I Am Louis XIV

People thought that King Louis XIV of France would eagerly send his troops south to defeat those who dared to oppose him, and hang all the rebels on the gallows or stuff them into cages, but what puzzled them was that The King of France followed Roussillon southward, leisurely as far as Barcelona, ​​the largest and most important city in Catalonia, and then stopped when he reached Bars.

This was not the case when Louis XIV was conquering Flanders and the Netherlands. At that time, the French army's front was likely to advance every day, no, every hour, and its desperate momentum even made people feel that their The king and generals went crazy, and Leopold I of Habsburg, Duke Don Juan of Spain, and the Roman Church achieved his intended purpose before they could react.

But when facing Spain, he seemed extremely cautious.

So some people say that Louis XIV is no longer as brave and decisive as he was when he was young. After all, in this era, forty years old is already an age that is about to enter the ranks of aging among civilians. Even a pampered king, at the age of forty or fifty, Many people died due to various reasons, not to mention that Louis XIV's sons have already married Portuguese princesses, and may soon have a little prince. The Sun King who created the most glorious page in French history has thus become You might have to be conservative.

"What do you think?" asked the Duke of Luxembourg.

The person being questioned by the Duke of Luxembourg was none other than the nominal eldest son of Count Soissons, little Eugen.

"I think this is because Flanders, the Netherlands and Spain are very different in nature, and they will be the same in the future." Little Eugen said, he is now a very good young man, although this It's true that it can't be said about his appearance and figure - like the Duke of Luxembourg, he is not tall enough, slightly hunched, and has mediocre features. To make matters worse, he slowly revealed Habsburg characteristics as an adult... That is to say, his chin was twisted and protruding. Even if Lady Olympia's beauty eventually neutralized him a lot, what impressed people most was the overly long face.

But if someone saw his eyes, those sparkling eyes full of wisdom, they would definitely forget the above things. Young Eugen was lucky to inherit the brains of Leopold I rather than Madame Olympia - in this era, Leopold I's most unfortunate thing was to coexist with Louis XIV, and the brilliance of the Sun King eclipsed the moon With the light of the stars, this Habsburg emperor was not as ignorant as people thought. He was only hindered by the strict laws left by his ancestors, the various constraints of the princes, and the limited and dangerous territory. ——Austria has no ports and coastlines, and was destined to be stunted in the rapidly developing Age of Discovery. In addition, it is not only tightly surrounded by many countries, but also faces pagans, that is, the Ottoman Turkey, which is declining but still huge. The empire's first line of defense.

Compared with the greedy, hypocritical, despicable and a bit ridiculous Olympia Mancini, little Eugen has a smart head. In the Palace of Versailles, he grew up with the crown prince and the Duke of Enghien and other aristocratic children. The journey went smoothly, and when he was thirteen or fourteen years old, he received the blessing of Louis XIV and became the first student of the French Royal Military Academy, where he became friends with Joseph, Jean Bart, and several other promising young people. He made close friends and received guidance from generals such as the Grand Condé, the Duke of Luxembourg, and Vauban, Viscount Turenne, etc., and he won many praises and favors both in his studies and in the army.

The only thing worth criticizing is his subtle identity - but very few people know about this. Even the Duke of Luxembourg, Grand Condé, knew that little Eugen would accompany him to the Castile region. After writing a letter to remind him, I finally understood why little Eugen Savoy was arranged to stay with him instead of accompanying him.

Here we need to reorganize the identity of little Eugen. His mother is Mary's sister and a Mancini. Her marriage was not as good as she wanted, mainly because Mary's insistence and transgressive behavior angered her. The Queen Mother and Bishop Mazarin, but even so, Count Soissons can be considered a good husband. After all, the Mancini family was originally just a merchant - the wizard's title cannot be recognized in the outside world.

She was able to pursue this marriage because she was the cardinal's niece.

