Kingdom of France

A European monarchy that developed from the West Frankish kingdom and endured under changing dynasties and constitutions until the French Revolution, with monarchies restored from 1814 to 1848.

West Francia: A kingdom formed from the western portion of the Carolingian Empire, conventionally dated from the Treaty of Verdun in 843. Its political institutions and territory formed the starting point for the French kingdom.
Estates-General: An assembly of clergy, nobility, and commoners summoned by the French crown, most notably in 1789. Its 1789 meeting became a crisis of representation and royal authority.
Hundred Years' War: A series of conflicts from 1337 to 1453 between the English and French crowns over territory and succession. Its outcome strengthened French royal authority and reshaped the kingdom's territory.
Absolute monarchy in France: A form of royal government in which French kings claimed extensive authority over the state. It describes the centralizing model associated especially with Louis XIV.
Hugh Capet: King of the Franks from 987 to 996 and founder of the Capetian dynasty. His accession established a dynasty that ruled France for centuries.
Parlement of Paris: The kingdom's senior sovereign court, which registered royal edicts and heard appeals from much of France. Its resistance to edicts exposed the limits and legal channels of royal power.
French Wars of Religion: A series of civil wars between Catholics and Protestants in France from 1562 to 1598. The conflict tested Bourbon succession and the unity of the kingdom.
Constitutional monarchy in France: A French regime in which a monarch's powers were limited by a constitution and representative institutions. It distinguishes the constitutional settlements from earlier claims of undivided royal authority.
Capetian dynasty: A dynasty descended from Hugh Capet that ruled France from 987 to 1328. Its rulers gradually strengthened royal authority and extended the crown's lands.
Intendants: Royal commissioners who supervised justice, policing, and finance in French provinces, especially under the Bourbons. They carried central directives into provinces where local privileges constrained the crown.

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