National Academic Quiz Tournaments, LLC School You Gotta Know These Kings of France Louis XIV (1638-1715, r. 1643-1715) House of Bourbon. Louis XIV's reign is often cited as the best historical example of an absolute monarchy. Louis led France against most of the rest of Europe to win the throne of Spain for his grandson (the War of the Spanish Succession). He championed classical art, religious orthodoxy, and instituted a great program of building throughout France. Known as the "Sun King," his 72-year-reign is the second longest in recorded history. Louis XIII (1601-1643, r. 1610-1643) House of Bourbon. Sometimes working with his chief minister, Cardinal Richelieu, and sometimes against, Louis XIII turned France into the pre-eminent European power during his reign. This was largely achieved via French victories in the Thirty Years' War. The Three Musketeers is set in the early years of his reign. Francis I (1494-1547, r. 1515-1547) House of Valois.

Francis's early military victories (like the Battle of Marignano), his lavish court, and his support of luminaries like Leonardo da Vinci augured a splendid reign. His rivalry with Charles V of the Holy Roman Empire spelled his doom, however. He was captured in battle in 1525 and held for a humiliating ransom. Wars continued after his release, but bankruptcy and religious strife laid France low. Henry IV (1553-1610, r. 1589-1610) Founder of the house of Bourbon. Henry, the king of Navarre, became the heir to the throne when Henry III's brother died in 1584. After fighting Catholic opposition in the War of the Three Henries, he renounced Protestantism and accepted Catholicism in order to enter Paris and become king. With the help of Maximilien Sully he erased the national debt and removed much of the religious strife with the Edict of Nantes (1598). Philip II (1165-1223, r. 1179-1223) House of Capet. Philip was the first of the great Capetian kings of France.

Fighting and negotiating against Henry II, Richard I, and John of England, Philip won back Normandy, Brittany, Anjou, and other territories. He also took part in the famous Third Crusade (with Richard I and Frederick Barbarossa) and made use of the Albigensian crusade to pave the way for the annexation of Languedoc by his successor. Charles VIII (1470-1498, r. 1483-1498) House of Valois. Charles' short reign is remarkable for the enormous cost in men and money of his Italian campaign but more so for the number of his successors that to followed his catastrophic lead. Charles was motivated by a desire to govern Naples, which he had theoretically inherited. He died before he could surpass or absolve his disastrous first campaign with another. Louis IX (1214-1270, r. 1226-1270) House of Capet. Louis led the Seventh Crusade that ended in military disaster, but after his ransoming remained in the Holy Land to successfully negotiate for what he couldn't win.

He returned to Europe with his reputation intact and negotiated a peace with England that saw Henry III become his vassal. He stabilized the French currency and is generally held to have reduced corruption in the kingdom. He died leading a crusade against Tunisia. St. Louis is the only canonized king of France. Louis VIII (1187-1226, r. 1223-1226) House of Capet. Though he reigned for only three years, Louis' contributions to the rise of French power were enormous. He annexed Languedoc and captured Poitou from England. Perhaps more importantly, he established the systems of appanages (land grants) which replaced the older, local nobles with barons who owed their fiefs to the crown. This allowed for the subsequent rise in French royal (and national) power. Charles V (1338-1380, r. 1364-1380) House of Capet. Charles had an inauspicious start (before his reign even began) with having to ransom his father, John II, from England for three million crowns and most of southwestern France.

Later, with military advisor Bertrand du Guesclin, he recaptured almost all of that territory. He also concluded alliances with Portugal, Spain, and Flanders, reorganized the army, and restructured the collection of taxes while leading France's recovery from the devastation of the early period of the Hundred Years' War. Henry III (1551-1589, r. 1574-1589) House of Valois. Henry's reign was suffused with blood, at first because of the continuous Wars of Religion that pitted Catholics against Huguenots, but later because of the struggles that arose when it became clear that he was going to be the last of the Valois line. The War of the Three Henries broke out after his brother died and the then-Protestant Henry of Navarre (later Henry IV) became heir, leading the Catholic Holy League to strike out of fear for its interests. Henry III was assassinated by a crazed friar in 1589. NAQT's editors opted to not include kings of Franks; had we, several of them (including Charles Martel and Charlemagne) would have made this list.

Similarly, Louis Philippe, the "king of the French" placed on the throne after Charles X abdicated in 1830, was excluded from consideration, though it's not clear at all that he would have merited a mention in the first place. Louis IX | king of France | Britannica.com king of France Francis I Louis IX, also called Saint Louis (born April 25, 1214, Poissy , France—died August 25, 1270, near Tunis [now in Tunisia]; canonized August 11, 1297, feast day August 25), king of France from 1226 to 1270, the most popular of the Capetian monarchs. He led the Seventh Crusade to the Holy Land in 1248–50 and died on another Crusade to Tunisia.

Louis IX, carrying the hand of justice, detail from the Ordonnances de l’Hotel du Roi, late 13th … Giraudon/Art Resource, New York Early life Louis was the fourth child of King Louis VIII and his queen, Blanche of Castile , but, since the first three died at an early age, Louis, who was to have seven more brothers and sisters, became heir to the throne. He was raised with particular care by his parents, especially his mother. Experienced horsemen taught him riding and the fine points of hunting. Tutors taught him biblical history, geography, and ancient literature. His mother instructed him in religion herself and educated him as a sincere, unbigoted Christian. Louis was a boisterous adolescent, occasionally seized by fits of temper, which he made efforts to control. When his father succeeded Philip II Augustus in 1223, the long struggle between the Capetian dynasty and the Plantagenets of England (who still had vast holdings in France) was still not settled, but there was a temporary lull, since the English king, Henry III , was in no position to resume the war.

In the south of France the Albigensian heretics, who were in revolt against both church and state , had not been brought under control. Finally, there was ferment and the threat of revolt among the great nobles, who had been kept in line by the firm hand of Philip Augustus. Louis VIII managed to bring these external and internal conflicts to an end. In 1226 Louis VIII turned his attention to quelling the Albigensian revolt, but he unfortunately died at Montpensier on November 8, 1226, on returning from a victorious expedition. Louis IX, who was not yet 13, became king under the regency of his redoubtable mother. Accession to the throne The queen mother’s first concern was to take Louis to Reims to be crowned. Many of the most powerful nobles refrained from participating in the ceremony, but Blanche was not a woman to be discouraged by adversity. While continuing her son’s education, she vigorously attacked the rebellious barons, particularly Hugh of Lusignan and Peter of Dreux (Pierre Mauclerc), duke of Brittany.

