Œuvres De Voltaire Tome XX: Siècle De Louis Xiv.—tome II

Voltaire's second volume on Louis XIV's reign plunges into the most consequential conflict of the Sun King's晚年: the War of Spanish Succession. But this is not mere battle chronicle. Voltaire, that indispensable provocateur, uses the diplomatic chess match between Europe's great powers to interrogate what he calls the 'most enlightened age that ever was.' He examines not just the movements of armies across Flanders and the Italian peninsula, but the minds of those who commanded them. Here is Queen Anne's England, Prince Eugene's Austria, and Louis XIV's France locked in a struggle that would redraw the map of Europe. Voltaire assesses military decisions with a philosopher's eye, asking what these campaigns reveal about the nature of power itself. Written with the wit and edge that made Voltaire indispensable, this volume stands as a masterclass in historical narrative: rigorous, opinionated, and utterly alive.