Court of Versailles: The Reign of Louis XIV BearMUN 2020 Chair: Tarun Sreedhar Crisis Director: Nicole Ru Table of Contents Welcome Letters 2 France before Louis XIV 4 Religious History in France 4 Rise of Calvinism 4 Religious Violence Takes Hold 5 Henry IV and the Edict of Nantes 6 Louis XIII 7 Louis XIII and Huguenot Uprisings 7 Domestic and Foreign Policy before under Louis XIII 9 The Influence of Cardinal Richelieu 9 Early Days of Louis XIV’s Reign (1643-1661) 12 Anne of Austria & Cardinal Jules Mazarin 12 Foreign Policy 12 Internal Unrest 15 Louis XIV Assumes Control 17 Economy 17 Religion 19 Foreign Policy 20 War of Devolution 20 Franco-Dutch War 21 Internal Politics 22 Arts 24 Construction of the Palace of Versailles 24 Current Situation 25 Questions to Consider 26 Character List 31 BearMUN 2020 1 Delegates, My name is Tarun Sreedhar and as your Chair, it's my pleasure to welcome you to the Court of Versailles! Having a great interest in European and political history, I'm eager to observe how the court balances issues regarding the French economy and foreign policy, all the while maintaining a good relationship with the King regardless of in-court politics. About me: I'm double majoring in Computer Science and Business at Cal, with a minor in Public Policy. I've been involved in MUN in both the high school and college circuits for 6 years now. Besides MUN, I'm also involved in tech startup incubation and consulting both on and off-campus. When I'm free, I'm either binging TV (favorite shows are Game of Thrones, House of Cards, and Peaky Blinders) or rooting for the Lakers. I'm looking forward to joining you for an exciting committee! Best, Tarun Sreedhar Chair Court of Versailles: The Reign of Louis XIV BearMUN 2020 2 Delegates, Hello! My name is Nicole Ru, and I will be your Crisis Director for Court of Versailles: The Reign of Louis XIV at this year’s BearMUN conference. The Palace of Versailles served as the residence for French royalty from 1682 up until the French Revolution. The king that established the palace as we know it today, Louis XIV, reigned for 72 years as a powerful monarch, but his reign was not without conflict. I’m thrilled to see how this court addresses the challenge of balancing Louis XIV’s proclivity for war with the needs of peasants whilst navigating through the politics of the royal palace. As for myself, I am a sophomore from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania hoping to major in Psychology with the eventual plan of attending medical school. Outside of MUN, I was formerly involved in the Outreach Committee for the American Institute of Chemical Engineers and the Public Health Committee for the American Medical Student Association. I play the clarinet in the UC Berkeley Wind Ensemble, and in my free time, I enjoy playing board games, Stardew Valley, and Overcooked, crocheting, running, learning languages (French and Mandarin), reading, and writing novels. I’m excited to welcome all of you to this committee! Best, Nicole Ru Crisis Director Court of Versailles: The Reign of Louis XIV BearMUN 2020 3 France before Louis XIV Religious History in France Rise of Calvinism Prior to the 16th century, the Catholic Church held significant amounts of wealth and political influence. With this power came significant corruption: The Church sold indulgences, or spiritual privileges, engaged in nepotism, and controlled printing so that the Bible was only printed in Latin. This was primarily done to maintain social classes and prevent upward mobility. Such practices caused individuals like Martin Luther, famous author of the 95 Theses, to challenge the Church’s spiritual authority. During the Reformation, John Calvin, a leading Protestant figure, created a branch of Protestantism known as Calvinism. Calvinism placed an emphasis on predestination, or the idea that God determines whether or not someone would be saved when they were born. It was believed that there were only a select few with such grace, and if an individual is part of this select few, they always will be. If someone is not selected, there is not anything they can do to become a part of the elect. Calvinism quickly spread into many regions, but especially took hold in France, where the nobility, tradesman, military officers, and urban upper classes were drawn to BearMUN 2020 4 it.1 French nobles had begun to feel particularly disgruntled at losing many of their privileges to the monarchy, so adopting Calvinism provided them a chance to change that by diminishing the power of the Church.2 French Calvinists began to be known as the ​Huguenots​, and by the mid 1560s, there were millions of Huguenots in France. The introduction of Calvinism to France proved to be a turning point in French history, as it set off centuries of conflict between Catholics and Protestants. Religious Violence Takes Hold At first, because there were fewer followers of Calvinism, it was tolerated. However, this changed very quickly; as the amount of Calvinists rapidly increased, Catholic resentment grew and religious violence began to persist. One such example occurred on March 1, 1562, Huguenots were holding a religious service in a barn in Wassy, France. The Duke of Guise, a staunch Catholic, led a group of soldiers to massacre over fifty people and injure hundreds of others. The Duke claimed this was not premeditated and was 1 Bouwsma, William J. “Calvinism.” ​Encyclopædia Britannica​. