Early Europe was a time of great metamorphosis. As Louis XIV, Napoleon and Elizabeth I developed and shaped society, the essence of modern European history was created. By analyzing Louis The irresponsibility of monarchs was perhaps the main cause of the abolition of the monarchy. Louis XIV, representative of the supreme sovereign in the 17th century, built a flourishing, but rather ephemeral, empire. His title, “the Sun King”, testified to his superiority over his men and his country. The achievements of this most dominant monarchy of the Bourbon dynasty were invaluable, including the expansion of French territories, the centralization of religion, and the completion of Versailles. When it came to rights, Louis was a loyalist proponent of absolutism, a belief that he should be accountable to no one but God, reflected in his words: "The State—c'est moi » (I am the State!). There is no doubt that all rights were managed by him, from the highest court to the basic supply. However, did this style of centralization of power prove useful to the majority or to the peasants who made up over 80% of the population? If a thorough description were made, it would be easy to recognize the heavy tasks that weigh on the lower classes. “…peasants own less than half the land and often starve…It is one of the ironies of French agriculture that peasants often do not grow enough grain to feed their own families and are forced to buy bread with their earnings. » (Ashley 75) How difficult ...... middle of paper ...... Napoleon. New York: American Heritage Pub. ; Commercial distribution of the book by Harper & Row, 1963. Print.Jones, Colin. Voice of the French Revolution. Topsfield, MA: Salem House, 1988. Print. Levin, Carole. The Reign of Elizabeth I. New York: Palgrave, 2002. Print.Neale, JE Elizabeth I and her Parliaments, 1559-1581. New York: St. Martin's, 1966. Print. Neely, Sylvia. A concise history of the French Revolution. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2008. Print. Nelson, Craig. Thomas Paine: Enlightenment, revolution and the birth of modern nations. New York: Viking, 2006. Print. Price-Groff, Claire. Queen Victoria and 19th-century England. New York: Benchmark, 2003. Print. Riggs, Kate. The French Revolution. Mankato, MN: Creative Education, 2010. Print. Somerset, Fry Plantagenet. The kings and queens of England and Scotland. New York: Grove Weidenfeld, 1990. Print.