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roleplaying:versailles:versaillesroyal

The Royal Family

The Family

King Louis XV the Beloved

Personality

History says, unfortunately, that while he was a good father, he remained a poor and indolent ruler who in the latter part of his reign brought absolutism into contempt.

His greatest asset as a king is his magnificent presence; from childhood to premature old age he was strikingly handsome. Yet even as a child he was both lazy and bored, and already took pleasure in inflicting pain on other people. He always remained timid, afraid of new faces and a bad public speaker. A far from edifying life did not prevent him from being extremely pious and attending all the religious services required of him; he loathed the Philosophes for their attacks on religion. He showed his courage on the field of battle, yet hated war for humanitarian reasons.

At the beginning of his reign he enjoyed considerable popularity; the news of his serious illness at Metz, when he was with his armies in 1744, aroused consternation among the general public. His chief weaknesses as a rulere are his indolence, shyness and irresolution; he often allowed himself to be persuaded, against his better judgement, into following disastrous policies.

Above all, he was the victim of boredom; he had constantly to be amused. He was fond of the pleasures of the table and delighted in petit soupers served without valets and in the midst of a few intimates of both sexes. His great passion in life - apart from women - was hunting.

Another important ingredient in the King's life is his incessant journeyings from Versailles to the palaces, large and small, which he possessed in the Paris region, from Compi+¬gne to Fontainebleau.

Francoise Marie de Bourbon
Francoise Marie de Bourbon - Duchess of Orleans (1702),
Palace Guard of Louis XV of France (1724)
Louis XV
Louis XV and French General (1704-1730)

roleplaying/versailles/versaillesroyal.txt · Last modified: 2014/03/20 21:34 by 127.0.0.1