DIGITISED MANUSCRIPTS

history is a long record either of wars or of inter- necine strife, presenting a picture which alternates between the revolts of the great chieftains and the risings of the people. The second part of the sixteenth century of France, and the first part of the seventeenth, were ghastly kaleidoscopic scenes of crime and folly, of anarchy and despotism, ending in a victory for the monarchy. It was only under Louis XIV. that France be- came a homogeneous and compact nation. But during his long reign the demoralising tendencies of absolutism made themselves felt. The great independent chieftains of the previous century were transformed into courtiers ; the re- sources of the country were exhausted by wars, and the most industrious section of the people, the Pro- testants, were driven into exile by fanatical persecu- tion. When Louis XIV. died, in 1715, the character and aspirations of the nation had been modified by the influences of civilisation, but the feudal institu- tions of the past still remained ; which institutions were only possible in the darkness of the Middle Ages, or when upheld by the strong hand of a despot. The reign of his successor rendered a change inevitable; and the passion with which that change was accomplished was consonant with the character of the nation. It was a mere