Louis XIV's Consolidation of Power:  Military's Power in France and Abroad

To address the issue of the nobility’s influence over matters of state, Louis XIV formed a solution to reduce the power of the landed elite. Louis did this by promoting a military culture among the nobility. The nobility, since the Middle Ages, had been compelled by the social expectation that they had to archive honor and glory. Most nobles sought to satisfy this by joining the military and finding both honor and glory on the battlefield. Thus, most officers tended to be nobles and these position had been greatly sought after. Louis XIV took advantage of this by making it that all officer positions would be administered by the king. This meant that for a noble to obtain an office of command they had to be personally selected for the position. Once a noble gained a position, much of the financial burden to maintain their regiments depended on them. To lessen the financial burden on the officers and to reward loyalty, Louis created inspectors that ensured regiments meet regulation standards. These inspectors rewarded officers increased salaries if these regulations had been meet. Louis also awarded medals of honor to those that show loyalty through their courageous acts in battle. If an officer ever displayed their disloyalty through insubordination or deserting, they would be stripped of their position. This had been viewed by the nobility as dishonorable, to the point that the death penalty had been viewed as more honorable in comparison. In doing this, Louis increased the demand by nobles to be officers, gave them what they wanted for a price, and breed loyalty among the nobility. Thus, systems of incentives and punishments allowed Louis tied most of the nobility to the state through the military.