Louis XIV of France’s 72-year reign (1643-1715), is most well-known for the luxuriousness of the court and Louis’s multiple mistresses.1 However, what is less well-known is how much influence the various women around Louis had on his court and character and therefore the way he ruled. To examine this an analysis of the roles of the most prominent women, who surrounded the king throughout his life, needs to be undertaken to gauge their influence on and his court.2 These women include his mother Anne of Austria (d.1666), his first wife Maria-Theresa (d.1683), his mistresses such as Madame Montespan (d.1707) and lastly, his second wife Madame Maintenon (d.1719).3 The impact of each of them in the context of the traditional role of queens and official mistresses in the early modern French court will be examined and analysed.