but I'd be willing to bet
that some of the ways people court favors and "get ahead" today will sound
just as ridiculous to future generations.)
"At night, the last act in the ritual drama of the royal day, the 'coucher,'
was played out when His Majesty retired--officially, though not always
literally--for the night. As in the morning, access to the State Bedchamber
was a heatedly sought-after privilege. Inside the room itself, lifelong
enmities could be kindled between those who jockeyed for positions that
would bring them closest to the person of the king. But only princes of the
blood and the holders of a few exalted offices--the Grand Chamberlain, the
First Gentleman of the Bedchamber, or the Grand Master of the Wardrobe--were
deemed worthy to hand the monarch his nightclothes.
No prize was more avidly pursued than the right to hold the royal
candlestick and light the king's way to bed. When everyone else was shooed
out of the State Bedchamber, only the recipient of this honor--chosen
nightly--was allowed to remain. A shrewd courtier could use this moment of
unprecedented intimacy to make an impression, stand out from the crowd, and
ingratiate himself with his royal master. It was an assignment coveted by
any ambitious nobleman, for the king granted favors only to people he knew."
pg. 28-29
John
http://members.xoom.com/joandersen
If you want to dig into some fascinating history, Time-Life Books has a
"What Life Was Like" series. The other day I picked up a volume published
this year called: "What Life Was Like During the Age of Reason: France AD
1660-1800."
At that time, France was the most powerful nation in Europe and arguably the
world. There is a large section on the Sun King (Louis the XIV) who reigned
for 72 years! The book also covers the other royals, great thinkers,
artists, authors, musicians, etc. during that period. The book traces the
events which led to the French Revolution and finishes with the rule of
Napolean Bonaparte.
Here are a few entertaining passages from the book:
On the adolescent king, Louis the XV:
"The king's innermost thoughts and feelings might stay secret, but nothing
else about him did. Virtually every aspect of his daily life was a public
spectacle, conducted under his courtiers' fascinated gaze. On some
occasions even the contents of his chamber pot became a subject for public
discussion. The whole court, for instance, worried when their young
sovereign suffered an unpleasant bout of constipation. Everyone applauded
when the royal physician announced that he had administered a laxative,
which, he declared, had caused "a charming evacuation." pg. 27.
On the ritual of the king going to bed:
(Note: this may sound ridiculous to us in 1999, but I'd be willing to bet
that some of the ways people court favors and "get ahead" today will sound
just as ridiculous to future generations.)
"At night, the last act in the ritual drama of the royal day, the 'coucher,'
was played out when His Majesty retired--officially, though not always
literally--for the night. As in the morning, access to the State Bedchamber
was a heatedly sought-after privilege. Inside the room itself, lifelong
enmities could be kindled between those who jockeyed for positions that
would bring them closest to the person of the king. But only princes of the
blood and the holders of a few exalted offices--the Grand Chamberlain, the
First Gentleman of the Bedchamber, or the Grand Master of the Wardrobe--were
deemed worthy to hand the monarch his nightclothes.
No prize was more avidly pursued than the right to hold the royal
candlestick and light the king's way to bed. When everyone else was shooed
out of the State Bedchamber, only the recipient of this honor--chosen
nightly--was allowed to remain. A shrewd courtier could use this moment of
unprecedented intimacy to make an impression, stand out from the crowd, and
ingratiate himself with his royal master. It was an assignment coveted by
any ambitious nobleman, for the king granted favors only to people he knew."
pg. 28-29
John
http://members.xoom.com/joandersen