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Key absolutist rulers to know
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- Louis XIV of France (r. 1643-1715): The model absolute monarch. Built Versailles. Centralized French government. Pursued aggressive foreign wars. Revoked the Edict of Nantes (1685), persecuting French Protestants (Huguenots).
- Peter the Great of Russia (r. 1682-1725): Combined absolutism with westernization. Forced modernization on a reluctant nobility.
- Frederick the Great of Prussia (r. 1740-1786): "Enlightened despot" who modernized Prussian administration, expanded religious tolerance, and corresponded with Voltaire while maintaining absolute power
- Catherine the Great of Russia (r. 1762-1796): Another "enlightened despot" who patronized Enlightenment thinkers but cracked down on serfs and dissent
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