ABSTRACT
Francis I and Henry II were as powerful as any other kings of France; 'it was at the beginning of the sixteenth century that the absolute monarchy triumphed.' Under Francis, 'the popular, consultative nature of the monarchy continued unmodified for the first third of the period and was only mildly altered thereafter.' Historians who have attempted to characterise the monarchy of Francis I and Henry II fall into two camps: first, those who look outwards from the centre of the kingdom; secondly, those who have approached the problem from the periphery. The former have seen the monarchy as 'absolute' and the latter as 'contractual' or 'popular and consultative'. Both views deserve serious attention. French Renaissance monarchy was limited by the foundations of medieval privilege on which it was built: royal legislation was subject to registration by the Parlements, and in the pays d'etats royal taxation was subject to the consent of the people's representatives.
