When a five-year-old king inherited France, a power struggle redefined the nation's future.
In short: Between 1715 and 1723, France entered the Régence, a period defined by the minority of Louis XV. While the late king’s will attempted to limit the influence of Philippe II, Duke of Orléans, the regent maneuvered to seize control, fundamentally altering the country's governance, finances, and international alliances.
The death of Louis XIV on September 1, 1715, left the French throne to his five-year-old great-grandson, Louis XV. The late monarch’s will had sought to restrict the power of his nephew, Philippe II, Duke of Orléans, by establishing a regency council where the Duke of Maine—Louis XIV’s illegitimate son—would hold real authority. However, Philippe acted decisively, allying with the Parlement of Paris to invalidate the will. By September 12, 1715, the Parlement officially recognized him as Regent, bolstered by their claim to the Droit de remontrance, which allowed them to revoke laws from the deceased king.
This era saw radical administrative and economic experiments. From 1715 to 1718, the Polysynody replaced traditional ministers with councils composed of high nobility, though this system was abandoned by 1718. Simultaneously, the Regent empowered John Law to overhaul the kingdom's bankrupt finances. Law founded the Banque générale in 1716, which became the Banque Royale in 1718, and established the Compagnie d'Occident et du Mississippi. These financial shifts were intended to stabilize the aristocracy and the state, though they occurred against a backdrop of intense political intrigue, including the Cellamare Conspiracy, which aimed to install Philip V of Spain as regent.
Internationally, the Régence was a period of shifting alignments. France moved away from isolation, forming alliances with Great Britain and participating in the Triple Alliance of 1717 and the Quadruple Alliance of 1718 to maintain the balance of power established by the Treaty of Utrecht. The court itself remained a site of spectacle and tension, marked by visits from figures like Tsar Peter the Great in 1717 and the Ottoman ambassador Mehmet Effendi. By the time Louis XV reached his majority in 1723, the Regency had left an indelible mark on French political structure and economic policy, having navigated internal revolts like the Pontcallec Conspiracy and the complex dynastic ambitions of the European elite.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Régence
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