French monarchy

The hereditary system of royal government that ruled France until the monarchy’s abolition in 1792. Its powers, institutions, and territorial reach changed substantially over more than a millennium.

Salic law: A rule of inheritance that excluded women from succession to the French throne. It shaped claims to the crown and was invoked to justify male-only succession.
Hugh Capet: The king elected in 987 whose descendants established the Capetian dynasty. His accession marks the conventional beginning of the long Capetian succession.
Louis XIV: King of France from 1643 to 1715, associated with court centralization and rule from Versailles. His reign became the most prominent model of Bourbon royal authority.
French Revolution: A period of political upheaval in France beginning in 1789 that ended the old regime and transformed the state. It abolished the monarchy in 1792 and replaced royal sovereignty with republican government.
Ancien Régime: The social and political order of France before the Revolution of 1789. The monarchy was its central institution, though it coexisted with privileged estates and local powers.
Estates-General: An assembly representing the clergy, nobility, and commoners of France, summoned by the king. Its rare meetings gave the monarchy a channel for consultation and fiscal negotiation.
Capetian dynasty: The French royal house descended from Hugh Capet, ruling from 987 to 1328. Its kings steadily enlarged the crown’s lands and authority.
Cardinal Richelieu: Chief minister to Louis XIII who strengthened royal power and France’s position in Europe. His policies weakened rival noble and Protestant power centers.
Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen: A 1789 statement of rights and political principles adopted by France’s National Constituent Assembly. Its account of sovereignty in the nation challenged the king’s inherited authority.
Absolute monarchy: A system in which a monarch claims supreme governing authority, unconstrained by representative institutions. It describes the ideal of Bourbon royal authority, not the full practice of government.

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