Without support from King Henry III of England, the baronial coalition collapsed, and the Treaty of Vendôme gave Blanche a brief respite. Britannica Stories Scientists Ponder Menopause in Killer Whales She took advantage of it to put an end to the Albigensian revolt. Louis’s troops were sent into Languedoc , where they forced Raymond VII , count of Toulouse, to concede defeat. On April 11, 1229, the king imposed the Treaty of Paris on Raymond, in accordance with the terms of which Raymond’s daughter was to marry the king’s brother Alphonse, and, after their deaths, all of Languedoc would revert to the royal domain. As a political debut it was a magnificent success. When the students at the University of Paris revolted for a trivial reason, Louis, on his mother’s advice, closed the university and ordered the students and professors to disperse, thereby strengthening the royal authority. The problem of the Plantagenet holdings in France remained. Supported by Peter of Dreux, Henry III landed in Brittany and attempted an expedition in the west of France. Louis IX, though only 15, personally commanded the troops.

He ordered the château at Angers to be rebuilt and pushed toward Nantes, where Henry was based. There was not even a battle, for, after a futile ride to Bordeaux, Henry withdrew. Truces were renewed, and Peter of Dreux submitted to Louis’s authority. Exploring Italy and France: Fact or Fiction? When Blanche laid down the reins of government in 1234, the kingdom was temporarily at peace. Louis IX could now think about marriage. He was a splendid knight whose kindness and engaging manner made him popular. And he was a just king: although he exacted what was due him, he had no wish to wrong anyone, from the lowest peasant to the richest vassal. He often administered justice personally, either in the great hall of the Palais de la Cité, which he later endowed with a magnificent chapel, or in his Vincennes manor, where he assembled his subjects at the foot of an oak, a scene often recalled by his biographer Jean de Joinville , the seneschal of Champagne. He was also a pious king, the protector of the church and friend of those in holy orders. In 1228 he founded the noted abbey of Royaumont.

Although respectful of the pope , he staunchly resisted unreasonable papal demands and protected his clergy. Britannica Lists & Quizzes Editor Picks: Exploring 10 Types of Basketball Movies Blanche had selected Margaret , daughter of Raymond Berenger IV, the count of Provence , as Louis’s wife. The marriage was celebrated at Sens, May 29, 1234, and Louis showed himself to be an eager and ardent husband, which made Blanche intensely jealous of her daughter-in-law. Louis and Margaret had 11 children. After subduing Thibaut of Champagne, Louis IX had to set out again for Aquitaine . This time the rebel was Hugh of Lusignan, who had married the widowed mother of Henry III . Once again Henry descended on the Continent, this time at Royan, with a powerful force. The majority of the nobles in the west of France united with him. An almost bloodless encounter at the bridge of Taillebourg in 1242 resulted in defeat for the English, and Henry returned to London.

Leadership of the Seventh Crusade After his victory over the English, Louis IX fell seriously ill with a form of malaria at Pontoise-lés-Noyon. It was then, in December 1244, that he decided to take up the cross and go to free the Holy Land , despite the lack of enthusiasm among his barons and his entourage. The situation in the Holy Land was critical. Jerusalem had fallen into Muslim hands on August 23, 1244, and the armies of the sultan of Egypt had seized Damascus. If aid from the West was not forthcoming, the Christian kingdom of the East would soon collapse. In Europe the times had never been more propitious for a Crusade. There was a respite in the great struggle between the Holy Roman Empire and the papacy; moreover, Louis IX’s forceful attitude toward the Holy Roman emperor, Frederick II , had dampened the latter’s enthusiasm for war. The kingdom of France was at peace, and the barons agreed to accompany their sovereign in the Seventh Crusade . The preparations were long and complex.

After entrusting the regency to his mother, Louis IX finally embarked from Aigues-Mortes on August 25, 1248. He took his wife and children with him, since he preferred not to leave the mother and daughter-in-law alone together. His fleet comprised about 100 ships carrying 35,000 men. Louis’s objective was simple: he intended to land in Egypt , seize the principal towns of the country, and use them as hostages to be exchanged for Syrian cities. Connect with Britannica Facebook Twitter YouTube Instagram Pinterest The beginning was promising. After wintering in Cyprus , the expedition landed near Damietta , Egypt, in June 1249. The king was one of the first to leap onto land, where he planted the oriflamme of St. Denis on Muslim territory. The town and port of Damietta were strongly fortified, but on June 6 Louis IX was able to enter the city. He then pushed on toward Cairo , but the rain-swollen waters of the Nile and its canals stopped him for several months. It was necessary to capture the citadel of Al-Manṣūrah .

After several attempts, a pontoon bridge was finally built, and the battle took place on February 8, 1250. The outcome of the struggle was for a long time undecided, and the king’s brother Robert of Artois was killed. Louis finally gained control of the situation through his energy and self-possession. But the army was exhausted. The Nile carried thousands of corpses away from Al-Manṣūrah, and plague struck the survivors. The king had to issue orders for the agonizing retreat toward Damietta. Louis IX, stricken in turn, dragged himself along in the rear guard of his disintegrating force. The Egyptians harassed the fleeing army and finally captured it on April 7, 1250. After long negotiations, the king and his principal barons were freed for a high ransom, and Louis rejoined his wife at Acre . The Crusaders would have preferred to return to France, but the king decided instead to remain. In four years he was to transform a military defeat into a diplomatic success, conclude advantageous alliances, and fortify the Christian cities of Syria . He returned to his kingdom only upon learning of his mother’s death.

Achievement of peace and administrative reforms The saintly Louis enjoyed immense prestige throughout Western Christendom. He took advantage of this to open negotiations for a lasting peace with the English king, Henry III, who had become his brother-in-law. The discussions extended over several years, but the treaty was finally signed in Paris on May 28, 1258. The terms of the treaty were generous with regard to the Plantagenets . Although Louis could have stripped Henry III of all his Continental holdings, he left him Aquitaine and some neighbouring territories. In return, the king of England acknowledged himself to be Louis’s vassal. In Louis’s eyes this was the most important point, for in the 13th century the power of a sovereign was measured less by the extent of his possessions than by the number and importance of his vassals. A just and equitable ruler, Louis also wanted to create goodwill between his children and those of the Plantagenets. The king’s reputation for impartiality was so great that he was often called upon to arbitrate disputes outside France, as he once did in a violent dispute between Henry III and his barons.

