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Louis turns down a powerful bio-weapon.
Louis XIV is offered a bio-weapon by a Italian chemist, but turns it down. Not only this, but he effectively bribes them to never release it. An actual date was not found for when this happened during Louis XIV's reign (at least, I could not find one). -
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Nobels rebel against the crown and Mazarin.
While Louis is nine years old, the nobles rise up and rebel against the prime minister. This had negative effects for Louis, including fear, poverty, humiliation, and more. This became a civil war, known as The Fronde. For the most part, the rebellion was not against Louis himself, just the prime minister, Jules Cardinal Mazarin. This made Louis have a grudge against the nobles. -
Married Marie-Thérèse of Austria
This was partially done for political reasons. Louis XIV married Marie (daughter of King Philip IV of Spain) to help ratify peace agreements. However, he only married her after two years of mental struggle about his love for someone else, Marie Mancini. -
Start of the construction of Versailles
The beginning of the process of upgrading the 'simple' (it was still quite extravagant) hunting lodge into the large place it is today. (Picture: part of the exterior of the palace.) -
Death of Mazarin.
The death of Mazarin left Louis as the new ruler. -
Louis gets a new wife.
Françoise d’Aubigné, the marquise de Maintenon, is married to Louis XIV. They remained devoted to each other even past the age of 70. -
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Death of Colbert.
The death of the artist Colbert. Louis liked him, so the death was likely at the very least, distracting. The exact date (and year) of death was unknown, as far as I could find. -
Death of Marie-Therese
The death of his first wife. He remarried soon after. He also was easily distracted by some of the other women of his court, including the wife of his brother. -
Revocation of the Edict of Nantes
The revocation of this forced French protestants out of the country, as they were not allowed to continue their worship, and were hunted down. However, a lot of them had valuable skills, so it was a significant loss for France. -
Completion of the palace of Versailles
The completion of the Palace. While it was very costly, it did improve the status of France, as it was a sign of their riches and prestige. However, the funds used to make it were mostly came from the high taxes imposed on the people. The creation of the palace significantly hindered the people's opinion of Louis, and cost France a lot of money. (Picture: The floor plan of Versailles)
