738 FRANCE. 
she education of young ladies of quality, and demanded 
only a penfion of eighty thoufand livres; this was regular¬ 
ly paid her to her death, which took place in about four 
years afterwards. 
The character of Louis XIV. whofe long and various 
reign of feventy-two years was alternately the glory and the 
misfortune of his fubjefts, has exercifed the ingenuity of 
the molt celebrated hiltorians. The manly and engag¬ 
ing form of his per Ton was embellifhed with a noble air; 
the dignity of his manners was tempered with the higheft 
affability and polirenefs ; elegant and courteous without 
effeminacy, acidified to pleal'ure without neglecting bufi- 
nefs, and decent in his very vices, he was beloved in the 
midft of -arbitrary power. But his qualities feemed ra¬ 
ther thofe that attraft a momentary regard, than com¬ 
mand a permanent efteem : the talents, the fire of the 
Ifatefman and the hero, were dill wanting ; vanity rather 
prompted him to infult, than ambition to enilave his 
neighbours; though he frequently took the field, and re¬ 
duced in perfon Franche Comte, and feveralofthe ftrong- 
efi towns of the Netherlands, yet his perfonal courage 
has not efcaped imputation ; and in repeated campaigns 
he never expofed his life or reputation to the hazard of 
a battle. A purer praife attends the care with which he 
.foftered the liberal arts and fciences; though his owuac- 
qtiifitions in literature were limited, yet he patronized 
learned men with an unfparing hand; and in his reign 
the royal academy of Paris was founded ; the painter, 
the poet, the fculptor, and the architect, were all awak¬ 
ened into life by the genial ray of his bounty. The rea¬ 
der who may wifh to perufe a more detailed account of 
the interefiing campaigns of the duke of Marlborough, 
prince Eugene, &c. in this reign, are referred to the 
article England, vol. vi. p. 702-708. 
From the ACCESSION of LOUIS XV. to the ERA 
of the REVOLUTION. 
Louis XV. grandfon to the late king, being only five 
years old when he fucceeded to the throne, tire cares of 
government were devolved by the will of the deceafed 
monarch on a council of regency, at the head of which 
was placed the duke of Orleans, firft prince of the blood, 
and whom the parliament foon after created foie regent. 
The duke po defied courage, penetration, and an under- 
fhmding improved by ihidy : frank and eafy in his man¬ 
ners, of all the defendants of Henry IV. he refembled 
him the mod. The firfi aft of his adminiftration in 1715, 
afforded to the people the moft favourable impreffions of 
his equity and moderation. He refiored to the parliament 
the right or remonfirating againft the edifts of the crown ; 
he compelled thofe who during the late reign had fattened 
on the tniferies of the people to difgorge their ill-gotten 
wealth ; he re-peopled the cities that had been deferted, 
and the lands that had been laid wafte by the ravages of 
war; he promoted commerce, rewarded agriculture; and 
in 1716, hedifpelled the jealoufy that Europe had enter¬ 
tained of the turbulent difpofition of France, by a clofe alli¬ 
ance with Great Britain and the Dutch United Provinces. 
But that tranquillity which the pacific inclinations of 
the regent endeavoured to maintain, was interrupted by 
cardinal Alberoni, furft minifter of Spain, who in 1717 
formed the delign of recovering Sardinia from the empe¬ 
ror, of wrefting Sicily from the duke of Savoy, and of 
eltablifhing the Pretender on the throne of England. He 
negociated with the Ottoman Porte; the czar Peter the 
Great of Ruflia ; and Charles XII. of Sweden. Yet this 
powerful combination was of little avail againfi the united 
forces of France and England. The fleet which Albe- 
l'oni indeed had fitted out, ravaged, and reduced the 
Aland of Sardinia to the fubjeftion of Spain; from thence 
it direfted its courfe towards Sicily ; fuccefsfully landed 
the forces of Philip, and the banners of that monarch were 
loon difplayed from feveral confiderable towns: but while 
the Spaniards urged the fiege of Meflina, they were liir- 
pnfed by the appearance of a Britilh fquadronj the fleet 
it 
of Spain was defeated, and the remnant that efcaped the 
purfuit of the viftors abandoned the hopelefs enterprife 
on Sicily, and fought fhelter in their own harbours. 