Trending Topics Open Door policy He took advantage of his authority to reorganize the administration of his kingdom. Some of his officials, profiting by his absence, had abused their power. Louis IX appointed royal investigators charged with correcting abuses on sight and with hearing complaints. Two well-known ordinances, in 1254 and 1256, carefully outlined the duties and responsibilities of officials in the royal domain, and Louis closely supervised their activities. Royal officials were forbidden to frequent taverns or to gamble, and business activities such as the purchase of land or the marriage of their daughters could be carried out only with the king’s consent. Further ordinances forbade prostitution , judicial duels, and ordeal by battle. The king imposed strict penalties on counterfeiting, stabilized the currency, and compelled the circulation of royal coinage. In general, his measures strengthened royal justice and administration and provided a firm base for French commercial growth. Louis should not, however, be portrayed as a stained-glass figure. Like all men, he had faults. He was quick-tempered and sometimes violent, and he had to struggle against his gluttony.

He made his decisions alone but knew how to choose wise counsellors , and his sincere piety did not prevent him from curbing the abuses of the clergy, sometimes brutally. The king devoted attention to the arts and to literature. He directed the construction of several buildings in Paris, Vincennes, Saint-Germain, and Corbeil (to house relics of the “True Cross” ). He encouraged Vincent of Beauvais , his chaplain, to write the first great encyclopaedia, Speculum majus . During his reign, foreign students and scholars flocked to the University of Paris. The king was very high-spirited. Nothing would be more inaccurate than to imagine him entirely steeped in piety. After meals, he gladly descended into his gardens, surrounded by his intimates , and discussed diverse topics with them. There each one indulged in quodlibet, or in talking about anything that pleased him. Death and canonization Throughout the latter part of his reign, he was obsessed by the memory of the Holy Land, the territory of which was rapidly shrinking before the Muslim advance. In 1269 he decided once again to go to Africa.

Perhaps encouraged by his brother Charles of Anjou , he chose Tunisia as the place from which to cut the Islamic world in half. It was a serious mistake for which he must take responsibility, and he eventually had to bear the consequences of it. Ill and weak, he knew that he risked dying there. The expedition landed near Tunis at the beginning of July 1270 and at first won a succession of easy victories. Carthage was taken. But once again plague struck the army, and Louis IX could not withstand it. After having entrusted the future of the kingdom of France to his son Philip , to whom he gave excellent instructions (enseignements), asking him especially to protect and assist the poor, who were the humblest of his subjects, he died in August 1270. The Crusade dissolved, and Louis’s body was brought back to France. All along the way, through Italy , the Alps , Lyon , and Cluny , crowds gathered and knelt as the procession passed. It reached Paris on the eve of Pentecost in 1271.

The funeral rites were solemnly performed at Notre-Dame de Paris , and the coffin went to rest in the abbey of Saint-Denis , the tomb of the kings of France. Without awaiting the judgment of the Roman Catholic Church , the people considered Louis IX to be a saint and prayed at his tomb. Pope Boniface VIII canonized Louis IX, the only king of France to be numbered by the Roman Catholic Church among its saints, in 1297. Top 10 Royal Saints - Toptenz.net Toptenz.net Posted by Matthew Zarzeczny on March 27, 2013 in People | 3,822 Views | 8 Responses Many Christians are familiar with such famous martyred saints as Joan of Arc , but a number of other influential saints are not known for being martyred. These saints’ claim to fame comes largely from their positions as king or queens. This list covers the ten most historically significant monarchs canonized by a Christian church. These men and women accomplished a great deal for Christianity and the well-fare of their people and, even today, appear on everything from coins, to being the namesakes of churches, cities, and schools around the world. 10. St.

Balthild of Ascania (626 – January 30, 680) Bathild , whose name means “bold sword” or “bold spear,” was canonized by Pope Nicholas I, around 880. This wife of King Clovis II is known for many praiseworthy attributes, from her physical beauty to her humble and modest nature. According to the hagiographic accounts of her life, she was concerned for others to such an extent, that she contributed to charity and offered donations that helped establish a number of abbeys in her kingdom. What makes her story especially remarkable is that, earlier in her life, she was sold into slavery prior. King Clovis, however, became smitten with this household servant and married her, despite her lower place in society. Balthild is admired for not forgetting her earlier plight, and for doing what she could to help the downtrodden when she was in a position to do so. She worked to abolish selling Christians as slaves, and to free children sold into slavery.

Given how long it took even modern Enlightened societies to abolish slavery (Britain in 1833, France in 1848, and the United States of America in 1865,) her anti-slavery practices nearly 1,500 years ago are all the more remarkable and commendable. 9. St. Charles I (November 19, 1600 – January 30, 1649) Charles , the controversial King of England and Ireland, as well as King of the Scots from March 27, 1625 to January 30, 1649, is noteworthy as the only saint canonized by the Church of England after the Reformation. He is also the only martyr to appear in this article, due to his less positive claim to fame: being the only king of England publicly beheaded. Charles is known for reigning in such a way that he alienated Puritans in his country. He tried to rule without Parliament, raised taxes through loopholes, attempted to impose a common prayer book on Scotland, and married a French Catholic. After Scotland invaded England, a civil war erupted against him, led by the ultimately victorious Oliver Cromwell .

Yet, Cromwell’s reign was arguably even more brutal than Charles’s. Cromwell, who once said of his opponents, “You have no other way to deal with these men but to break them in pieces,” abolished the monarchy and Parliament, banned critical newspapers, re-conquered Scotland, subdued Ireland, suppressed Catholicism, and made himself Lord Protector. After his death, his son became the new Lord Protector of something that was allegedly not a monarchy. So, the former members of Parliament invited Charles’s son to come to England as its king in 1660. Cromwell’s body was exhumed, and his head was cut off and put on public display. Charles I, meanwhile, became regarded as a martyr, and England has remained a monarchy to this day. 8. St. Edward the Confessor (1003–05 to January 5, 1066) St. Edward , who reigned from June 8, 1042 to January 5, 1066, was one of the last Anglo-Saxon kings of England from the house of Wessex. The year of his death should be recognizable to most people as the year of the Norman invasion.

