Who governed France while Louis XIV was young?

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Charles Le Brun: Portrait of King Louis XIV — Louis XIV *Portrait of King Louis XIV*, by Charles Le Brun, c. 1655.

During the minority of Louis XIV, France was governed by his mother, the queen regent Anne of Austria, and her chief minister, Cardinal Jules Mazarin.12

Following the death of Louis XIII in 1643, Anne of Austria became the sole regent and entrusted the administration of the kingdom to Mazarin, who had been a close associate of Cardinal de Richelieu. Together, they navigated the challenges of the Fronde—a series of civil wars and uprisings between 1648 and 1653 that sought to challenge royal authority. Despite facing significant opposition from the nobility and the Parlement of Paris, Anne and Mazarin successfully maintained power, eventually securing a victory that paved the way for the absolute monarchy of Louis XIV’s personal reign.132