In his Mémoires pour l'instruction du dauphin ( Memoirs for the Instruction of the Dauphin ), he explained the need to establish 'this society of pleasures, which gives the people of the court an honest familiarity with the, and touches and charms them ineffably'. Louis XIV made games a meticulous ritual, having learned that to govern one must first provide amusements. When France was a kingdom, people in high places played games-not only for fun, but also by royal decree.