The pious Edward was the son of Emma of Normandy, great-aunt of William the Conqueror. His significance for Christian history is that he was the first Anglo-Saxon, and the only English king to be officially canonized by the Catholic Church, in 1161. His feast day is October 13, and he is venerated as a patron saint of difficult marriages . 7. St. Emma Kalanikaumakaamano Kaleleonalani Na’ea Rooke (January 2, 1836 – April 25, 1885) St. Emma easily wins the contest for most bodacious saint name of all time, part of which means “flight of the heavenly one.” Well before Hawaii became a U.S. state, it was an independent monarchy, and Emma served as Queen Consort of Hawaii from June 19, 1856, to November 30, 1863. During her lifetime, she met with Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, who had become godmother to Emma’s son. Emma founded Saint Andrew’s School for Girls and also The Queen’s Hospital, where she personally visited patients on a regular basis.

She played a major role in helping to establish the Church of England in her island kingdom, was baptized in 1862, and is now honored with a feast day on November 28 by the Episcopal Church. 6. St. Jadwiga (1373/4 – July 17, 1399) Jadwiga, although a woman, reigned as King , rather than Queen, of Poland from October 16, 1384 to July 17, 1399. the reason for this is because she was not merely the wife of a reigning king, but rather royalty in her own right. She is one of Poland’s most important monarchs. She learned at least six languages (Latin, Bosnian, Hungarian, Serbian, Polish and German ,) and was known for her charity. Appropriately enough, Polish-born Pope John Paul II canonized her in 1997. She is now venerated as the patron saint of queens, and a united Europe. 5. St.

Louis IX (April 25, 1214 – August 25, 1270) Louis IX reigned as King of France from November 8, 1226 to August 25, 1270. A patron of the arts, Louis is unfortunately best known for his participation in the Crusades. The two Crusades he participated in (the Seventh in 1248, and the Eighth in 1270) were disasters. During the Seventh Crusade, Muslim forces captured Louis. During the Eighth Crusade, he died. Yet, despite these failures, back in his kingdom of France, his country enjoyed the “Golden Century of Saint Louis,” due to its artistic and architectural achievements as well, as the size of its military . Pope Boniface VIII canonized Louis in 1297, and Louis became the patron saint of the Third Order of St. Francis, France, the French monarchy, hairdressers, and lacemakers (that’s quite the mouthful!) 4. St.

Clotilde (475–545) Clotilde , in her role as wife of Frankish king Clovis I, held the title of Queen of All the Franks. It is perhaps fitting then, that both the wives of Clovis I and Clovis II would become saints. Clotilde is unquestionably one of the most significant women of the Dark Ages, due in large part to her influence on her more-famous husband. For one thing, she played a critical role in her husband’s conversion to Christianity . Her husband had prayed that, if his wife’s God helped him in battle against the Alamanni, he would be baptized. He did indeed win the decisive Battle of Tolbiac in 496, and kept his half of the bargain. This conversion had considerable significance, given France’s long history as a Catholic country for the next 1,500+ years! She is the patron saint of queens, widows, brides adopted children, parents, the lame, and even those in exile. 3. St.

Alfred the Great (849 – October 26, 899) Alfred reigned as King of Wessex, the most important kingdom in Dark Ages Britain, from April 23, 871 to October 26, 899. During his reign, Alfred was made Roman consul by Pope Leo IV around 853, made London a metropolis and, according to legend, founded Oxford University in 882. He also defeated the Great Heathen Army, a Viking army from Denmark, at the battle of Edington in 878. Alfred ultimately became the first king in Great Britain to style himself as “King of the Anglo-Saxons.” Some Catholics regard him as a saint, despite never officially being recognized as such by the Roman Catholic Church. He is, however, venerated by The Anglican Communion. His feast day is October 26. 2. St. Stephen I (967 /969/975 – August 15, 1038) Stephen I reigned as the first King of Hungary from 1001 to 1038.

If being the first king of a country is not significant enough in its own right, he also played a major role in spreading Christianity in the region over which he ruled. Not long after his death, King Stephen became Saint Stephen, canonized by Pope Gregory VII on August 20, 1083. As such, to Hungarians the world over, he is one of their most popular saints, with his feast day celebrated as a national holiday. In 1811, renowned composer Ludwig van Beethoven even composed a commemorative work honoring the great king. 1. St. Charlemagne (c. 742 – January 28, 814) Charlemagne reigned as King of the Franks from October 9, 768, until his death on January 28, 814. He was also King of the Lombards from July 10, 774 until his death. During his long reign, Charlemagne accomplished so many significant achievements that he is known as the “Father of Europe.” He restored the Roman Empire in the West when he became the first “Holy Roman Emperor,” by being crowned by Pope Leo III on Christmas Day of 800.

This title lasted for over a thousand years, until 1806. He also ushered in the Carolingian Renaissance, which included the building of his palace in Aachen, and the support of such intellectual writers as Einhard and Alcuin. He won numerous military victories, and even nearly married the East Roman Empress Irene. As such, Charlemagne is by far the most influential king or queen ever canonized as a saint. Yet, in his case, the canonization is not officially recognized by the Roman Catholic Church. Why not? Well, because the man who canonized Charlemagne in 1165 was Antipope Paschal III, who reigned in opposition to the legitimate pope, Alexander III. Dr. Matthew D. Zarzeczny is the author of Meteors That Enlighten The Earth , available at Amazon.com now. | Permalink The problem with these sources is that they were written down in a time long after paganism was gone, mainly in the 19th century. They are based the mythologic school of folklore, something which is seen more or less as pesudo-science today.

There is quite a lot of material, but there is no way to proof that this material is anything else than the imagination of scholars. At the time this way of “research” was popular all over Europe, especially in countries that were just escaping foreign rule. It was a way of building a distinct own history. Folk traditions are an awful way of getting knowledge about pre-christian times, simply because they are very prone to change over the time. Others might seem “pagan”, but may come directly from Christian practices. Take practice in some parts of Estonia, where people have meals of the graves of their relatives. This has often been seen as some kind of left-over pagan sacrifice ritual. The problem is that archaeological evidence (animal bones, cups, plates and so on) shows that this practice developed well after Christianity took hold. The same goes for grave funiture. (See Heiki Valk on that subject if you are interested) I once wrote a term paper on the Christianization in the Baltic and I have to say that many modern Baltic folklorists agree with this view. People employed in tourism, media and amateur folklorists however tend to proclaim the view of continuity on the other hand.

