Changes

===Women===

===Women===

Very few women held an power--some queens did, as did the heads of Catholic convents. In the [[Enlightenment]] the writings of philosopher [[Jean Jacques Rousseau]] gave political program for reform of the ancien régime, founded on a reform of domestic mores. Rousseau's conception of the relations between private and public spheres is more unified than that found in modern sociology. Rousseau argued that the domestic role of women is a structural precondition for a "modern" society.<ref>Jennifer J. Popiel, "Making Mothers: The Advice Genre And The Domestic Ideal, 1760-1830," ''Journal of Family History'' 2004 29(4): 339-350</ref>  

Very few women held power - some queens did, as did the heads of Catholic convents. In the [[Enlightenment]] the writings of philosopher [[Jean Jacques Rousseau]] gave political program for reform of the ancien régime, founded on a reform of domestic mores. Rousseau's conception of the relations between private and public spheres is more unified than that found in modern sociology. Rousseau argued that the domestic role of women is a structural precondition for a "modern" society.<ref>Jennifer J. Popiel, "Making Mothers: The Advice Genre And The Domestic Ideal, 1760-1830," ''Journal of Family History'' 2004 29(4): 339-350</ref>  

====Queens====

====Queens====

Salic law prohibited women from rule; however, the laws for the case of a regency, when the king was too young to govern by himself, brought the queen into the center of power. The queen could assure the passage of power from one king to another--from her late husband to her young son--while simultaneously assuring the continuity of the dynasty.  

Salic law prohibited women from rule; however, the laws for the case of a regency, when the king was too young to govern by himself, brought the queen into the center of power. The queen could assure the passage of power from one king to another--from her late husband to her young son--while simultaneously assuring the continuity of the dynasty.