What about the Count of Soissons? The Countess of Soissons is located in France. Because French titles follow the territory, it goes without saying that this title must belong to a French lord. This lord is the Countess of Soissons, who is now the French lord. The count's mother and the countess' father were His Royal Highness the Prince of Savoy, the younger brother of the Grand Duke of Savoy.

Therefore, although the Earl of Soissons inherited his mother's title, his surname was still Savoy, and little Eugen's surname also came from this.

Savoy was originally a county, and then was fortunate enough to be promoted to a principality. The Grand Duke of Savoy has been committed to taking it one step further - but probably no one cares about it now. Savoy is located exactly between France and Italy, upper right It's Switzerland. It's hard to say what the future will be like - the Grand Duke of Savoy may have had some foolish ideas, but the Count of Soissons was serving in the French army and was a close confidant of the king. He quickly wrote to warn his cousin. Brother, we also avoided an unprovoked dispute.

Then, let’s bring the topic back to little Eugen. All young people in France hope to obey the king’s command and fight bravely against the enemy. Little Eugen is no exception, and because his bloodline cannot be made public, With his true identity, he should also be qualified to serve the king. The question is, because the Count of Soissons is a branch of Savoy, or a branch that recently separated, he and his heirs should also have this honor. Therefore, in this battle, the Count of Soissons and his only adult The son is accompanying the king.

Because he knew very early that he was not the biological son of the Count of Soissons, but the dishonorable illegitimate son of Olympia and Leopold I, little Eugen never expected to get a son from the Count of Soissons. Anything a son can get from his father - love, title and property, territory. He believed that the Earl of Soissons was tolerant enough to allow him to occupy the position of his nominal eldest son. He really should not be greedy for more, so he almost never appeared in front of the Earl of Soissons and his family.

The Earl of Soissons was so tolerant because he himself also ignored the marriage. When Olympia Hongxing had an affair, he was living with a gentle woman as a couple. They first had children. After Olympia's death, he begged Louis XIV to give the lady a title so that they could officially get married. So Louis XIV gave the lady the title of Baroness. Not long after they got married, they had a son. This legitimate son happened to be fourteen years old this year and became an adult. So the Count of Soissons resolutely gave him the title of Baroness. Brought to the king, he was now one of the chamberlains of Louis XIV.

Because of these two people, it was inconvenient for little Eugen to stay with the king, so he was sent to the Duke of Luxembourg.

The Duke of Luxembourg was originally very fond of this smart and humble student. After hearing about this incident, he couldn't help but feel a pity. Little Eugen was lucky to meet many tolerant people. If Count Soissons was because of the Olympics, Mancini refused to recognize the child due to the shame brought upon him, so as an illegitimate child without a surname, little Eugen's destination may only be a monastery... Although kings sometimes recognize their illegitimate children and give them Title and territory, but the cold-hearted Leopold I may not be willing to admit his affair with the Countess of Soissons, as well as their children.

Moreover, even if the Count of Soissons recognized him, given his biological father, it would be reasonable for the French King to isolate him from power. After all, no one knows whether he will suddenly betray him because of the bond between blood. France, surrendered to the Holy Roman Empire and Austria, but curiously, their king was the bold Louis XIV.

Louis XIV dared to recommend the Grand Condé, who not only betrayed him, but also almost became the regent, to be the king of Poland. So what if he was the illegitimate son of the Holy Roman Emperor? Not only did he accept little Eugen, but he also let him have a relationship with him. The crown princes grew up together in the Palace of Versailles.

The Duke of Luxembourg sighed. Based on this alone, he could not continue to resent and despise Louis XIV. Even the Grand Condé, his adopted brother and best friend, he did not dare to say that if the latter ascended to the position of King of France , able to treat former enemies and descendants of enemies without any grudges like Louis XIV.

