ANNIVERSARIES

1 SEPTEMBER 1715

Louis XIV succumbs to gangrene

The Sun King’s death marks the end of French ascendancy

There had never been a more splendid king of France than Louis XIV. Feared and admired across Europe, the Sun King was the most powerful monarch of his day, ruling a country that had become by far the continent’s most formidable political, military and cultural force. Yet behind the mask of power, Louis often suffered from ill health. He probably had diabetes, as well as dental abscesses, gout and, most embarrassingly, an anal fistula which required painful surgery.

In August 1715, about a month before his 77th birthday, the elderly French king spent a pleasant day hunting. But when he returned to Versailles, he felt an agonising pain in his leg and