Louis XIV (born in 1638, became king in 1643, died in 1715) exemplified “absolute monarchy.” He centralized power under the authority of the king, and after 1685, he established his court at the palace of Versailles. Many artists portrayed him with the features of a Roman general or the gods Mars or Apollo, and from the latter he acquired the nickname of “the Sun King.” At the time of this portrait, he was more than fifty years old, an age considered at the time to be elderly.