The Duke of Luxembourg thought a lot, but in reality it was just a flash of thought. Little Eugen misunderstood this sigh and hurriedly explained: "Sir, I mean, when His Majesty the King conquered Flanders, Flanders is just a Spanish enclave, and it is full of Protestants with ulterior motives. They have never had a long-term and strong government, nor a monarch they can recognize and rely on. They are accustomed to a lax and chaotic life. Each is in charge of its own affairs and the strong bullies the weak - under such circumstances, if His Majesty the King treats them tolerantly, they will think that France is just a giant with a weak heart. Not only will they not be grateful, but they will intensify their demands for benefits. … If it doesn’t go their way, they will start a rebellion.”

He paused, took the tea handed to him by the Duke of Luxembourg, and drank it in one gulp: "On the contrary, if France behaves more toughly, they will be more humble, or more cautious, and dare not act rashly, lest they They were harmed by the French - because of the long division, they didn't even dare to unite because they couldn't guarantee that those seemingly reliable allies would betray them at the first turn."

"His Majesty the King rules them with the army and the laws in the army. For those civilians who are used to being controlled, and the nobles who are used to only looking at interests and power, it is a familiar thing to them-" At this point , little Eugen smiled: "When I was still in the Palace of Versailles, I was often angry at the cowardice of the former and the shamelessness of the latter. But after hearing about this, His Majesty once told me that putting yourself in someone else's shoes is always the most important thing - —When you are rich, you have to think from the perspective of a poor person; when you are strong, you have to think from the perspective of a weak person; when you are young, you have to think from the perspective of an old person Think from their perspective so that you can understand their behavior and anticipate the consequences of the orders you give and the things you do.”

The Duke of Luxembourg clapped his hands in agreement: "You're right, kid, you're right. Even if you have a pair of Icarus (see note 1) wings, when you put them on an albatross, they will definitely Thank you, but if you stick them in the frogs in the swamp, they will definitely curse you before they are scorched by the sun."

"As for the Netherlands," little Eugen continued excitedly: "The Netherlands is different from Flanders. Although it has not been independent for a long time, it is already a powerful country. Their merchants and officials, as well as captains and soldiers, will Say, they are Dutch, not like the Flemish people, say I am a Flanders, a Calais or a Norse. Their prosperity has lasted for a hundred years and comes from the pride of the country and the nation. Let them have a unified understanding and consciousness, just like the French people now."

"Yes, that's why the Netherlands has a government-in-exile and Flanders doesn't."

"So Your Majesty must cut them open and divide them, even if you have to give others a considerable portion of the benefits." Little Eugen said, clenching his fists involuntarily.

"Otherwise we will face rebellions and riots one after another." The Duke of Luxembourg added. The Duke of Luxembourg was also completely unable to understand Louis XIV's behavior for a period of time - the Netherlands could have been monopolized by France, but through correspondence with Viscount Turenne, he learned that at the beginning, the hostility of the Dutch was indeed only towards France. However, as the Netherlands was divided and the government was exiled to the colonies, the hostility of the Dutch actually began to disperse - it was impossible not to disperse, because the people who directly ruled them were not even French, and those who taxed them were not French. , it was not the French who allowed the soldiers to plunder and act recklessly, because the seven provinces of the Netherlands were closely connected to each other. After a period of time, areas such as North Holland occupied by France even felt that they were happier than the Dutch in other places. Much more...

This is really a bit ridiculous, but the pressure on Viscount Turenne is indeed not as heavy as he thought - with comparison, the Dutch and New France under his command will certainly be satisfied, especially since their King is still It is promised that in ten or twenty years, the Dutch will enjoy meager taxes, good welfare and countless other preferential treatments like the French.

But if there were only French people in the Netherlands, even if the Dutch were immediately treated as favorably as the French or the Catalans, they would not willingly accept French rule.

Note 1:

Icarus (Greek: καρο) is the son of Daedalus in Greek mythology. When he and Daedalus escaped from Crete using wings made of wax and feathers, he flew too high and the wax on his wings was struck by the sun. He fell into the water and died, and was buried on an island.