This is very similar to the situation in Germany for example (where we even have _less_ knowledge about pagan practices). There was and is an awful lot of “reverse-engineering” going on, where stories are made up to fit archaeological evidence. All in all you can summarize it like this: There are stories, but most of them seem to be much later creations, inspired by nationalistic ideas in folklore that were popular in many other coutries in the 19th century. Distinct Baltic folk traditions mainly developed in the time _after_ or during the Christianization. Many of them might well be a defense reaction from paganism against Christianity, but this doesn’t change the fact that they were new inventions, different from the pagan practices before Christianity arrived. Even if you have good knowledge that a story is actually from pagan times, it’s still up to the scholar to do the interpretation, which goes out of hand very quickly. Another problem is, that most pagan societies probably didn’t have a fixed pantheon and common ways of worshiping among themselves. This might have been quite different from community to community.

If you compare it to Norse mythology you could say that we today have absolutely no idea about the pagan traditions in Scandinavia – since we only have some Christian retellings of Icelandic pagan myths. There could be worlds between Iceland and Skandinavia. | Permalink Wow, thank you for this great answer! While I agree with you, I think we just have different expectations on the material that we have. The folklorism you mentioned might have reached its peak with the invention of Romuva or Dievturiba which are nothing ancient after all, even if they claim it. We both agree that this has nothing to do with scientific research. I just repeated it to make it clear 🙂 But I still think we cannot disregard ANY material we have. Even if traditions changed, they are worth checking if there is something valuable in them. But of course we cannot ground the whole research on folklore, I never wanted to say that! After all, this is a field where ethnologists, archaeologists and linguists have to work together. The dainas are very interesting and there is still a lot of work to do. The problem with written sources, well, isn’t it always like that? And still, it is possible to reconstruct a lot.

I think it’s a little bit too hard to say we don’t have any clue. We have! I’m not talking about detailed ceremonies here, but it is possible to find numerous parallels to other traditions, basic motives and concepts. For me, this is exciting enough. Leave a Reply St. Louis King of France - Saints & Angels - Catholic Online St. Louis King of France St. Louis King of France Author and Publisher - Catholic Online Facts Take the Saints Trivia Quiz now! St. Louis, King of France, patron of Tertiaries, was the ninth of his name. He was born at Poissy, France, in 1214. His father was Louis VIII, and his mother was Blanche, daughter of Alfonso VIII of Castille, surnamed the Conqueror. At the age of twelve he lost his father, and his mother became regent of the kingdom. From his tenderest infancy she had inspired him with a love for holy things. In 1234, he married Margaret, the virtuous daughter of Raymond Berenger, Count of Provence, and two years later he took the reigns of government into his own hands.

In 1238, he headed a crusade, in which he fell a prisoner among the Mohammedans, but a truce was concluded and he was set free and he returned to France. In 1267, he again set out for the East at the head of a crusade but he never again beheld his native land. In 1270, he was stricken by the pestilence at the siege of Tunis, and after receiving the Last Sacraments, he died. His feast day is August 25th. Saint Louis, King of France – Becoming a Catholic Saint Louis, King of France Man of the Middle Ages The thirteenth century brought all that was best and all that was worst about the Middle Ages to a culmination. Magnificent cathedrals, monasteries, and universities drew some of God's people to the light of God's Word. But surrounding streets and countryside teemed with folk lost in the shadows of superstition and fear. Cords of a common faith united people from far flung lands. But ambition and greed ran riot in the many political divisions of those lands and in the Church as well. Still, it was that simple faith that dominated most people's lives.

Life is brief, and at the end await judgment and eternity. It is how you live that matters, and, thank God, His grace is available to peasant and prince alike. When Louis IX was born on April 25, 1214, France was only about a third of its present size, and his grandfather, Philip II Augustus, was sitting on the throne. Then, when Louis was eight, Philip died and Louis' father took the throne as Louis VIII. Obviously, that same throne loomed in little Louis' future and his mother, Blanche of Castile, did all she could to prepare him for it. Instead of sending her baby out to a nurse, as many other royal mothers did, Blanche kept Louis with her and assumed almost total control over his life. Though he learned some principles from watching and listening to his father, tutors of Blanche's choosing taught him most of what a king must know -- Latin, public speaking, writing, military arts, and government. Even more important to Blanche was Louis' religious education. She taught him to love God and honor Poissy, the place of his baptism.

She took him to all the services of the Divine Office each day and restricted his companions to men of the Church. "I love you, my dear son, as much as a mother can love her child," Blanche once informed her little boy. "But I would rather see you dead at my feet than that you should ever commit a mortal sin." Louis never forgot that. The time for which Blanche was preparing arrived sooner than she had anticipated. Louis was only twelve when his father died on November 7, 1226. At once a group of barons joined forces to seize all they could from the situation. Louis, a mere child, and Blanche, a foreign woman with no friends or family near, would be easy prey, they thought. But their reckoning had not considered Blanche's keen mind and determination. She promptly scheduled Louis' coronation for the earliest possible date, the first Sunday of Advent, 1226. In line with her husband's wishes, she would serve as regent and rule for Louis until he came of age. After the coronation, which took place in the Cathedral at Rheims, the barons tried to prevent Louis and Blanche from returning to Paris.

But the Parisians themselves marched out and lined the roads, some bearing arms and many praying for Louis' welfare. He never forgot that either. As time passed, the barons continued their harassment, but Blanche was able to outwit them at every turn. Her only defeat came when Louis was twenty and married Margaret, daughter of the Count of Provence. Though Blanche realized that a king must marry and had even chosen Margaret for Louis, she simply could not control her jealousy. She had been the center of her son's life too long to share him, so she did all she could to keep the young couple apart. However, Louis and Margaret genuinely loved one another and found their own ways around Blanche's interference. Sometimes they met in a stairway between their two rooms. Servants kept watch and, if Blanche approached, made warning noises, so Louis and Margaret could escape before she saw them. In spite of such obstacles, the marriage proved successful and resulted in six daughters and five sons. In 1235 Louis came of age and began to rule France, though he still listened carefully to his mother's advice.