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 28 May 2020. www.britannica.com/topic/Calvinism. 2 Nexon, Daniel H. ​Struggle for Power in Early Modern Europe: Religious Conflict, Dynastic Empires, and International Change​. Princeton University Press, 2011. BearMUN 2020 5 simply a response to his troops being provoked. Protestants, however, saw this as the start of a series of religious wars.34 One of the worst incidents that occurred was in 1572, known as St. Bartholomew’s Massacre. Catherine de Medici, who was afraid of growing Huguenot influence, persuaded her son, current King Charles IX, to murder Huguenots. She convinced him with the reasoning that there was a risk that they may rebel against the Catholic reign. Given Charles’ approval, Catherine secretly met with a group of Catholic nobles, ordering them to kill Huguenot leaders. On August 24th, the violence began with prominent Huguenot leaders being murdered and their homes and shops being pillaged. After a few days, Charles tried to end the killings but he could not stop the massacre. This brutal violence continued for two months, and ultimately ended with over 70,000 Huguenots being killed throughout France.5 Henry IV and the Edict of Nantes The first hope for change from the many years of violent religious conflict came in the form of Henry IV taking the throne in 1594. Henry’s mother, a resolute Calvinist, raised 3 “The Massacre of Wassy (1562).” ​Musée Protestant​, 28 July 2015. www.museeprotestant.org/en/notice/the-massacre-of-wassy-1562/. 4 St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre- 1572 “The Palace of Versailles: Sun King Louis XIV's Ultimate Power Play.” ​HistoryExtra​. www.historyextra.com/period/stuart/palace-versailles-facts-history-court-sun-king-louis-xiv-france/. 5 “Saint Bartholomew's Day Massacre.” ​History.com​. A&E Television Networks, 3 Mar. 2010. www.history.com/this-day-in-history/saint-bartholomews-day-massacre. BearMUN 2020 6 Henry with strict principles of Protestantism. When he was younger, his mother encouraged him to fight for Protestant forces and rebel against Roman Catholics. This was likely a contributing factor to his support for Protestants during his reign. Once Henry IV officially became King, however, he faced extensive opposition and disgruntlement from the Catholic gentry.6 After years of conflict, Henry decided, hesitantly, to convert back to Catholicism, ending cause for resistance within France. In April 1598, Henry IV signed the Edict of Nantes. In a broad sense, the Edict allowed for peaceful coexistence for both Catholics and Protestants, bringing an end to many years of religious conflict. More specifically, the Edict granted Protestants annual grants, 150 places of refuge, freedom of opinion, and right of access to education and positions of public responsibility. In addition, Protestants had to pay 10% of their earnings to Catholic priests, as a tax, and Mass was celebrated throughout France. However, it is important to note that Protestants were only allowed freedom of worship in specific places; it continued to be strictly forbidden in most places, including the King’s court.7 In addition to restoring peace to France again, Henry IV saw many other successes during his reign. He significantly reduced the national debt, improved agriculture, and encouraged the development of many key industries, including silk and glassware. In doing so, he brought great economic prosperity to France in a much 6 Ritter, Raymond, and Victor-Lucien Tapié. “Heir Presumptive to the Throne.” ​Encyclopædia Britannica​, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 10 May 2020. www.britannica.com/biography/Henry-IV-king-of-France/Heir-presumptive-to-the-throne. 7 “The Edict of Nantes (1598).” ​Musée Protestant​, 14 January 2015. www.museeprotestant.org/en/notice/the-edict-of-nantes-1598/. BearMUN 2020 7 needed time. Henry also played a key role in diminishing Spain’s power, acquiring key territories in the eastern border of France. Louis XIII Louis XIII and Huguenot Uprisings Louis XIII took over the throne after Henry IV was assassinated by a fanatical Catholic, François Ravaillac, in 1610.8 Louis’ reign saw many changes in France, particularly in regards to religious tensions. While Henry IV had passed the Edict of Nantes, Huguenots still faced many restrictions and were wary of Louis XIII.