Cambridge Modern History. Volume 05, The Age of Louis XIV

The fifth volume of the Cambridge Modern History tackles one of history's most consequential eras: the reign of Louis XIV and the transformation of Europe from medieval patchwork to modern nation-state system. Under Lord Acton's editorial vision, this volume assembles definitive scholarship on the age when France reached its zenith, England erupted in constitutional revolution, and the Great Northern War reshaped the Baltic. The coverage extends from the corridors of Versailles to the battlefields of the War of Spanish Succession, from the emergence of Prussia as a European power to the Ottoman Empire's final thrust into Central Europe. Yet the volume reaches beyond politics and war: it traces the scientific revolution reshaping thought, the religious upheavals driving populations across continents, and the colonial enterprises that would redraw the global map. Published in 1909, this remains a cornerstone of historical scholarship, offering readers not merely a chronicle of events but a meticulous analysis of how the seventeenth century laid the foundations for the modern world. For students of European history, political science, or anyone seeking to understand the origins of our contemporary order.