Louis XVI

The reign of Louis XVI, which ended with the guillotining of Louis and his queen, Marie Antoinette, in 1793, is a dramatic and crucial part of French history. John Hardman presents the first complete and authoritative biography of Louis XVI, a poignant tale that recounts how the King's stature grew as his power declined.

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Louis XVI was at the center of the French Revolution, one of the major turning points in world history, but he remains relatively little known, often portrayed only as the weak, lazy, and treasonous king dominated by Marie-Antoinette. This new investigation by John Hardman, a leading expert on the French Revolution, challenges this stereotype. Drawing on new evidence from Louis XVI's letters and from a large body of new research, Hardman provides the first detailed reconstruction of the king's political thought and sheds new light on the king's character and personality. Ideal for students and scholars of modern history, Louis XVI is an important reconsideration of key aspect of the French and a lively introduction to this willfully enigmatic man.

'Nobody who writes in future about Louis XVI will be able to ignore Hardman.'
'Hardman's command of the political history of the age and the intimate and intricate doings of the court is impressive.'
'The historian of the Revolution, however, will find unique insights into a king who argued that he sincerely loved the people, who bemoaned the lack of morality on the international scene, who preferred peace to war, and who read Thomas a Kempis in prison. This book presents a nuanced view of an honorable man who believed that ""one can never govern a country against its inclinations.""...No one can rival his understanding of the various facets of the king's personality or of the sources.'
'Thought provoking, if not always entirely clear in argument, this work is recommended for undergraduate and general readership.'