Even in childhood, his compassion for the poor and suffering people had been obvious to all who knew him and when he became king, it burst into full flower. Over a hundred poor people ate in his house on ordinary days and many more on holidays. Often the king served these guests himself. Such acts of charity, coupled with Louis' devout religious practices, gave rise to the legend that he joined the Third Order of St. Francis, people who lived simply in their own homes and devoted much time to prayer and service to the poor. Though it is unlikely that Louis did join the order, his life and actions certainly proclaimed him one of them in spirit. Louis once asked his friend and biographer, John de Joinville, whether John had ever washed the feet of the poor on Maundy Thursday, a custom following the example of Jesus, who washed His disciples' feet. "God forbid, sir!" replied John, always a blunt and honest man. "No, I will not wash the feet of those brutes!" That, said Louis, was a poor answer, and he urged John not to despise Jesus' lesson, but to begin the practice himself. Louis also gave generous gifts of money to poor people whether others considered them worthy or not.

Monks and nuns, widows and prostitutes, gentlefolk fallen on hard times and minstrels too old or sick to perform, Louis gave happily to them all. He also built hospitals and homes for those who needed them. One hospital for blind people near Paris included a chapel so the three hundred men who stayed there could attend worship services. A hostel outside Paris became home to a large group of women who had been driven by poverty to prostitution. Louis called it the House of the Daughters of God. Louis had a special place in his heart for people in religious orders and helped all those who asked for his support. His first great building was an abbey at Royaumont. He carried stones for its construction and later spent hours there, singing and eating with the monks, praying, and seeking God's peace. Many more convents and monasteries followed Royaumont and sometimes people close to Louis scolded him for giving so much money away. Louis' reply was quick and sharp.

"I would rather my extravagance should be in almsgiving for the love of God than in the pomp and vainglory of this world." Baldwin II, Latin emperor at Constantinople, felt deep gratitude to Louis for his generosity to Christians in the Middle East -- and, most likely, for settling some of Baldwin's own debts, too. In 1239, the emperor gave Louis the Crown of Thorns, said to be worn by Jesus on the Cross. Louis took his whole court with him to meet the Dominican brothers who brought the Crown to France. Then, to house this treasure, he tore down his chapel of St. Nicholas and built the lovely Sainte Chapelle. Louis' wisdom and fairness in administering justice became a byword throughout Europe, both during his lifetime and after his death. In the summer, he would often go from church to a nearby park where he sat beneath an oak tree with some of his courtiers. "Is there anyone here who has a case to settle?" he would ask, and whoever did could come and speak with him freely. When faced with a problem between a rich person and a poor person, Louis always listened a little more carefully to the poor person.

The rich, he said, had plenty of people ready to listen to them. Once Louis heard about a count who had hanged three children for hunting rabbits in his woods. Louis had the count put in prison and when he demanded that other nobles serve as his judges, Louis refused. So the count stood before ordinary judges who condemned him to death. But Louis wasn't finished. He commuted the death sentence to a fine so large that it took most of the count's possessions. Then he ordered the fine to be used for charity. In 1242, Louis defeated King Henry III of England in a battle at Taillebourg. He was so fair in his treatment of the king that years later, Henry would return to ask Louis once again to administer justice in his behalf. In 1244, Louis became extremely ill with dysentery and fever. At one point, a nurse, certain he was dead, prepared to cover his face with a sheet. But another nurse insisted he was still alive and she was right. For a while, Louis could not speak, but the moment his speech returned, he announced that he wished to "take the cross." When Blanche heard this, her heart fell.

She knew that it meant Louis had decided to go on a crusade. The crusades had begun in 1096 with a holy war to take Jerusalem back from the Saracens. Though never successful, they had persisted for about two hundred years, at great personal and financial expense to many people. But with the highest of motives and hopes, Louis set sail for Egypt in 1248, along with family members, John de Joinville, and others. Years of battle, sickness, and waiting followed until in 1250 Louis himself became a prisoner. His kingly bearing and open devotion to God seemed to offer him some protection and soon he was released. Next he sailed to Palestine with the poor remnants of his army and visited as many holy places as he could. It was not until 1254 that sad news brought Louis back to France. Blanche was dead. For two days grief so overwhelmed Louis that he would speak to no one. Then he sent for John and cried, "I have lost my mother!" John also learned, much to his surprise, that Margaret was grieving too.

She and some of the children had accompanied Louis on the crusade and though John thought the king was neglecting them, Margaret had apparently lost none of her love for him. "The woman you most hated . . . is dead," John pointed out to her, "and yet you are making such a show of grief." It was not for Blanche that she wept, said Margaret, but for Louis and the sorrow he was feeling. After more adventures, well described by John in his biography the crusaders reached France, and Louis again assumed the rule of his country. If anything, he lived even more simply then, eating less, mixing water with his wine, and dressing in plain clothes. At the same time his reputation for justice and fairness only grew. In 1254, again motivated by his love for the poor, Louis issued his Great Ordinance. His officials had to swear to give justice to all. They could accept no bribes and allow no gifts to their wives, children, or other close family members. Finally, they could not buy land in the territories they served.

Around 1257, Robert de Sorbon, a priest and man of great learning, told his friend, King Louis, about his plans to build a college for poor students in Paris. Louis liked the idea, obtained the approval of Pope Clement IV, and gave Robert the money to endow the project. Before long, the institute, known as the Sorbonne, served as the theological division of the University of Paris. Men such as St. Bonaventure, St. Albert the Great, and St. Thomas Aquinas taught there and their work continues to influence Church teachings today. Meanwhile, in England, Henry III and his barons had been fighting tooth and nail, much to the distress of their country. At last they decided to take their disputes to Louis. He was the fairest man in the world and both sides would abide by whatever he decreed. So a large party of English nobility traveled to Amiens and all pleaded their cases. Louis listened and thought and then handed down his judgment. In some ways he judged in favor of Henry and in others for the barons. The nobles returned to England as satisfied as they could be. Hard as Louis worked, he did know how to relax.