Thus the firft hoftile operations commenced by Louis 
XV. were againft his own uncle, whom Louis XIV. had, 
at tlje expence of fo much blood and treafure, eftabliflied 
on the throne of Spain. The forces of France were en- 
trufted to the duke of Berwick, whofe viftories had alfo 
formerly contributed to place the feeptre in the hands 
of Philip; he fuccefiively inverted and reduced Fontera- 
bia and St. Sebaftian in the province of Bifcay ; and Spain, 
overwhelmed with difafters both by fea and land, was 
glad to fue for peace. The conditions w'ere dictated by 
the regent of France : he infifted that Philip fiiould dif- 
mifs his minifter Alberoni. Fonterabia and St. Sebaftian 
were refiored to Spain; but Sicily was transferred to the 
emperor Charles ; and the duke of Savoy, in exchange, 
acquired Sardinia, with the title of king. And now, to 
cement in future the kindred thrones of France and Spain, 
the duke of Orleans projected a double marriage. His 
own daughter] mademoifelle Montpenfier was united to 
don Louis prince of Afturias; and the infanta of Spain 
was betrothed to her coufin Louis king of France. 
The fpirit of enterprife which could no longer be dif¬ 
played in war, was, in 171S, diverted to the affairs of the 
itate. A Scotchman named John Law, who had been 
obliged to fly from England for murder, had formed the 
plan of a bank that might pay off the debts of the nation 
by notes, and reimburfe itfelf by its profits. This needy 
adventurer had wandered through Europe, and endea¬ 
voured to excite the attention of various courts. He firft 
opened his project to the king of Sardinia; but that 
prince rejected the propofal with the reply, “ that he 
was not rich enough to ruin himfelf.” It was received 
with more favourable prepoffellions in France; every cir- 
cumftance of public affairs contributed to recommend it: 
a debt of two hundred millions oppreffed the ftate; no 
common refources appeared equal to the enormous bur¬ 
then ; and the inclinations of the people, prone to novelty, 
were feconded by the patronage of the regent. The bank 
at firft iffued their notes with caution ; but the credit 
with which they were attended foon increafed the amount; 
and its conneftion with the Mifliffippi, a trading company 
from which great advantages were expefted, allured the 
public with the hopes of extraordinary gain. It now af- 
pired to grander objefts: it was declared the bank of the 
king ; embraced the management of the trade to Senegal ; 
acquired the privileges which the celebrated Colbert had 
granted to the old Eaft India Company ; and, finally, en- 
groffed the farming of the national taxes. 
But this plan, which, if confined within proper bounds, 
might have been attended with falutary effects, foon burft 
the limits propoled ; and fweeping before it all the bar¬ 
riers of policy and diferetion, overw helmed the nation in 
its ruinous courfe. Thoufands daily crowded to ex¬ 
change their gold for bills; and the fluftuation of the 
flock afforded an opportunity to a few individuals to ac- 
quire iminenfe fortunes. The notes circulated exceeded 
near a hundred per cent, the real value of the current 
coin of the kingdom. At length the delufion ceafed 5 
the bafts of the fabric was found to be nothing but credit; 
and the moment a doubt prevailed, the whole edifice fell 
to the ground. By drawing upon it for confiderable 
fums, the lute financiers and great bankers foon exhaufted 
the royal bank; every one was now as eager to convert 
their paper into money, as they were lately to convert 
their money into paper. But the difproportion was 
found to be enormous; the arrets of the regent, inftead 
of reftoring confidence to the people, extinguifhed it 5 
and the fame year that gave birth to the company’s im¬ 
portance, beheld it return to its primitive nothing. Law 
himfelf, who had been raifed from a fugitive adventurer 
to a lord, and from a banker to a minifter of ftate, was 
the fame year loaded with univerfal execration, obliged 
to fly the country he had ruined, and died at Venice in a 
ftate 
