France vs. England 17th Century

There are mainly two types of governments that emerged during the seventeenth century. Most of the political development took place in France and England. Absolute monarchy took over throughout France while constitutionalism, or parliamentary monarchy, was becoming popular in England between 1640 and 1780. France’s absolute monarchy developed because of the nobles and kings focused on the concept of divine right. England, on the other hand, developed through the businessmen and landowners trying to prevent the central concentration of political power. These governments grasped the attention of philosophers, leaders, and churches. Eventually, both would develop and influence the modern world today in Europe and the Americas.
France was very popular at the time for creating the idea of kings reigning by divine right. This perception was that the ruler of a specific country was put there by God. It was their divine right to be there because they were performing the work of God. The king’s subjects were not to question the decisions of the king because it was God’s will; and who can question God? King Louis XIV was the most influential towards divine rights. He expected to be treated like a god because he was His representative on earth. Louis XIV was supported by Bishop Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet, who was the leader of French Catholicism in the seventeenth century. He used examples from the New Testament of rulers who were only answerable to God. Popes had insisted since the medieval times that they could only be judged by God. Bossuet and Louis XIV then argued that only God had the right to judge kings. In England, there was a lot of turmoil between the reigning monarchs and large landowners. English monarchs tried to copy France with their financial system that did not

depend heavily on the estates, diets, or assemblies of nobles. By doing this, it helped to grant French monarchs absolute rule. While easily achieved in France, the English