He had a menagerie, which included some lions and a porcupine. He kept falcons, sparrow hawks, dogs and horses -- everything necessary for a royal hunt, although he may not himself have hunted. Most of all, Louis seemed to enjoy the company of other people, especially his family and the guests he had to meals. "Nothing," he said, "beats a free and friendly conversation." But Louis could not put the plight of Christians in the Middle East out of his mind, and in 1267, he declared that he intended to set out on another crusade. John and others close to him protested strongly. France needed him, they said, and his health was poor. But Louis was determined. Some of his brothers and his three eldest sons, Philip, John and Peter, accompanied him and summer of 1270 found them in Tunis. There disease swept through the crusaders and Louis' son John died. That same day both Louis and Philip felt ill. Philip recovered, but the king no longer had the strength to fight his way back to health. On August 24, Louis received the last sacraments. On the 25th, he was unable to speak from nine till noon.

Then he raised his eyes and repeated the words of the psalm: "Lord, I will enter into Thine house; I will adore in Thy holy temple, and will give glory to Thy name." At three, he spoke again -- "Into Thy hands I commend my soul" -- and died. Louis was 56 at the time of his death, worn out with work and hardships. Many of his accomplishments lived after him, serving as beacons of light, revealing the best of the Middle Ages. Even his failures, most notably the two crusades, mark him as a man of his time. Louis wrote out his ideas of government in a set of precepts which he gave to his son, Philip. They say, in essence: "Love God, do justice, and serve the poor." ﻿ CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: St. Louis IX Home > Catholic Encyclopedia > L > St. Louis IX St. Louis IX Help support New Advent and get the full contents of this website as an instant download . Includes the Catholic Encyclopedia, Church Fathers, Summa, Bible and more  all for only $19.99...

King of France , son of Louis VIII and Blanche of Castile, born at Poissy, 25 April, 1215; died near Tunis , 25 August, 1270. He was eleven years of age when the death of Louis VIII made him king, and nineteen when he married Marguerite of Provence by whom he had eleven children. The regency of Blanche of Castile (1226-1234) was marked by the victorious struggle of the Crown against Raymond VII in Languedoc, against Pierre Mauclerc in Brittany, against Philip Hurepel in the Ile de France, and by indecisive combats against Henry III of England . In this period of disturbances the queen was powerfully supported by the legate Frangipani. Accredited to Louis VIII by Honorius III as early as 1225, Frangipani won over to the French cause the sympathies of Gregory IX , who was inclined to listen to Henry III, and through his intervention it was decreed that all the chapters of the dioceses should pay to Blanche of Castile tithes for the southern crusade .

It was the legate who received the submission of Raymond VII , Count of Languedoc, at Paris , in front of Notre-Dame, and this submission put an end to the Albigensian war and prepared the union of the southern provinces to France by the Treaty of Paris (April 1229). The influence of Blanche de Castile over the government extended far beyond St. Louis's minority. Even later, in public business and when ambassadors were officially received, she appeared at his side. She died in 1253. In the first years of the king's personal government, the Crown had to combat a fresh rebellion against feudalism , led by the Count de la Marche, in league with Henry III. St. Louis's victory over this coalition at Taillebourg, 1242, was followed by the Peace of Bordeaux which annexed to the French realm a part of Saintonge. It was one of St. Louis's chief characteristics to carry on abreast his administration as national sovereign and the performance of his duties towards Christendom ; and taking advantage of the respite which the Peace of Bordeaux afforded, he turned his thoughts towards a crusade .

Stricken down with a fierce malady in 1244, he resolved to take the cross when news came that Turcomans had defeated the Christians and the Moslems and invaded Jerusalem . (On the two crusades of St. Louis [1248-1249 and 1270] see CRUSADES .) Between the two crusades he opened negotiations with Henry III, which he thought would prevent new conflicts between France and England . The Treaty of Paris (28 May, 1258) which St. Louis concluded with the King of England after five years' parley, has been very much discussed. By this treaty St. Louis gave Henry III all the fiefs and domains belonging to the King of France in the Dioceses of Limoges , Cahors , and Périgueux; and in the event of Alphonsus of Poitiers dying without issue, Saintonge and Agenais would escheat to Henry III. On the other hand Henry III renounced his claims to Normandy , Anjou, Touraine, Maine , Poitou, and promised to do homage for the Duchy of Guyenne.

It was generally considered and Joinville voiced the opinion of the people, that St. Louis made too many territorial concessions to Henry III; and many historians held that if, on the contrary, St. Louis had carried the war against Henry III further, the Hundred Years War would have been averted. But St. Louis considered that by making the Duchy of Guyenne a fief of the Crown of France he was gaining a moral advantage; and it is an undoubted fact that the Treaty of Paris , was as displeasing to the English as it was to the French. In 1263, St. Louis was chosen as arbitrator in a difference which separated Henry III and the English barons: by the Dit d'Amiens (24 January, 1264) he declared himself for Henry III against the barons, and annulled the Provisions of Oxford, by which the barons had attempted to restrict the authority of the king. It was also in the period between the two crusades that St.

Louis, by the Treaty of Corbeil, imposed upon the King of Aragon the abandonment of his claims to all the fiefs in Languedoc excepting Montpellier, and the surrender of his rights to Provence (11 May, 1258). Treaties and arbitrations prove St. Louis to have been above all a lover of peace, a king who desired not only to put an end to conflicts, but also to remove the causes for fresh wars , and this spirit of peace rested upon the Christian conception. St. Louis's relations with the Church of France and the papal Court have excited widely divergent interpretations and opinions. However, all historians agree that St. Louis and the successive popes united to protect the clergy of France from the encroachments or molestations of the barons and royal officers. It is equally recognized that during the absence of St.

Louis at the crusade , Blanche of Castile protected the clergy in 1251 from the plunder and ill-treatment of a mysterious old marauder called the "Hungarian Master" who was followed by a mob of armed men — called the "Pastoureaux." The "Hungarian Master" who was said to be in league with the Moslems died in an engagement near Villaneuve and the entire band pursued in every direction was dispersed and annihilated. But did St. Louis take measures also to defend the independence of the clergy against the papacy ? A number of historians once claimed he did. They attributed to St. Louis a certain "pragmatic sanction" of March 1269, prohibiting irregular collations of ecclesiastical benefices , prohibiting simony , and interdicting the tributes which the papal Court received from the French clergy . The Gallicans of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries often made use of this measure against the Holy See ; the truth is that it was a forgery fabricated in the fourteenth century by juris-consults desirous of giving to the Pragmatic Sanction of Charles VII a precedent worthy of respect.

