The Dynastic State and the Army under Louis XIV: Royal Service and Private Interest 1661–1701

by Guy Rowlands

• ISBN13: 9780521641241
• ISBN10: 0521641241
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2002-10-07
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Summary

The 'personal rule' of Louis XIV witnessed a massive increase in the size of the French army and an apparent improvement in the quality of its officers, its men and the War Ministry. However, this is the first book to treat the French army under Louis XIV as a living political, social and economic organism, an institution which reflected the dynastic interests and personal concerns of the king and his privileged subjects. The book explains the development of the army between the end of Cardinal Mazarin's ministry and the outbreak of the War of the Spanish Succession, emphasising the awareness of Louis XIV and his ministers of the need to pay careful attention to the condition of the king's officers, and to take account of their military, political, social and cultural aspirations.

Table of Contents

List of maps	xiii
Acknowledgements	xiv
List of abbreviations	xviii
General introduction: `Absolute monarchy', dynasticism and the standing army	1	(26)
PART I `Patrimonial bureaucracy': The Le Tellier dynasty and the Ministry of War
Introduction	27	(5)
The Secretary of State for War and the dynastic interests of the Le Tellier family	32	(19)
The ebb and flow of Le Tellier power, 1661--1701	51	(22)
The use and abuse of servants: the Ministry of War, venality and civilian power in the army	73	(36)
Financing war: the treasury of the Extraordinaire des Guerres	109	(26)
Corruption and the pursuit of self-interest in the Ministry of War	135	(26)
PART II The forging of the French officer corps and the standing army under Louis XIV
Introduction	153	(8)
In the name of sustainability: reforming the structure of the standing army and the officer corps	161	(39)
The business of a regiment	200	(32)
The pressures and temptations of service	232	(43)
PART III The high command of the French armies
Introduction	269	(6)
The commanders-in-chief and the delegation of royal authority	275	(21)
The appointment of general officers	296	(22)
The summits of ambition and the rewards of good service: the bienfaits du roi and the high command	318	(18)
Conclusion: The preservation of the dynasty	336	(27)
Appendix 1: Defining the grands	363	(2)
Appendix 2: The proportion of revenue generated by the Extraordinaire des Guerres as a `primary receiver'	365	(2)
Bibliography	367	(21)
Index	388