num_pages: 802
description: In the eighth volume of their Story of Civilization, the Durants explore the apex of European civilization to that time, the years 1648 to 1715. It is the era of the "Sun King," Louis XIV, one of the most powerful rulers in Western history. It is also the pinnacle of Dutch culture, the heyday of Vermeer and William of Orange, later King of England. All this forms the backdrop for the Durants' real focus: the intellectual character of the age. Encompassing Newton and Leibniz, among others, THE AGE OF LOUIS XIV marks a momentous transition: the passage from superstition and intolerance to science and philosophy. This is the period on which the foundation for modernity rests."Informed and highly readable ... eloquently partisan for the dignity of man and the decencies of life." (Saturday Review)
language: English
title: The Age of Louis XIV
titlecomplete: The Age of Louis XIV (The Story of Civilization, #8)
genres: Politics, Historical, Philosophy, Religion, European History, World History, Reference, Nonfiction, History, France
ratings_count: 825
series: The Story of Civilization
publisher: Fine Communications