This so-called pragmatic of Louis IX is presented as a royal decree for the reformation of the Church ; never would St. Louis thus have taken upon himself the right to proceed authoritatively with this reformation. When in 1246, a great number of barons from the north and the west leagued against the clergy whom they accused of amassing too great wealth and of encroaching upon their rights , Innocent IV called upon Louis to dissolve this league; how the king acted in the matter is not definitely known. On 2 May, 1247, when the Bishops of Soissons and of Troyes , the archdeacon of Tours , and the provost of the cathedral of Rouen , despatched to the pope a remonstrance against his taxations, his preferment of Italians in the distribution of benefices , against the conflicts between papal jurisdiction and the jurisdiction of the ordinaries, Marshal Ferri Pasté seconded their complaints in the name of St. Louis. Shortly after, these complaints were reiterated and detailed in a lengthy memorandum, the text of which has been preserved by Mathieu Paris , the historian. It is not known whether St.

Louis affixed his signature to it, but in any case, this document was simply a request asking for the suppression of the abuses, with no pretensions to laying down principles of public right, as was claimed by the Pragmatic Sanction . Documents prove that St. Louis did not lend an ear to the grievances of his clergy against the emissaries of Urban IV and Clement IV ; he even allowed Clement IV to generalize a custom in 1265 according to which the benefices the titularies of which died while sojourning in Rome , should be disposed of by the pope . Docile to the decrees of the Lateran Council (1215), according to which kings were not to tax the churches of their realm without authority from the pope , St. Louis claimed and obtained from successive popes , in view of the crusade , the right to levy quite heavy taxes from the clergy . It is again this fundamental idea of the crusade , ever present in St. Louis's thoughts that prompted his attitude generally in the struggle between the empire and the pope . While the Emperor Frederick II and the successive popes sought and contended for France's support, St. Louis's attitude was at once decided and reserved.

On the one hand he did not accept for his brother Robert of Artois, the imperial crown offered him by Gregory IX in 1240. In his correspondence with Frederick he continued to treat him as a sovereign, even after Frederick had been excommunicated and declared dispossessed of his realms by Innocent IV at the Council of Lyons , 17 July, 1245. But on the other hand, in 1251, the king compelled Frederick to release the French archbishops taken prisoners by the Pisans , the emperor's auxiliaries, when on their way in a Genoese fleet to attend a general council at Rome . In 1245, he conferred at length, at Cluny, with Innocent IV who had taken refuge in Lyons in December, 1244, to escape the threats of the emperor, and it was at this meeting that the papal dispensation for the marriage of Charles Anjou, brother of Louis IX, to Beatrix , heiress of Provençe was granted and it was then that Louis IX and Blanche of Castile promised Innocent IV their support.

Finally, when in 1247 Frederick II took steps to capture Innocent IV at Lyons , the measures Louis took to defend the pope were one of the reasons which caused the emperor to withdraw. St. Louis looked upon every act of hostility from either power as an obstacle to accomplishing the crusade . In the quarrel over investitures , the king kept on friendly terms with both, not allowing the emperor to harass the pope and never exciting the pope against the emperor. In 1262 when Urban offered St. Louis, the Kingdom of Sicily , a fief of the Apostolic See , for one of his sons, St. Louis refused it, through consideration for the Swabian dynasty then reigning; but when Charles of Anjou accepted Urban IV's offer and went to conquer the Kingdom of Sicily , St. Louis allowed the bravest knights of France to join the expedition which destroyed the power of the Hohenstaufens in Sicily . The king hoped, doubtless, that the possession of Sicily by Charles of Anjou would be advantageous to the crusade . St.

Louis led an exemplary life, bearing constantly in mind his mother's words: "I would rather see you dead at my feet than guilty of a mortal sin ." His biographers have told us of the long hours he spent in prayer , fasting , and penance , without the knowledge of his subjects. The French king was a great lover of justice . French fancy still pictures him delivering judgements under the oak of Vincennes. It was during his reign that the "court of the king" (curia regis) was organized into a regular court of justice , having competent experts, and judicial commissions acting at regular periods. These commissions were called parlements and the history of the "Dit d'Amiens" proves that entire Christendom willingly looked upon him as an international judiciary. It is an error , however, to represent him as a great legislator; the document known as "Etablissements de St. Louis" was not a code drawn up by order of the king, but merely a collection of customs, written out before 1273 by a jurist who set forth in this book the customs of Orléans , Anjou, and Maine, to which he added a few ordinances of St. Louis. St.

Louis was a patron of architecture . The Sainte Chappelle, an architectural gem, was constructed in his reign, and it was under his patronage that Robert of Sorbonne founded the "Collège de la Sorbonne," which became the seat of the theological faculty of Paris . He was renowned for his charity . The peace and blessings of the realm come to us through the poor he would say. Beggars were fed from his table, he ate their leavings, washed their feet , ministered to the wants of the lepers , and daily fed over one hundred poor. He founded many hospitals and houses: the House of the Felles-Dieu for reformed prostitutes; the Quinze-Vingt for 300 blind men (1254), hospitals at Pontoise, Vernon, Compiégne. The Enseignements (written instructions) which he left to his son Philip and to his daughter Isabel, the discourses preserved by the witnesses at judicial investigations preparatory to his canonization and Joinville's anecdotes show St. Louis to have been a man of sound common sense, possessing indefatigable energy, graciously kind and of playful humour, and constantly guarding against the temptation to be imperious.

The caricature made of him by the envoy of the Count of Gueldre: "worthless devotee, hypocritical king" was very far from the truth . On the contrary, St. Louis, through his personal qualities as well as his saintliness, increased for many centuries the prestige of the French monarchy (see FRANCE ). St. Louis's canonization was proclaimed at Orvieto in 1297, by Boniface VIII . Of the inquiries in view of canonization , carried on from 1273 till 1297, we have only fragmentary reports published by Delaborde ("Mémoires de la société de l'histoire de Paris et de l'Ilea de France," XXIII, 1896) and a series of extracts compiled by Guillaume de St. Pathus, Queen Marguerite's confessor, under the title of "Vie Monseigneur Saint Loys" (Paris, 1899).

Question: Who was the only canonised King of France? (name and number)
Answer: Louis IX