Primary Source

Louis XVI

Portrait of King Louis XVI

Annotation

Here was the "body politic" of the old regime. Theoretically, France existed only as an entity in the body of the King. The citizens were his subjects; the geographical parts linked together only through the monarch. Robed and wigged, he was an emblem of a centuries–old regime.

Credits

Included as part of the LIBERTY, EQUALITY, FRATERNITY: EXPLORING THE FRENCH REVOLUTION project
https://revolution.chnm.org/d/175

How to Cite This Source

"Louis XVI," in World History Commons, https://worldhistorycommons.org/louis-xvi [accessed March 27, 2024]